February 21, 2023
South Africa: Disproportionate Number of Children in SA Have Severe Asthma, Experts Say
Despite being one of the most common non-communicable diseases globally and there being highly effective treatments for it, asthma is often not well controlled in many low-resource… Read more »
February 27, 2023
South Africa: What Next After Shortened TB Treatment Fails in Key Trial?
The current treatment for drug-susceptible tuberculosis (TB) used in South Africa involves a combination of four antibiotics, last for six months, effectively cures TB, and is dirt… Read more »
February 17, 2023
South Africa: NHI Bill Must Still Clear Many Hurdles to Ensure Adequate Medicine Access
A frightful piece of information came to light recently. The t pharmaceutical giant Pfizer announced its 2022 revenue at $100 billion. This is more than the combined health… Read more »
February 15, 2023
Africa: Why Has the Price of This Cancer Medicine Risen and Fallen By Over a Thousand Percent Since 2016?
Lenalidomide is an important medicine used for the treatment of multiple myeloma - a type of bone marrow cancer that is not curable and typically requires long-term, ongoing… Read more »
February 14, 2023
South Africa: R27m Needed to Get Eastern Cape EMS Plan Off the Ground
Gogo Nothembile Fanti (76) says she suffers from a heart condition and every time her grandchildren call an ambulance, they are told to wait, but it never arrives. She is one of… Read more »
February 10, 2023
South Africa: Conversations About Sex - We Must Do Better for Young People
Young people, especially young women, account for a huge chunk of the nearly 200 000 new HIV infections in South Africa every year. Preventing HIV infections in this group is thus… Read more »
February 16, 2023
Africa: What's the Deal With Viral Variants When It Comes to HIV?
When a study published last year on an HIV variant that has been circulating in the Netherlands for the last 20 years made headlines around the world, it was a reminder that… Read more »
February 13, 2023
Africa: Why South Africa Is Not Getting the New Bivalent SARS-CoV-2 Vaccines
The Department of Health is not planning to buy the new COVID-19 bivalent booster vaccines, specifically tailored to target Omicron variants, anytime soon. Read more »
February 09, 2023
South Africa: Should South Africa Invest in the Latest HIV Tests?
South Africa's mass HIV testing programme has been a huge success over the last decade, so much so that the country has almost hit the global target of 95% of people with HIV… Read more »
February 06, 2023
South Africa: Progress in Charlotte Maxeke Recovery, but HR and Other Problems Persist
2023 is the crunch year to complete the restoration of the fire-damaged sections of Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital, but one month in, it has not been plain… Read more »
February 01, 2023
South Africa: Northern Cape Health Still Without Permanent Head As Suspended Officials Return
It may be business as usual in the Northern Cape Department of Health for the former acting Head of Health and the chief financial officer who are back at work after suspension,… Read more »
January 30, 2023
Africa: HIV Vaccine Research Set to Change Focus in Wake of Mosaico Disappointment
Hopes for the Johnson & Johnson (J&J) Mosaico vaccine - the only HIV vaccine candidate in late-stage (Phase 3) clinical trials - were dashed with manufacturer Janssen… Read more »
January 25, 2023
South Africa: This Is Why Mpumalanga Is Repurposing Some TB Hospitals
The Mpumalanga Health Department plans to repurpose three of its five tuberculosis (TB) hospitals due to dwindling numbers of in-patients at these hospitals. Read more »
January 23, 2023
South Africa: In-Depth - As Schools Open, Will Measles Outbreaks Get Worse?
In October last year, the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) alerted the public to a measles outbreak in Limpopo. Since then, four more provinces have reported… Read more »
January 26, 2023
South Africa: As With Covid-19, the Effects of TB Can Linger Long After It Is Cured
According to the World Health Organization, of the roughly 10 million people who fall ill with TB annually, over 80% survive, in most cases due to a six-month treatment course.… Read more »
January 18, 2023
South Africa: Health in 2023 - 13 Things to Look Out For
Set against the backdrop of the ongoing COVID-19 recovery, the National Health Insurance Bill winding its way through Parliament, healthcare worker shortages, and the ongoing… Read more »
December 20, 2022
South Africa: 2022's Health Budget Decisions in Review
Health budgets have the power to advance access to healthcare for millions of people in South Africa. This year, however, as the health sector and the economy recovered from the… Read more »
December 19, 2022
South Africa: Living With a Stoma in SA - We Deserve Better
In May 2016, I was diagnosed with colorectal cancer. I was lucky. Detecting the cancer early meant that I required no chemo or radiation therapy and just had surgery, which left me… Read more »
December 15, 2022
South Africa: SA to Receive Donation of New Child-Friendly DR-TB Medicines
South Africa's National Department of Health is set to receive a donation of child-friendly formulations of several medicines used to treat drug-resistant tuberculosis (DR-TB). It… Read more »
South Africa: Spotlight On Health - 2022 in Under 1 000 Words
2022 is maybe most notable for what didn't happen. While SARS-CoV-2 continued to mutate rapidly, we did not see another devastating wave of COVID-19 deaths as some feared we might.… Read more »
December 14, 2022
South Africa: Pilot Programme Improving Access to Mental Health Services for Children in Khayelitsha
Earlier this year, the annual South African Child Gauge indicated that child and adolescent mental health services in South Africa are in crisis - mostly due to inadequate… Read more »
December 13, 2022
South Africa: How Well Did Sahpra Do in 2022?
Following the emergence of COVID-19 and the regular mention of the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (SAHPRA) in the news - mostly in relation to what health… Read more »
December 12, 2022
South Africa: In-Depth - 'Access Not Excess' Key to Reducing Antibiotic Resistance in SA
Antibiotics play a vital role in the management of bacterial infections, reducing morbidity, and preventing mortality. A 2011 report from the United Kingdom estimated that they… Read more »
December 06, 2022
South Africa: Experts Call for Better Screening and Treatment of TB During Pregnancy
Busisiwe Beko, from Khayelitsha in the Western Cape, was diagnosed with drug-resistant tuberculosis (DR-TB) while she was pregnant. She remembers it as a very difficult period in… Read more »
December 09, 2022
South Africa: An Open Letter to Us Girls Who Still Shoulder Much of the HIV Burden in South Africa
Dear Adolescent girl, Read more »