Author: Njih Favour

At least 85 people, including 79 and six staff member, were safely evacuated from Tembisa Provincial Hospital on Saturday evening after part of the facility caught fire.  “The fire is only limited to the external emergency area. The rest of the hospital, the wards, and other areas are functional. The hospital will remain closed for now and will not receive any other patients until the status is updated,” says Gauteng health Head of Depatment Lesiba Malotana. A photo taken by a bystander. A joint operation centre has been established, where the disaster management teams from the City of Ekurhuleni and…

Rape in South Africa has been described a societal and public health crisis. It’s estimated that 40,000 cases have been reported every year over the last decade. But research shows that most survivors do not report their rape to the police. The implications are that survivors often don’t receive much-needed post rape medical care or mental health support.  Several organisations in South Africa are working hard to support survivors and help them understand their rights and what happens in the process of seeking justice. One of these organisations is the Networking HIV and AIDS Community of Southern Africa  (NACOSA).   Health-e…

Health Minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi. (Photo: Kopano Tlape/GCIS) News & Features 17th April 2025 | Jesse Copelyn In late-January, the US suspended billions of dollars worth of international aid, including for HIV-related programmes in South Africa. The South African government could have responded by triggering an emergency funding mechanism but has failed to do so yet. In the meantime, activists, health researchers and even technical advisors to government are growing increasingly frustrated with the government’s lack of transparency on this issue. In order to finance some of the health services that have been defunded by the US, the National Department…

The Gauteng Department of Health is facing a difficult decision between implementing cost-cutting measures and maintaining quality of care. The department has recently enforced stringent cost-saving actions, such as reducing commuted overtime pay and terminating doctors’ short-term contracts (sessional doctors). Several clinicians and leadership from medical schools and industry professional bodies released a statement rejecting the austerity measures, calling on the department to reverse its decision. The health professionals argue that the 20 hours of overtime doctors are currently putting in are vital in making sure that doctors are available beyond the standard 8-hour workday.    However, Gauteng health spokesperson Motalatale…

by Kaymarlin Govender, Annamarie Bindenagel Šehović and Damian Naidoo  On January 20, 2025, U.S. President Trump’s second inauguration unleashed a dramatic global health and development policy shift.  Key executive orders included dismantling USAID and withdrawal from the WHO, alongside a broader review of U.S. participation in international organisations and funding for UN agencies like UNESCO, UNHRC, and UNRWA.  These actions have exposed the fragility of global health financing and international cooperation or multilateralism. Fragility of Health Financing Global health financing has long been precarious. For instance, only two African countries – Cabo Verde (15.75%) and South Africa (15.29%) – have…

Health research in South Africa is facing an unprecedented crisis due to the ongoing termination of funding from the United States government. (Photo: CDC/Unsplash) News & Features 15th April 2025 | Catherine Tomlinson Health research in South Africa has been plunged into crisis with the abrupt termination of several large research grants from the US, with more grant terminations expected in the coming days and weeks. Professor Ntobeko Ntusi, head of the South African Medical Research Council, tells Spotlight about efforts to find alternative funding and to preserve the country’s health research capacity. Health research in South Africa is facing…

When 60-year-old Nolamethe Ntintili from Nombanjana, a village in Centane in the Eastern Cape first fell ill in January the family did not think much of it. But her health soon deteriorated.   “Two weeks after she complained about body aches, she couldn’t walk and was in pain. She went quiet and could not eat. The closest hospital from Centane is Butterworth which is about 60km from here. Getting there with public transport costs about R220. She was too sick to use public transport. But to hire private transport costs around R1,500,” Harvey Tshoko, a family member, tells Health-e News. The…

A month after mental health user Klaas Ledwaba was killed in the psychiatric ward at Philadelphia Hospital in Dennilton outside Groblersdal in Limpopo, his family is still waiting for an official cause of death.  The 33-year-old was shot and killed, allegedly by another patient, during an attack. But Ledwaba’s family is still waiting for the post-mortem results. Now, they have approached a lawyer to take matters up with the Limpopo Department of Health.  “It is difficult to sleep or get peace of mind for the family, especially his mother and siblings. Since Klaas was killed on March 8, the provincial…

A simple swab may have a role to play in testing for tuberculosis. (Photo: Thomas G/Pixabay) News & Features 14th April 2025 | Elri Voigt While likely years away from widespread use, a test for TB that relies on a simple tongue swab instead of a person having to cough up sputum is showing promise. Spotlight takes stock of how the test works and asks experts what its future role might be. Most tuberculosis (TB) tests are conducted on sputum samples. The difficulty with this is that many people, particularly children and people living with HIV, struggle to cough up…

The National Health Council has allocated R1.78 billion for the recruitment of 1,200 doctors, 200 nurses, and 259 additional healthcare professionals. On Thursday, the National Health Council which comprised Health Minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi and provincial Health MECs, provided an update on various health matters, including the recruitment of health professionals, the procurement of medical equipment, and the announcement of new ministerial advisory committees. In January, the South African Medical Association (SAMA) raised concerns about 1,800 unemployed junior doctors.  The following month Motsoaledi told Parliament that demand for employment, both for healthcare professionals and for community service posts, has grown…