Author: Njih Favour
This project is funded by: For the estimated 2000 residents of Freedom Farm informal settlement, situated on the boundary of the Cape Town International Airport aircraft runway, the sound of airplanes taking off and landing is a constant background noise. Some shacks forming part of this community are erected as close as 500 metres from the aircraft runway on the northern boundary of the airport. Residents of these shacks live with the clattering and clanging of corrugated metal sheets-the building materials of their homes. An unemployed young man who lives with his sister in Freedom Farm, who spoke under the…
This project is funded by: Nomaswazi Zulu* (23) is a sex worker in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal. She found out she has HIV in 2018 and has been taking antiretroviral drugs (ARVs) since. For the past seven years, Zulu would make the 113 km trip home to kwaMaphumulo to collect her meditation from the local clinic every 3 months. “When they found out that I was travelling up and down, the other girls told me about a mobile clinic that comes to South Beach on some nights. Most of them were receiving their treatment from this clinic,” she tells Health-e News. Instead…
While tuberculosis is curable, recovery doesn’t necessarily mean the lungs return to their original, pre-illness condition. (Photo: Robina Weermeijer/Unsplash) News & Features 5th May 2025 | Chris Bateman There are over three million people alive in South Africa who have been cured of TB. But even after being cured, many continue to suffer the long-term after-effects of the disease. To find out more about this under-recognised problem, Spotlight recently attended a global gathering of experts focused on life after TB. Post-TB lung disease affects an estimated 60% of everyone who has been cured of TB. That is according to Dr…
By Dr Morena Makhoana, CEO of Biovac As the United States scales back funding for South African health research and cuts its funding support for 15,000 local health workers, and for global vaccine purchaser Gavi, the case for self-reliance in health has never been more pressing. There’s an increased recognition that the country needs to prioritise domestic health spending, and self-sufficiency in medical treatment, and develop local pharmaceutical manufacturing. In fact, South Africa has well-established medical infrastructure and could become a biotech hub in Africa. The continent has a growing population and young demographics, which offers a guaranteed market and…
Professor Adrie Bekker explains the findings of a study on two novel formulations for the administration of dolutegravir in babies born to mothers living with HIV. (Photo: Biénne Huisman/Spotlight) News & Features 30th April 2025 | Biénne Huisman 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. Spotlight met with the passionate clinician-scientist at her office in Cape Town. Two new ways of giving the important HIV medicine dolutegravir to newborn babies have been…
DNA is a form of biological evidence found in almost every cell of the human body. DNA testing is one of the most powerful tools in the pursuit of justice, particularly in the case of rape or sexual assault. But South Africa is grappling with a staggering backlog of DNA backlog on 140,000 rape cases, raising serious concerns about the efficiency and responsiveness of the forensic system. Dr Vanessa Lynch, is the regional director for DNAforAfrica, a company that works around forensic DNA profiling. Health-e News speaks to her about the urgent need to strengthen forensic processes. How does DNA…
The alarming rise in antibiotic resistant infections is of grave concern, particularly for infants. (Photo: Denvor de Wee/Spotlight) News & Features 29th April 2025 | Sue Segar Experts say bacterial infections are responsible for more infant deaths than is generally recognised, and things may get worse as more of the bugs become resistant to commonly used antibiotics. We asked local experts about this growing threat to newborns. A two-week-old baby is referred to the Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital (RCWMCH) in Cape Town. The infant, who was born prematurely at six months, has come from a nearby neonatal hospital.…
Nontobeko* is a high school teacher in Khayelitsha, Western Cape. Despite having done the job for more than ten years, she dreads it every day. “Teaching has become a nightmare. We are not just educators anymore, we are counsellors, social workers and administrators all while trying to manage classrooms,” the 34-year-old tells Health-e News. In May last year, Nontobeko became so overwhelmed by the demands of teaching that she was admitted to a mental health facility for 21 days. “It’s too much. We teach more than 30 pupils in a class and have to deal with different behaviours from them.…
Sexual violence is a major crisis in South Africa. In the first week of April 2025 alone, 222 suspects were arrested for rape. But, research shows that many of the complainants in these cases won’t see the inside of a courtroom. Despite South Africa’s strong laws, many gaps in the system contribute to cases falling through the cracks. This is known as rape case attrition. A 2023 study on factors associated with rape case attrition in the South African criminal justice system, found that: 35% of cases were closed by police, 31% were declined by the prosecutors, 16% were enrolled…
The Limpopo Department of Health says it’s still investigating a male nurse over a social media post that sexualises children – nearly a month after a complaint was laid. The Vhembe-based nurse insinuates, in a comment made on Facebook, that he would forcefully have sexual intercourse with a minor child. The comment was made in the wake of reports of the alleged rape of a seven-year-old girl dubbed “Cwecwe”. In a complaint to the Health Professions Council, a rape survivor and activist who asked not to be named, wrote that: “These posts aren’t just offensive, they normalise the unthinkable. Suggesting…