#InTheSpotlight | TB’s tight grip: Why this curable disease is so hard to treat

#InTheSpotlight | TB’s tight grip: Why this curable disease is so hard to treat

TB can be cured, but ridding the body of the bug often takes many months and usually requires taking four or more different medicines. In this Spotlight special briefing, Elri Voigt zooms in on what makes the TB bacterium so hard to beat.

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Russell Rensburg | This is how SA could respond to US aid cuts

Russell Rensburg | This is how SA could respond to US aid cuts

South Africa still lacks an action plan after the withdrawal of US aid for HIV and related health services. But when funds do arrive, how will they be managed? Russell Rensburg suggests the answer may lie in the District Health Programme Grant.

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Death in Mozambique: After US funding cuts, a health system crumbles

Death in Mozambique: After US funding cuts, a health system crumbles

After the abrupt termination of American aid, the health system in central Mozambique descended into chaos. In part two of this special series, Spotlight and GroundUp describe how the funding cuts affected hospitals, where key staff were dismissed and deliveries of new medicines were halted. In the ensuing turmoil, children died.

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Mozambique: These are the children the United States left to die

Mozambique: These are the children the United States left to die

In Mozambique, the health system is overwhelmingly built on US money. When the Trump administration instantly pulled much of this funding without warning, disease and death spread. Spotlight and GroundUp visited one of the worst affected regions to describe the human toll.

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#InTheSpotlight | Graphs that paint the picture of HIV in SA

#InTheSpotlight | Graphs that paint the picture of HIV in SA

Eight million people living with HIV. Just over 6 million on treatment. Behind these big numbers lurk a universe of fascinating epidemiological dynamics. In this special briefing, Spotlight editor Marcus Low unpacks what we know about the state of HIV in South Africa.

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Electronic death registration is a win-win for SA – let’s make it happen

Electronic death registration is a win-win for SA – let’s make it happen

Several studies have flagged problems with South Africa’s death registration processes. A critical first step to addressing it is to replace our paper-based process with an electronic one, argue Dr Pam Groenewald and Professor Debbie Bradshaw, both of the SAMRC’s Burden of Disease Research Unit.

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Are children living with HIV being left behind? What the stats tell us

Are children living with HIV being left behind? What the stats tell us

Massive gains have been made in reducing new HIV infections and deaths in children. Yet, many of the statistics for children still look worse than those for adults. Elri Voigt asked experts why this is the case and what factors prevent children living with HIV from starting and staying on the treatment that can keep them healthy.

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OPEN LETTER | Minister of Health Aaron Motsoaledi, please explain the HIV numbers

OPEN LETTER | Minister of Health Aaron Motsoaledi, please explain the HIV numbers

Minister of Health Dr Aaron Motsoaledi’s recent claim that over half a million people have been newly started on HIV treatment in less than six months has raised eyebrows in health circles. In this open letter, Anna Grimsrud and Sibongile Tshabalala-Madhlala, associated with CHANGE – South Africa, ask the Minister to explain numbers that, on the face of it, seem contradictory.

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Why some babies in South Africa are still getting HIV

Why some babies in South Africa are still getting HIV

Over the last two decades, South Africa made massive progress in reducing transmission of HIV from mothers to their babies. Even so, about 7 000 babies still contract the virus every year. Experts put this down to having the right puzzle pieces for prevention but failing to integrate them optimally. Elna Schütz reports.

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US pulls funding for South African medical research

US pulls funding for South African medical research

US funding for clinical research in South Africa is incrementally being cancelled. This is happening through at least two processes – the first is by banning certain kinds of foreign grants called sub-awards (which is affecting everyone globally). The second is by failing to issue routine renewals of grants for clinical studies in South Africa. Spotlight and GroundUp break down the current situation.

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Cape Town study brings hope to newborns left behind in HIV treatment advances

Cape Town study brings hope to newborns left behind in HIV treatment advances

Research led by Professor Adrie Bekker is paving the way for an important HIV medicine to be made available to neonates in a way that is both safe and much more convenient than previous options. Biénne Huisman met with the passionate clinician-scientist at her office in Cape Town.

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How an SAMRC study found that HIV deaths in SA may be massively undercounted

How an SAMRC study found that HIV deaths in SA may be massively undercounted

It is widely acknowledged among health and demographic experts that relying solely on what is written on death certificates does not paint an accurate picture of what people in South Africa are actually dying of. Now, an SAMRC study has provided evidence that the undercounting of deaths due to HIV might be even greater than previously thought. Chris Bateman reports.

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