Stockout of Depo-Testosterone is life threatening
Depo-Testosterone, an affordable injectable hormone, has been out of stock in South Africa for more than three months. The shortage has been described as life-threatening. Karin Schimke reports.
System-wide neglect of the transgender population
The recent stock-out of a hormone used in gender-affirming treatment for transgender men has revealed a system-wide neglect of a large sector of the South African population. Karin Schimke reports.
Healthcare after the elections
Who will be South Africa’s next Minister of Health and what will be the impact of May’s national and provincial elections on South Africa’s ongoing health crisis?
Lusikisiki push for condoms in schools
In Luskikisiki in the Eastern Cape girls as young as 11 years old are falling pregnant and becoming HIV-infected, prompting renewed calls by the Treatment Action Campaign (TAC) that government condoms are distributed at primary schools. Biénne Huisman attended a community meeting in Lusikisiki.
Tips for Tito!
Finance Minister Tito Mboweni put out a Twitter appeal last week for inputs on his Medium Term Budget Policy Statement which he delivers today. The Rural Health Advocacy Project’s Russell Rensburg heeded his call and has compiled some “Tips for Tito”.
Our health system: Babies are the “canaries in the mine”
If our hospitals were mines they would be declared unsafe. Unfortunately though our canary-babies and their mothers can’t choose not to go into the mine.
But hey, who cares?
Once upon a time and not so long ago our politicians and senior public servants cared about the lives of other people. They cared about the loss of life. They took personal risks to prevent it. They went to prison. They went into exile. They risked their own security and comfort. That was once upon a time. That was history.
Life Esidimeni: One year after the arbitration
It is one year since the Life Esidimeni arbitration kicked off. Ngqabutho Mpofu reflects on what has happened since and what still needs to happen for true justice to be delivered to those who were wronged.
More black people donating blood in SA
There was a substantial increase in black blood donors in South Africa from 2005 to 2015, while the very small risk of HIV transmission via blood transfusion became even smaller.
Building public health system capacity for NHI: Learning from disease-specific successes for system development
Opinion: We are reminded on a daily basis of failures in our public health system: strikes, stock-outs, critical vacancies, vulnerable patients left to die, cancer patients without treatment, dilapidated and poorly equipped facilities, rampant corruption and wholesale capture of provincial health departments. By Helen Schneider, Uta Lehmann, Lucy Gilson
Dear Mr President, we need to talk about our health system
Four of South Africa’s top public health systems academics last month sent a letter to President Cyril Ramaphosa as the country grapples with finding solutions for our struggling health services.
AIDS2018 Breaking News: Zero HIV transmissions in PARTNER study after gay couples had sex 77 000 times without condoms – an undetectable viral load stops HIV
On Tuesday 24 July, the results from the extension to the PARTNER study were presented by Alison Rodger at a press conference at AIDS 2018, ahead of the main conference presentation.