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Arsenic-contaminated drinking water found in two SA villages: scientists blame government mismanagement 

Arsenic-contaminated drinking water found in two SA villages: scientists blame government mismanagement 

By Jesse Copelyn,
Posted in: Healthcare system, Latest, Limpopo, Provinces

A study published in April this year found that residents across two villages in Limpopo’s Giyani local municipality have dangerous amounts of arsenic in their drinking water. Attempts to improve access to safe water in the area appear to have been derailed by alleged corruption. Jesse Copelyn unpacks the risks of excessive arsenic exposure and what is known about the alleged corruption in Giyani.

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MTN temporarily pulled plug on Eastern Cape Health due to non-payment

MTN temporarily pulled plug on Eastern Cape Health due to non-payment

By Luvuyo Mehlwana,
Posted in: Healthcare system, Latest, Provinces

In August, telecommunications company MTN joined the list of service providers who have temporarily withdrawn services because the Eastern Cape Department of Health failed to pay their bills. Luvuyo Mehlwana reports.

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Breastfeeding while hungry – Is enough being done to support mothers in the Free State?

Breastfeeding while hungry – Is enough being done to support mothers in the Free State?

By Refilwe Mochoari,
Posted in: Child health, Free State, Healthcare system, Latest, Provinces

Earlier this month the world celebrated breastfeeding week. To improve infant nutrition by 2025, the United Nations set targets to eliminate malnutrition and increase breastfeeding rates to at least 50% – targets that South Africa also subscribes to. In South Africa, however, often mothers are poor, unemployed, and hungry – all factors impacting their ability to breastfeed and, ultimately, the nutrition their babies receive. As Women’s Month draws to a close, Refilwe Mochoari looked at the nuances of this challenge in the Free State, where mothers often face a litany of socio-economic challenges and asks how government can support these mothers better.

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In-depth: Mental health needs of GBV survivors are not being met – what to do?

In-depth: Mental health needs of GBV survivors are not being met – what to do?

By Sue Segar,
Posted in: Healthcare system, Latest, Mental Health, Provinces, Western Cape

Survivors of sexual assault and gender-based violence (GBV) often require mental healthcare services to deal with the psychological trauma, but these services are often not available in already overburdened shelters and safe houses where resources are limited. Sue Segar visited some shelters and spoke to experts about this unmet need for women and children.

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Calls mount to act against senior Northern Cape health officials implicated in alleged PPE corruption

Calls mount to act against senior Northern Cape health officials implicated in alleged PPE corruption

By Refilwe Mochoari,
Posted in: Healthcare system, Latest, Northern Cape, Provinces

The head of health in the Northern Cape – Dr Dion Theys – appeared in the Kimberly Magistrate’s Court on Monday. Theys who was appointed as permanent head of health in July this year, along with two co-accused were released on bail of R5 000 each. This was Theys’ second brush with the law – albeit in different courts – in just over a month after his appointment. Despite these developments and an outcry among some health stakeholders, the Northern Cape health department has not yet taken decisive action against Theys. Refilwe Mochoari reports.

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The good doctor: Mark Blaylock on finding meaning back at Manguzi

The good doctor: Mark Blaylock on finding meaning back at Manguzi

By Sue Segar,
Posted in: Healthcare system, Healthcare Workers, Latest, Provinces

In December 2008, Dr Mark Blaylock left South Africa after a high-profile spat with then-Health MEC of KwaZulu-Natal Peggy Nkonyeni. The affair was sparked by Blaylock’s colleague Colin Pfaff being charged with misconduct for sourcing funding for antiretroviral drugs for pregnant women living with HIV. Four years later, Blaylock was back at Manguzi District Hospital in KwaZulu-Natal. Sue Segar chatted to Blaylock about his years outside of South Africa, returning to Manguzi, and how healthcare in KwaZulu-Natal has changed over the years.

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Surgeries delayed at Charlotte Maxeke as key machine decommissioned before replacements are ready

Surgeries delayed at Charlotte Maxeke as key machine decommissioned before replacements are ready

By Ufrieda Ho,
Posted in: Gauteng, Healthcare system, Healthcare Workers, Latest, Provinces

Staff say patients at Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital in need of vascular surgery face a three-month wait for life-saving surgery because of what some staff are calling “fishy” operational management and bad planning. According to hospital management, however, patients will be diverted to other hospitals during this period. Ufrieda Ho reports.

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Women in health: “No one taught me how to treat a sick system,” says leading young Professor

Women in health: “No one taught me how to treat a sick system,” says leading young Professor

By Biénne Huisman,
Posted in: Healthcare system, Healthcare Workers, Latest, Provinces, Western Cape

In high school, a guidance councillor told Salome Maswime that she would never be accepted at medical school. Today, she is a professor and head of Global Surgery at the University of Cape Town. Biénne Huisman chatted to Maswime about her work on safe surgery, her remarkable career, and being the only black woman in the room.

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In-depth: A tale of two make-do clinics in the rural Eastern Cape

In-depth: A tale of two make-do clinics in the rural Eastern Cape

By Luvuyo Mehlwana,
Posted in: Eastern Cape, Latest, Provinces, Spotlight

The state of the Macacuma Clinic and the Ugie Clinic in the Eastern Cape came under the spotlight during the provincial legislature’s health committee visit from 10 to 14 October last year, when they visited several public health facilities in the Joe Gqabi District. Luvuyo Mehlwana recently went back to assess whether there has been any progress at the two facilities since the committee made its findings public.

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In-depth: Children are still dying of malnutrition in the Free State

In-depth: Children are still dying of malnutrition in the Free State

By Refilwe Mochoari,
Posted in: Child health, Free State, Healthcare system, Latest, Provinces

Even in 2023, infants under five years in the Free State are still dying from a lack of healthy food. From April to June this year, 21 children in the province died of severe acute malnutrition and one died of moderate acute malnutrition. Refilwe Mochoari unpacks the numbers and asks government about its plans to address what at least one expert is calling a ‘crisis’.

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Mpumalanga health department responds to latest clinic monitoring findings

Mpumalanga health department responds to latest clinic monitoring findings

By Nthusang Lefafa,
Posted in: Healthcare system, Latest, Mpumalanga, NHI, Provinces

According to the latest report from community-based clinic monitoring group Ritshidze, users of public sector health facilities in Mpumalanga are experiencing shorter waiting times, cleaner facilities, and extended antiretroviral refills compared to previous years. But Ritshidze also reports ongoing staff shortages, problematic staff attitudes, and problems with infrastructure. Nthusang Lefafa unpacks the new findings and asks the province’s health department what they are planning in response.

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RIGHT OF REPLY: Reducing the surgical and cancer treatment backlogs is an urgent priority

RIGHT OF REPLY: Reducing the surgical and cancer treatment backlogs is an urgent priority

By Dr Stephen Mankupane,
Posted in: Access to Medicines, Gauteng, Healthcare system, Healthcare Workers, Latest

Following an article in Spotlight bemoaning “the lack of urgency” by the Gauteng Department of Health in addressing cancer and surgical backlogs despite having been allocated funds toward this, Dr Stephen Mankupane, Acting Head of Hospital Services in the provincial health department, writes that there is no disputing the fact that there is a need to act with urgency in attending to these backlogs and outlines what the department is doing. Here is his response in full.

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