Sister Leonie Weyers is injecting smiles in a setting where many spirits are hurt

Sister Leonie Weyers is injecting smiles in a setting where many spirits are hurt

The only full-time nurse at the Saartjie Baartman Centre, Sister Leonie Weyers, is not only a caregiver to her patients but also helps them to “feel beautiful” again. Biénne Huisman spent time with her at the shelter situated on gang-war turf in Manenberg.

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Vivacious sister Sandra Bryant has a disco ball in her lilac clinic in Cape Town

Vivacious sister Sandra Bryant has a disco ball in her lilac clinic in Cape Town

Sister Sandra Bryant runs her clinic in a lilac painted room, where glitter cream and a disco ball does not seem out of place next to scissors, syringes, and needles. She tells Spotlight’s Biénne Huisman about working with Professor Christiaan Barnard, the adrenaline of being in the operating theater, and why she has a tattoo of an anatomical heart.

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New Western Cape health MEC Mireille Wenger says child health is near her heart

New Western Cape health MEC Mireille Wenger says child health is near her heart

Mireille Wenger was recently appointed to the Western Cape’s top health job. Biénne Huisman chatted to Wenger about health policy, child health, and the challenge of providing quality public health services at a time of shrinking budgets.

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Of South Africa’s nine health MECs, five are new

Of South Africa’s nine health MECs, five are new

Following South Africa’s 2024 national and provincial elections, the decisions about the top health jobs in the country’s nine provinces have now all been made. Elri Voigt rounds up the appointments.

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Cutting edge robotic surgery: Beacons of excellence at two Cape Town public hospitals

Cutting edge robotic surgery: Beacons of excellence at two Cape Town public hospitals

Within South Africa’s beleaguered public health sector – unsettled by budget cuts, understaffing, and divisive NHI legislation – cutting edge surgical robots that have been used to perform more than 600 surgeries at two Cape Town public hospitals are beacons of excellence that offer a glimmer of hope. Spotlight’s Biénne Huisman visited Dr Tim Forgan at Tygerberg Hospital to learn more.

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A humanist with an unblinking gaze – Professor Ntobeko Ntusi takes the hot-seat at the South African Medical Research Council

A humanist with an unblinking gaze – Professor Ntobeko Ntusi takes the hot-seat at the South African Medical Research Council

Professor Ntobeko Ntusi may be softspoken, but he is not afraid to stand by his strongly held views. As he is set to take up the hot-seat at the country’s primary health research funder, he tells Spotlight’s Biénne Huisman about his background and his priorities for the new job.

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Comfortable with chaos: ‘Head cowboy’ Dr Shaheem de Vries takes charge of Groote Schuur Hospital

Comfortable with chaos: ‘Head cowboy’ Dr Shaheem de Vries takes charge of Groote Schuur Hospital

From Antarctica to Haiti, to red zones in Cape Town, Dr Shaheem de Vries is accustomed to getting his hands dirty while saving lives. He tells Spotlight’s Biénne Huisman about the new challenges he faces as CEO of Groote Schuur Hospital.

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What we can learn about TB at the autopsy table

What we can learn about TB at the autopsy table

In addition to shedding light on what people actually die of, autopsies can also play an important role in helping us to better understand disease. Tiyese Jeranji unpacks tuberculosis-related autopsy research in the Western Cape and delves into some of the fascinating complexities of this branch of TB research.

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Pilot project in SA now offering HIV prevention injection

Pilot project in SA now offering HIV prevention injection

A new HIV prevention injection is now available to a select number of people in South Africa. That a single shot provides two months of protection is one of the injection’s major selling points. In this story, Elri Voigt unpacks how much of the jab is available, who is choosing to get it and what other anti-HIV drugs are being rolled out.

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Probing mysteries of the dead: Top forensic pathologist looks back as Cape Town gets shiny new mortuary

Probing mysteries of the dead: Top forensic pathologist looks back as Cape Town gets shiny new mortuary

Mortuaries are grim places, yet Professor Lorna Martin – South Africa’s first woman to head a forensic medicine department – also visits mortuaries when she is on holiday. She was born in Newcastle in the United Kingdom and matriculated at a school in Boksburg on Gauteng’s East Rand. Martin, who has wispy hair and eyes with a glint of steel, spoke to Biénne Huisman about her career working on headline-catching cases and the nearly-R300 million Observatory Forensic Pathology Institute in Cape Town.

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Orthopaedic surgery: What is behind SA’s long waiting lists?

Orthopaedic surgery: What is behind SA’s long waiting lists?

As of last year, there were 3 449 people waiting on orthopaedic surgery in five of South Africa’s nine provinces. Waiting times in these five provinces ranged from two weeks to over five years. In the Eastern Cape, it can take up to ten years for people to get specific types of orthopaedic surgery. Tiyese Jeranji looks at the numbers and unpacks what it means for healthcare workers and people waiting for orthopaedic surgery.

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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?

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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