At the recent International AIDS Conference in Vienna, Austria, Health Minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi appealed to donors to desist from cutting aid to support AIDS programmes in sub-Saharan Africa. The irony of his call, however, is that countries in Africa are not increasing their spending on health.
Huge strides could be made towards reducing child deaths in South Africa by following the example of those who fought for the rights of people living with HIV.
Gauteng Department of Health and Social development is urging pregnant women, patients with chronic lung and heart diseases, diabetic, school going learners under the age of 20 as well as senior citizens over 65 years to immunize against H1N1 virus by Friday, 31 July 2010.
A gastro-intestinal infection killed six babies at the Charlotte Maxeke Hospital in May, according to findings of an investigation launched into the tragedy. The investigation also found that health care staff did all they could to save the babies. Hospital systems, however, were found to be lacking.
The Children's Act which came into force on April 1 places the onus on doctors and other health professionals to seek consent from their young patients for certain medical conditions including HIV testing, surgery and contraception.
Health Minister, Dr Aaron Motsoaledi has cautioned those attending the International AIDS conference that backtracking on funding for HIV by donors could threaten the treatment success rates. Read his speech here.
More and more caregivers are consulting psychiatric institutions to have their children's mental health assessed. Psychiatrists have attributed this to caregivers paying more attention to their children's behavioural patterns than before.
The good news from the International AIDS Conference in Vienna that a microbicide gel tested in South Africa for the prevention of HIV infection is an ironically painful reminder that there is an urgent need for effective preventative measures to reduce new HIV infections.
Global funding for AIDS efforts fell flat during last year's economic meltdown, ending a six-year streak of annual donation increases, according to new analysis released this week.
An upbeat Health Minister, Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, says this year South Africa has something different to show the world regarding its response to AIDS at the 18th International AIDS Conference, which opened in Vienna, Austria, today (Sunday, 18/07/2010).
In 2000, the world's leaders committed themselves to the United Nations' Millennium Development Goals to make our planet a healthier place to live in by the year 2015. Two-thirds of the deadline has already passed. Is the world succeeding in its commitments, for instance, to combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases which are endemic in countries such as South Africa?
Discrimination against people with mental disorders makes it difficult to reintegrate them into society. Psychiatric health specialists blame this on the lack of understanding of mental illness and not knowing how to deal with someone who is mentally ill. In this report, we meet someone who has experienced first-hand such discrimination.
South African nurses are just as competent as doctors in monitoring patients on antiretroviral therapy. This is according to results of a four-year long study published recently in the respected international medical journal, The Lancet.
Josephine stepped up to the podium, looked out at the 100 women and a few men, and began her introduction with these words:'I am just an ordinary woman. And I survived cancer.'
Ubhejane is not registered with the Medicines Control Council despite such claims in recent newspaper reports.
Be in the know with our free weekly newsletter. We deliver a round-up of our top stories and insightful reads from across the web.