When the Baragwanath Perinatal HIV Research Unit submitted its list of items that needed to be financed as part of the forthcoming HIV vaccine trials, it made for interesting reading: included on the list is R600 for a sacrificial goat.
In many communities around the country, it is volunteers who are the backbone in helping care for those who are sick with AIDS-related illnesses. Bambisanani is one such non-governmental organisation based in the Eastern Cape. Through the efforts of its volunteer caregivers in Umzimkhulu, Lusikisiki and Bizana, it offers free HIV counseling and helps care for those who are sick at home. The project was formed in 1999 in conjuction with the private sector and the Eastern Cape Department of Health. This audio report is in isiXhosa.
Fear and stigma continue to undermine efforts to address openly the impact of HIV/AIDS on our society. A short drive from Port Shepstone in KwaZulu-Natal, Mrs Mtimkulu, a grandmother, is single-handedly raising her grand-daughter Siyanda following the death of Siyanda's mother from an AIDS-related disease. In this audio report, Mrs Mtimkulu and Penny Gwacela, a home-based workers with the South Coast Hospice, explain the additional problem of stigma that the family face.
This week the largest ever international medical research project into the link between the formation of deep vein thrombosis and flying will be launched by Wits University and the National Health Laboratory Service. A thousand passengers flying between London and Johannesburg will take part in the study.
South Africa and the US were working together to strengthen their efforts in the fight against HIV/Aids, US Health Secretary Tommy Thompson said yesterday (Thursday) on his first official visit to Africa.
About 200 destitute HIV positive mothers and 383 children in Gauteng will soon have a place to stay, thanks to the efforts of AIDS activist Gail Johnson. Since her adopted son Nkosi died of AIDS last year, Johnson has been working flat-out to raise money to buy two properties to accommodate HIV positive women, their children and AIDS orphans. Kerry Cullinan reports.
The South African National Council for Child Welfare has urged parents and communities to take full responsibility for their children's safety and to prevent crimes of abuse against their children. In this audio report, the national director of the Council Andre Kalis says children have the right to be cared for, well looked after and protected from injury and harm.
Exactly what infrastructure and staff are needed in order for a clinic or hospital to offer effective prevention of mother-to-child HIV transmission? There is no doubt about the urgency of expanding such services - 70 000 HIV positive babies are born in South Africa each year - but implementing an effective service requires more than dispensing a pill.
A laboratory in the basement of the medical school at the University of Cape Town serves around 90% of clinics and hospitals in the Western Cape. Although based at the University of Cape Town, the laboratory falls under the authority of the National Health Laboratory Services. In this audio report, Dr Dianna Hardie is a senior specialist in the Virology Department and explains how the Elisa test is carried out.
How safe is the antiretroviral drug Nevirapine? Last week, the withdrawal of an application by the manufacturers of Nevirapine to register it with the United States Food And Drug Administration was allowed to generate considerable concern and confusion in South African medical and political circles about the safety and efficacy of the medication. On Tuesday, a trans-Atlantic link with leading scientists in the US and South Africa categorically laid these concerns to rest and clarified the nature of the application to register the drug.
Documents circulating in government circles have once again disputed the link between HIV and AIDS and questioned scientific knowledge and practice in relation to the HI virus. In this audio package, acclaimed South African scientist, Dr Carolyn Williamson, who last year received the World Technology Award for Health & Medicine in recognition of her efforts to find an AIDS vaccine, speaks about the scientific evidence.
Misguided national leadership, particularly President Thabo Mbeki's questioning of whether HIV causes AIDS, has contributed to South Africa's HIV/AIDS prevalence rate amongst pregnant women jumping from 7,6% to 24,5% in seven years. This is the view of researchers writing in the 2001 SA Health Review, due to be released by the Health Systems Trust (HST) in Pretoria today (tues).
While it  is still unclear what all the factors  are driving the high TB rates in Cape Town, it is certain that inequitable access to good housing, employment, education and as a consequence, nutritious  food play a major role. Comparisons between two nearby suburbs, the more affluent Bothasig and mostly poverty stricken Uitsig,  highlight the stark inequities when  mapping the TB  rates and comparing it with indicators such as housing, overcrowding and unemployment.  Â
Carol Snyman (32) wipes the tears from her cheeks. "They swear at you, they call you horrible names. It hurts me very much when they speak about us like this. These are my children and I love them." Snyman'€™s family is the perfect example of why Tuberculosis is so rampant in this part of the country and even more specifically in Uitsig, a suburb typical of the poorest working class areas of Cape Town.
After four days of hearing evidence and going through written submissions from community organisations, NGOs, research institutions and government departments last week on child sexual abuse, a preliminary report on the hearings was discussed in the National Assembly yesterday. In this audio report, the chairperson of the parliamentary task group on child sexual exploitation, Cas Saloojee explains some of their findings.
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