South Africa: Flu Rates Anticipated to Return to Pre-Covid-19 Levels

COVID-19-related factors resulted in several years of lower-than-normal rates of the flu, but experts say that is now something of the past. As this year's flu season gets under… Read more »

South Africa: Chronic Kidney Disease Rates Have Dropped in People With HIV, but Late Diagnosis Remains a Serious Problem

People living with HIV are at an increased risk of developing several opportunistic infections and co-morbidities, including chronic kidney disease. Elri Voigt unpacks the complex… Read more »

South Africa: Widely Used HIV Drug in SA Flagged for Reports of Resistance - but Experts Say Don't Panic

That HIV can develop resistance to the drugs used to treat it is nothing new, but results from recent studies reveal the emergence of resistance in subsets of people living with… Read more »

South Africa: Health Services in the Eastern Cape - What Changed Since the Last Elections?

In this analysis, Luvuyo Mehlwana looks back at the performance of public healthcare services in the Eastern Cape over the last five years - a term characterised by leadership… Read more »

South Africa: One in Four People With HIV Not On Treatment, According to New Estimates

Despite South Africa's impressive HIV testing figures, a subset of people start taking antiretroviral therapy far later than is ideal for their health, shows new data from the… Read more »

South Africa: Dramatic Decline in Condom Distribution in SA, New Figures Show

Condom distribution in South Africa has dropped dramatically over the last five years, finds a Spotlight analysis of data recently published in the Health System Trust's District… Read more »

South Africa: Focus On Children, Urges President of SA Society of Psychiatrists

There are serious gaps in psychiatry regarding treatment, prevention and care for children and adolescents in South Africa. Offering solutions, Dr Anusha Lachman tells Spotlight… Read more »

South Africa: Stigma, Lack of Awareness Holding Back Use of HIV Prevention Pills, Experts Say

Over the last four years South Africa has taken large strides in making HIV prevention pills available at public sector clinics, but uptake has not been as good as some may have… Read more »

South Africa: Someone Close to Me Has Been Diagnosed With TB - What Should I Do?

Tuberculosis can infect anyone. It is caused by bacteria and spreads through air and is very common in South Africa. Dr Janet Giddy shares how she deals with Mrs Worried - an… Read more »

South Africa: Effective Reduction to Health Promotion Levy Undermines Diabetes Response

Non-communicable diseases are killing more and more people in South Africa yet the government missed out on raising a total of more than R15 billion for prevention efforts, argues… Read more »

South Africa: Big Jump in Drug Use Over Two Decades, Study Finds

The proportion of South Africans consuming marijuana, cocaine, and heroin has increased substantially since the early 2000s, research shows. Jesse Copelyn breaks down the reasons… Read more »

South Africa: Pilot Project Now Offering HIV Prevention Injection

A new HIV prevention injection is now available to a select number of people in South Africa. That a single shot provides two months of protection is one of the injection's major… Read more »

South Africa: There Is a 'Worrying' Resurgence of Sexually Transmitted Infections in Gauteng

There's a comeback of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in South Africa and around the world. The Gauteng Department of Health recently reported an increase of newly acquired… Read more »

South Africa: SA's Cancer Data Has Significant Gaps - Now Patients Can Help Fix It

There are significant gaps in the data when it comes to understanding South Africa's cancer burden. Things are however set to improve with an initiative that will allow members of… Read more »

South Africa: Patient-Centred Health Care - the NHI Revolution You Deserve

A patient-centred health system will remain an illusion under the NHI unless the public health system is ramped up to better serve users and a clear path is outlined for… Read more »

South Africa: With Elections and NHI, This Is a Big Year for Healthcare in SA

South Africa is barrelling towards its most consequential and most competitive national and provincial elections since 1994, expected to take place in May. That the ANC's share of… Read more »

South Africa: This Is How SA Can Meet Its HIV Targets

"The path to ending AIDS is clear," states a recent UNAIDS report. "HIV responses succeed when they are anchored in strong political leadership, have adequate resources, follow the… Read more »

South Africa: We Can't Simply Close Dental Facilities During the Festive Period

On the 2nd of January 2024, Simphiwe*, needing emergency oral healthcare, turned to the Cala District Hospital in the Eastern Cape. However, she was confronted with a note on the… Read more »

South Africa: Analysis - Where We Are With Nimart 13 Years Later

Like many countries, South Africa has a shortage of healthcare workers - particularly of doctors. One response to such shortages is task-shifting - in short, to let doctors focus… Read more »

South Africa: In-Depth - What Is the Situation With Self-Managed Abortions in SA?

In a context where access to surgical abortion is limited, self-managed abortion has the potential to help women realise their right to terminate pregnancies, in privacy and from… Read more »

South Africa: Analysis - SA Close to Meeting TB Research Funding Targets, but Most Countries Falling Short

South Africa is one of only six countries to ever meet its "fair share target" for funding tuberculosis (TB) research, according to a Treatment Action Group (TAG) report published… Read more »

South Africa: Interview - 'I Used That Anger to Feed My Activist's Soul,' Says Former TAC General Secretary

Dressed in a dark jacket, rain is pelting Vuyiseka Dubula-Majola's face as she rushes past bare trees in Geneva, Switzerland. Along with her two children, Dubula-Majola has newly… Read more »

South Africa: Health in 2023 - a Deceptively Busy Year in Fewer Than 1 000 Words

2023 was a busy year for healthcare in South Africa. There were several policy developments, landmark court cases, important pieces of legislation, and some changes in leadership.… Read more »

South Africa: Integrating HIV and NCD Care Is Critical but Not Straightforward, Clinicians Say

With the remarkable success of antiretroviral treatment people living with HIV in South Africa are generally living much longer than they did two decades ago - so much so that… Read more »

South Africa: From a Pig Farm in Zim to Star HIV Researcher - Prof LGB Reflects On Her Remarkable Journey

In a double-storey building emblazoned with the face of late Archbishop Desmond Tutu, inside Professor Linda-Gail Bekker's office a bookshelf is stacked with titles on general… Read more »