South Africa: Is SA On Track to Solve Its Nursing Crisis?

Nurse shortages and the training of nurses in South Africa were in the spotlight at a two-day conference on the future of nursing hosted by the South African Nursing Council (SANC)… Read more »

South Africa: The Complex Interplay Between TB and Liver Problems

People in South Africa who fall ill with tuberculosis (TB) often also have other health issues. HIV, which drives much of the TB epidemic in South Africa, is the most obvious… Read more »

South Africa: Part of Child Protection Is Allowing Children to Be Themselves When It Comes to Gender

South Africa is observing Child Protection Week from 29 May to 5 June to shine a spotlight on the rights of children as enshrined in the Constitution and the Children's Act. The… Read more »

South Africa: Interview - Dr Lebogang Phahladira On His Journey From Studying By Candlelight to Winning a Major Schizophrenia Research Award

In his Twitter biography, 40-year-old Dr Lebogang Phahladira describes himself as "a rookie clinician-researcher who keeps trying and trying". Now, he is just back from Toronto,… Read more »

South Africa: Groote Schuur Hospital Clears Backlog of 1 500 Surgeries

Much of South Africa's public health sector is plagued by long waiting times for surgery, a situation that was made much worse by the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, an inspiring project… Read more »

South Africa: Too Scared to Come to Work, Nurse Says Amid Rising Security Concerns At Eastern Cape Health Facilities

Amid concerns over the security and safety of health workers at public health facilities in the Eastern Cape, the Democratic Nursing Union of South Africa (DENOSA) says it is… Read more »

South Africa: New Report Paints Grim, but Incomplete Picture of Cancer in SA

Statistics South Africa's (StatsSA) report on cancer in South Africa (2008-2019) released at the end of March is intended to inform cancer treatment and a cancer management… Read more »

South Africa: New Policies Aim to Integrate Mental Health Support Into HIV Services

South Africa has both high rates of HIV and mental health conditions. Around 13.2% of people in South Africa are living with HIV, according to the latest estimates from Thembisa,… Read more »

South Africa: Covid-19 - What Next As Shots Expire and Become Harder to Get?

Millions of doses of the Pfizer-BioNtech COVID-19 vaccine procured by the South African government have expired and the shot is largely unavailable to people in the country. Read more »

Africa: Opinion - HIV Testing Is Changing in South Africa, Here's Why It's a Good Thing

In South Africa, we have been using HIV Rapid Diagnostic Tests (Finger prick - same-day testing) for years. There are several reasons for this. First, to save costs as the… Read more »

South Africa: In-Depth - Mpumalanga's Healthcare Worker Shortage and What Is Being Done About It

There are over 100 clinics in Mpumalanga without visiting doctors, hundreds waiting on surgeries in hospitals due to a lack of surgeons and specialists, and only 60 working… Read more »

South Africa: Rheumatology in SA - Patients Pay the Price for Shortage of Specialists

"We do not have a reach of rheumatology in all provinces in South Africa," says Dr Ayesha Wadee, the president of the South African Rheumatism and Arthritis Association (SARAA). "I… Read more »

South Africa: Face to Face - Prof Naeemah Abrahams On Breaking Feminist Stereotypes and 'Fighting Through Research and Analyses'

Professor Naeemah Abrahams attended lectures for her Master's degree in Public Health at the University of the Western Cape with a 10-day-old baby on her lap. It was 1996 and… Read more »

South Africa: 90-60-50 - Can SA Reach Its Hypertension Targets?

While HIV and tuberculosis (TB) rates in South Africa are slowly declining, indications are that rates of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) like hypertension and diabetes are on the… Read more »

South Africa: Opinion - Why I Became a Nurse and What's Needed to Fix Nursing in SA

Today we celebrate Nurses as we do every year on 12 May. The International Council of Nurses proclaimed this year's slogan as 'Our Nurses, Our Future', but what is the future of… Read more »

South Africa: Interview - Cheri Nel, the Investment Banker From Joburg Taking On Pharma Over Cystic Fibrosis Medicines

"We fight the bacteria, guns a blazing!" says Johannesburg-based investment banker Cheri Nel. Read more »

South Africa: Despite Undertakings, Still No Permanent Head of Health in Northern Cape

The Northern Cape Department of Health has been without a permanent head since 2020. In this time the department has had at least two acting heads of department (HoDs) - the latest… Read more »

South Africa: Courts to Decide Whether Pharmacists Can Start HIV Medicines Without a Doctor's Script

In August 2021, the South African Pharmacy Council (SAPC) published legislation in the Government Gazette to enable pharmacists to prescribe and dispense antiretroviral medicines… Read more »

South Africa: Ramaphosa Proclaims 'Health Revolution' At Second Presidential Health Summit

The Presidential Health Summit held on Thursday and Friday last week set out ten key areas targeted for intervention to meet the South African government's objective of advancing… Read more »

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 »

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 »

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 »

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 »

South Africa: New Mental Health Policy Welcomed, but Experts Concerned Over Implementation

South Africa's long-awaited new National Mental Health Policy Framework and Strategic Plan 2023 - 2030 took centre stage this week at the two-day SA Mental Health Conference in… Read more »

South Africa: In-Depth - How Cystic Fibrosis Is Being Treated in SA While Breakthrough Meds Remain Out of Reach

Legal action is underway in South Africa to improve access to a game-changing new class of medicines called CFTR modulator therapies for treatment of cystic fibrosis (CF). Where… Read more »