By month end South Africa will have a new Minister of Health. Ufrieda Ho asked some academics and activists what qualities that person should have to tackle the key health issues the country faces.
In this open letter to Minister of Health Dr Joe Phaahla, TB activists call for the disease to be made a political priority and demand multisectoral departmental accountability. They outline six demands for implementation by the end of this year. The letter was submitted on the final day of the South African TB Conference being held this week in Durban.
Besides preventing illness and death, tuberculosis prevention therapy is estimated to be highly cost effective. Yet, uptake of the medication is not what it could be in South Africa. Tiyese Jeranji asks how much has changed since the Department of Health last year decided to make TB prevention therapy much more widely available.
The North West University Medical School will be the country’s 11th medical school. Nthusang Lefafa speaks to public health experts to find out how this new medical school will do things differently.
Dr Moherndran Archary’s research has helped shape South African health policy, most notably the rollout of better HIV treatments for children and babies. Spotlight’s Biénne Huisman chatted to him about the state of HIV treatment for kids and some exciting prospects on the horizon.
Several political parties have pledged to plug shortages of healthcare staff at government hospitals and clinics by training more health workers. They’re right to be concerned with understaffing, but are they putting the right solutions on the table? Jesse Copelyn investigates.
What is at stake in South Africa’s upcoming provincial elections when it comes to healthcare? Ufrieda Ho put questions to five political parties about their plans to get Gauteng Health on track to better healthcare services after the polls. Only two parties responded .
President Cyril Ramaphosa signed into law the National Health Insurance Bill, which is the ANC-led government’s plan for universal health coverage, just 14 days before the country heads to the polls.
Healthcare is an issue that at some point touches everyone in South Africa. It is also an issue that will impact who people vote for on the 29th of May. To help voters understand just what parties are putting on the table when it comes to healthcare, Spotlight pin-pointed seven critical healthcare questions and put them to 10 political parties.
Dr Karl le Roux, former chair of the Rural Doctors’ Association of South Africa, says the time has come for him to take his knowledge and experience to the national political arena. He is now hoping for a seat in parliament on the DA’s ticket. Sue Segar caught up with him.
Diabetes is the second leading cause of death in South Africa after tuberculosis, according to Statistics South Africa. It is the leading cause of death in women. Yet, despite being a major driver of deaths and illness, we do not have a clear picture of how many people in the country have diabetes or how many people are receiving diabetes care. This leaves our health system ill-equipped to handle the growing diabetes crisis.
In response to high levels of codeine abuse in South Africa, health authorities have been developing a plan to track the supply of the drug from manufacturers all the way to patients. In this Spotlight feature, Jesse Copelyn explores why people get hooked on codeine, and how the new project could combat the problem.