Natalspruit Hospital's wards used to resemble a battlefield as healthworkers treated those wounded in political battles on the East Rand in the 1980s. Now healthworkers are confronted with another struggle as they are overwhelmed by the sheer numbers of people seeking treatment for HIV and Aids.
Over a 12-year period, AIDS cases have replaced gun-shot and stab wounds at Natalspruit Hospital. The increase in the demand for beds due to AIDS-related complications is resulting in the squeezing out of other essential hospital services. Health care workers at Natalspruit Hospital talk about the impact of AIDS on the facility.
African National Congress Member of Parliament Ben Turok cut a lone figure among the 400 odd plastic chairs in front of Parliament's gates yesterday where Aids activists staged a 'people's parliament'.
South African society does not know how to deal with those who are disabled and the challenges that families with disabled children face are virtually never spoken about. A photographer and three researchers are trying to break the ice.
The deadly strain of extremely drug resistant TB has reared its head in Gauteng. Experts fear that the outbreak ' first detected in KwaZulu-Natal - is a potential killer, particularly for people living with AIDS. There are concerns that it also places South Africa's AIDS treatment programme at enormous risk.
HIV often affects the mental health of people living with the virus. Yet many health workers are either unaware of this or too busy to do anything about it.
At the recent International AIDS Conference in Toronto, Canada, the South African media's attention was focussed on Health Minister Dr Manto Tshabalala-Msimang and her campaign to promote alternative methods in the treatment of AIDS. But was the attention the media gave to the matter useful?
Creative thinking has enabled Kimberley to have one of the best doctor-patient ratios in the country.
Almost 10 years ago Eben Donges Hospital in Worcester acknowledged a looming nursing crisis and established a groundbreaking learnership programme that has uplifted the community and averted massive nursing vacancies.
The Treatment Action Campaign (TAC) battle to oust health minister Dr Manto Tshabalala-Msimang has gained backing from six political parties.
There are still no definite answers from the Health Department regarding the fate their flagship HIV/AIDS communication campaign, Khomanani. There have been widespread reports that the programme has been halted. But the Health Minister says that's news to her.
Beetroot, lemon, garlic and African potato were at the heart of a bitter conflict between Health Minister Dr Manto Tshabalala-Msimang and AIDS activists over government's AIDS programme at the International AIDS Conference in Toronto over the past week.
TORONTO ' A South African study has conclusively shown that babies with HIV positive mothers who are exclusively breastfed are significantly less likely to get the virus than if they get breastmilk and other food mixed.
It was with a sense of a 'big head' that Alan Brand decided to take an overall medical check up. He had achieved most of his short term goals. Testing positive for HIV never even occurred to him. But soon after finding out that he had the virus, he was overwhelmed by guilt.
TORONTO ' Defeating AIDS will not be the success of one great scientist, one great community worker, or one great leader, but the accomplishment of the whole human family working together for one another. With these words, Melinda Gates ended the formal session at the opening of the 16th World AIDS Conference.
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