Government can do better, Deputy President says at World AIDS Day event
A high-level government delegation led by Deputy President David Mabuza descended on Soweto during a World AIDS Day commemoration. Ufrieda Ho reports.
IN-DEPTH: On the streets with paramedics amid COVID-19 and high crime rates
In South Africa responding to medical emergencies can mean risking your life, possible assault and losing some of your belongings. The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated and added to these daily challenges faced by paramedics. Melissa Javan investigates.
IN-DEPTH: Are clinic committees a missing link in SA’s COVID-19 response?
Clinic Committees can be a powerful link between the community and primary healthcare facilities. Several clinic committee members however say they have been side-lined in South Africa’s COVID-19 response. Tiyese Jeranji reports.
COVID-19: Western Cape and Gauteng prepare for the peak
President Cyril Ramaphosa has called the COVID-19 pandemic the gravest crisis in the country’s democratic history. Now, with the Western Cape and Gauteng making up nearly 64 percent of the country’s total confirmed infections, Kathryn Cleary asked departments of health in both provinces how prepared they are for the coming peak.
#Whatitslike: Heading up Charlotte Maxeke’s Emergency Department in the time of COVID-19
Professor Feroza Motara remembers how she felt when the Minister of Health announced in February that the hospital where she works would become a designated COVID-19 hospital. Melissa Javan interviewed her about life and work on the frontlines of South Africa’s COVID-19 response.
COVID-19: Doctors concerned about severe testing delays
It often takes seven days or more to get COVID-19 test results in the public sector, doctors say.
#Whatsitlike: Essential workers in the kitchen at Pholosong Hospital
Spotlight visited the kitchen of Pholosong Hospital in Tsakane, Brakpan to meet some of the essential workers whose job it is to make sure patients are well-fed and to find out how they are preparing for COVID-19.
Mamelodi Hospital: A promising new start after last year’s handcuffing scandal
Mamelodi Hospital in Pretoria made headlines in May last year when 76-year-old Martha Marais was found tied to a bench in the facility’s Accident and Emergency section. Spotlight visited the hospital to see what has changed.
Gauteng Health MEC says department not just planning, but executing
When Gauteng Health MEC Bandile Masuku was sworn in last year, he committed to turn the department around – a department the Gauteng premier described as ‘on its knees’. Spotlight sat down with Masuku to talk about staff morale, COVID-19, NHI, Mamelodi Hospital, and more.
Life Esidimeni Arbitration: Testimonies
SECTION27 is representing 66 families whose loved ones passed away as a result of the Marathon Project. The arbitration heard heartbreaking testimony from family members – represented separately by SECTION27, The Legal Aid Clinic and Solidarity – about the state in which they found their loved ones.
PR and platitudes
By Ufrieda Ho – It’s ‛good governance’ week for the Public Protector’s office at the beginning of October and officials are going through the motions of holding a community meeting in Vosloorus. The meeting is however, already running over an hour behind schedule.
