As teenage pregnancies continue to rise, adolescent girls and young women (AGYW) need to know which contraceptive – oral or injectable – is best for them. This is despite a shortage of injectable contraceptives in the country, as revealed in…
As South Africa marks the end of cervical cancer awareness month, experts have urged women to get screened often and avoid becoming a statistic. The country has a high prevalence, with 1 in 42 women having a lifetime risk of…
Trauma cases continue to be a pressing issue for healthcare facilities in the Western Cape. This is now causing significant delays in scheduled surgeries, extended waiting periods and a financial burden on the healthcare system. During a summit last week,…
The aftershocks of Covid-19’s stranglehold on the global supply chain are affecting the availability of some essential medicines in South Africa. Medical associations and pharmaceutical organisations are concerned about the low supply of morphine powder and 150 other medicines across…
As every parent and child knows, sexual and reproductive health (SRH) conversations can be a bit awkward. This is something that Michaela Pillay* knows all too well. The 21-year-old Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT) student has never had a…
As the country marks Women’s Month this August, there is a driven female making waves in the world of biomedical engineering. Boitumelo Lekhoe’s passion is tangible as she explains how she got into engineering and how she’s encouraging young girls…
Minister of Health, Dr Joe Phaahla, confirmed South Africa’s fifth monkeypox case earlier today and expressed concern as the numbers continue to rise. “On Wednesday, the 17th of August, we received a report from the National Institute for Communicable Diseases…
Health Minister Dr Joe Phaala is expected to reveal details of the county’s monkeypox response tomorrow. This comes after South Africa’s fourth case was confirmed earlier this week. The patient is a 28-year-old man from the Western Cape who had…
Health Minister Dr Joe Phaala is expected to reveal details of the county’s response to Monkeypox on Friday. Phaala announced that a fourth monkeypox virus case was identified in SA. The patient is a 28-year-old man from the Western Cape…
Data collection and how each country can trigger action plans in the fight against HIV came under the spotlight at the 2022 AIDS Conference. The Imperial College of London’s Jeffrey Eaton said there are opportunities to use granular data to…
As the 24th International AIDS Conference wrapped up, the focus shifted to the importance of community-led monitoring (CLM) and how it can bring about targeted action and change in the fight against HIV. Pradeep Kakkattil, Director of the Office of…
Today the globe marks World Hepatitis Day, but not enough is known about this infection which is more common than HIV. The facts are there for everyone to see. Someone dies from viral hepatitis every 30 seconds, and more than…
The National Department of Health has urged South Africans to remain calm following Sunday’s announcement that monkeypox is now a public health emergency of international concern. Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director General of the World Health Organisation (WHO), stated that…
Conversations about mental well-being have shifted over the years, with people more open to discussing it, but perinatal mental health is still often overlooked. Perinatal mental health problems occur during pregnancy or in the first year following the birth of…
The Health Ministry has asked South Africans to take precautions against contracting monkeypox. Authorities identified a second case earlier this week. The National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) confirmed it identified the second case of monkeypox through laboratory testing on…