SAâs private hospitals hit by suspended elective surgeries â and an op backlog is building Jul 18, 2021, 04:55 AM facebook (Getty Images) Elective surgeries – non-emergency procedures scheduled in advance – in South Africa have been suspended at various points throughout the pandemic. This has been done to increase the capacity of hospitals and clinics to deal with Covid-19 patients during a surge of infection. Temporary suspensions have hit the revenue of private healthcare firms, while allowing medical insurers to grow their reserves. But a backlog is building and those needing non-critical surgery will likely have to wait a while longer once the third wave subsides.