OurHealth is a project that trains and supports local activists and aspiring health journalists. Our citizen journalists (CJs) live in rural and poorly-covered areas in South Africa, and report on health issues affecting their communities.
Out of utter desperation, members from various Free State communities approached the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC), which has since paid a three-day visit to evaluate the province’s crumbling health infrastructure. The commission has now put the ball in…
Pamela Madonsela spoke to a Cape Town-based doula who experienced obstetric violence before embarking on her journey of offering a better birthing experience to other moms. “If I had known back then what obstetric violence was, I would have acted.…
Thousands of health workers in the Free State are out of jobs following the termination of their contracts post-COVID-19. Hired to help fight South Africa’s devastating COVID-19 third wave last year, their futures are in the balance more than a…
Thousands of Free State residents are still having to deal with the harmful effects of asbestos years after the harmful substance was banned. The ban, which took effect in 2008, prohibited the use, manufacturing, and processing of asbestos in the…
On the outskirts of Potchefstroom in the North West, members of the Kanana community have taken it upon themselves to help fight the gender-based violence (GBV) scourge. With South Africa’s president, Cyril Ramaphosa, having declared GBV as South Africa’s second…
Some members of rural communities in KwaZulu-Natal are convinced that a traditional beer known as Ijuba, can cure ulcers by drinking at least two glasses daily to ease the pain. They have taken to social media as well as word…
With lives at stake, members of the Botshabelo community in the Free State have joined forces with the Mangaung Service Delivery Forum (MSDF) to demand better ambulance services in the province. A letter of grievances has been sent to the…
The mining town of Jagersfontein in the Free State is facing dry, dark days ahead without water as the situation deteriorates. It is so bad that patients take buckets of water when visiting local clinics. Water reserves have run dry…
Ntsu, once used exclusively by traditional healers to connect with their ancestors, is gaining popularity among youth who are struggling to resist this form of smokeless tobacco. Young women in KwaZulu-Natal have especially taken to ntsu, which is usually sniffed…
What was supposed to be a joyful birth experience, soon turned into a nightmare for a grandmother who had to bury her daughter and her granddaughter. When Maggie Mphahlele started experiencing labour pains on the night of March 10 this…
Two families in the Free State have had to find. ways to cope with their children being diagnosed with diabetes. Health-e News visited these families to find out just how challenging it is to manage this chronic condition. Tseleng Mohono,…
Patients at the KwaMhlanga hospital in Mpumalanga have to travel 60km away to get x-rays done. According to patients, the x-ray machine has not been working for over a month. Thabo Msiza said he took his father to KwaMhlanga hospital…
Activists have raised concern about the ongoing vulnerability of elderly people in South Africa after the recent murder of a 70-year-old woman, allegedly at the hands of her son. Earlier this month, Greta Xaba (70) from Clermont township west of…
Free State Health MEC Montseng Tsiu has resolved to investigate complaints of poor service and mistreatment of patients at the Mafube District Hospital in Frankfort. This was ahead of the official opening of the refurbished hospital on Tuesday. Premier Ntombela…
Patients in need of eye operations in the Sekhukhune and Capricorn districts in Limpopo are disappointed because the Warmbath Hospital in Waterberg District has not called them despite promising to do so a few months ago. Joshua Leselo* (71) from…
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