May 05, 2023
South Africa: Analysis - 21 Months Later, What Progress Has Wagner Made in the Eastern Cape?
For years, the Eastern Cape Department of Health has made the headlines, often for the wrong reasons. From rat-infested hospitals and newborn babies dying in overcrowded and… Read more »
May 04, 2023
South Africa: 'That Iron Suitcase Saved My Life' - Retired Nurse Reflects On 37 Years of Service
When Boitumelo Motsei became a nurse, she didn't expect that she would also have to learn to ride a bicycle or drive a donkey cart. Read more »
May 03, 2023
South Africa: In-Depth - SA's Obesity Problem and the Promise of New Weight Loss Medicines
Obesity is a complicated public health issue that can be devastating on both the societal and the individual level. On one hand, it costs our economy millions and is a strain on… Read more »
May 02, 2023
South Africa: Eikehof Care Home - a Refuge for Many Cancer Patients On Treatment Far Away From Home
Even on a grey winter's day, the Eikehof care home in a quiet Athlone cul-de-sac in Cape Town is sun-washed and bright. In the kitchen, general assistants Tania Mazamebela and… Read more »
April 18, 2023
South Africa: Access to Sufficient Colostomy Bags Still Hit-and-Miss At Gauteng Hospitals
Six months after Spotlight first reported on the plight of stoma patients experiencing shortages of colostomy and urostomy bags at Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital (CHBAH)… Read more »
April 11, 2023
South Africa: What New STI Prevention Findings Mean for SA
Last year, Spotlight reported that taking a widely available antibiotic after condomless sex can reduce the risk of contracting three different sexually transmitted infections… Read more »
April 13, 2023
Africa: Major Study Turns Spotlight On Formula Milk Industry
The scientific evidence that exclusive breastfeeding is best for infants is very strong. Yet, some baby milk formula companies continue to use questionable methods to create demand… Read more »
April 14, 2023
South Africa: Oral Health Services for Persons With Special Needs Still Lacking
In a landmark ruling earlier this year, the Bhisho High Court ruled that the Eastern Cape Department of Health would not need to make lump sum payments for future medical expenses… Read more »
March 14, 2023
South Africa: Spotlight On Nehawu Strike - Dispatches From the Frontlines
By Tuesday morning, striking healthcare workers and support staff in various parts of the country had returned to work, but there are reports that back to work does not necessarily… Read more »
February 20, 2023
South Africa: Some Improvement but Much More Needed to Address Health Needs of Key Populations
Bonang Moleleki, who represents Bong Jwa Tlhago Trans, a North West-based non-governmental organisation that works on transgender issues, tells Spotlight in her experience the… Read more »
April 04, 2023
South Africa: New Screening Programme Planned for Cystic Fibrosis in SA
In recent weeks, cystic fibrosis (CF) has been in the headlines because of a court case about access to new treatments for the genetic condition. CF is one of the most common… Read more »
April 03, 2023
South Africa: Face to Face - 'It's Not About Me, It's About the Patient That I'm Helping', Says Head of Trauma At Bara
Professor Rudo Mathivha speaks slowly and thoughtfully - a direct contradiction to the hive of activity around her at Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital in Soweto, where she… Read more »
April 06, 2023
South Africa: Do We Have to Balance the Right to Health With the Right to Strike?
South Africa's public health sector strikes often come down to pitting two rights against each other - the right of workers to strike and the rights of patients to access… Read more »
March 30, 2023
South Africa: Ongoing Security Concerns At Gauteng Hospitals Amid Reports of Cable Theft
Already bogged down by loadshedding, operations at various health facilities in Gauteng and some other provinces have also been disrupted due to cable theft, creating another layer… Read more »
March 29, 2023
South Africa: New Free State Health MEC Wants to Restore Hope in the Province's Healthcare Services
Her aim is to restore hope in healthcare services for the people of Free State, the province's new Health MEC Mathabo Leeto said shortly after being sworn in as MEC on 14 March. Read more »
March 28, 2023
South Africa: In-Depth - Mostly Positive Responses to SA's New HIV, TB and STI Plan
South Africa's National Strategic Plan for HIV, TB and STIs (2023 - 2028) was launched on Friday at Tlhabane Stadium in Rustenburg, North West as the world commemorated World TB… Read more »
March 27, 2023
South Africa: We Need More Dedicated Investment to Address TB in Children
The theme of last year's World Tuberculosis (TB) Day was 'Invest to end TB' - an apt theme acknowledging the critical shortfall in funding for TB if we are to meet the 2035 goal of… Read more »
March 24, 2023
South Africa: Face to Face - Prof Muki Shey On His Journey From Cameroon to Doing Cutting-Edge TB Research
It was his own background including childhood sickness that inflamed Professor Muki Shey's passion for finding health solutions in resource-constrained settings. Read more »
March 23, 2023
South Africa: Making Good On the Promise of SA's TB Recovery Plan
Tuberculosis (TB) remains the leading cause of death in South Africa. In 2021, TB accounted for 56 000 deaths and 304 000 people got sick with TB in the country. This is part of an… Read more »
March 15, 2023
South Africa: In-Depth - the State of SA's HPV Vaccination Programme in 2023
"I was overwhelmed and in complete shock. I never expected what was pretty much a cancer scare in my twenties," says Johannesburg-based Rachel, who was 28 years old when she… Read more »
March 17, 2023
South Africa: Urgent Course Correction Needed On NHI, Climate Change, and Economic Policy #AfricaClimateCrisis
Kedibone Mmupele (27), her two children Onkarabile (2) and Nkune (6), and her younger siblings Mapule (7) and Sebengu (9) had not had a decent meal in weeks, media reports at the… Read more »
March 23, 2023
South Africa: Yes! We Can End TB in South Africa
Tuberculosis (TB), an ancient but curable disease, kills more people worldwide than any other infectious disease. Despite decades of global efforts to fight TB, more than 1.6… Read more »
March 22, 2023
South Africa: Supply Issues Delaying Wider Rollout of Shorter TB Preventive Therapy
Though estimates vary substantially, it is thought that in the region of 300 000 people fall ill with tuberculosis (TB) in South Africa every year. Many more people, however, have… Read more »
March 20, 2023
South Africa: New Guidelines Are a Step Forward for SA's TB Response
In February 2021, findings from South Africa's first national tuberculosis (TB) prevalence survey confirmed what many suspected - every year, tens of thousands of people sick with… Read more »
March 13, 2023
South Africa: Community Care Model Improves Uptake of TB Preventive Therapy, Study Finds
The uptake and continuation of tuberculosis (TB) preventive therapy were much higher when it was provided through a community-based model compared to the standard clinic-based… Read more »