Push to make breast cancer a priority
The significant outcome of the meeting ‘ attended by deputy health minister Dr Gwen Ramokgopa and other departmental staff ‘ was that Ramokgopa has invited breast cancer stakeholders to contribute...
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SA must follow BRICS lead on patents
Other BRICS countries have fulfilled the commitments they made in July 2011 to enact public health safeguards spelled out in World Trade Organisation (WTO) agreements. Decisive moves by Brazil, India...
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India court ruling significant for SA
The ruling, announced on Monday in Delhi, has great significance for South Africa and other countries with high prevalence of HIV and TB, where access to newer and affordable drugs is crucial. In...
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Preparing for National Health Insurance
Although few changes are visible to Citizen Average, government has been involved in a wide variety of policy and institutional reforms in the last 18 months, as reported by Health Director General...
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Bill imminent on alcohol ads restrictions
‘There has been a lot of research. Now is time for action,’ said Dr Motoaledi, speaking at the launch of the SA Health Review in Pretoria. Acknowledging that it was going to be tough, he appealed...
View ArticlePoor services undermine HIV treatment programme
So argues Professor Francois Venter from the Wits Reproductive Health and HIV Institute in the SA Health Review 2012/13. ‘Interventions relating to the National Health Insurance system and the...
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NHI – The first 18 months
Blurb: National health department DG Precious Matsoso summarises the progress and future plans for introducing the NHI in South Africa.
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Roadmap to tackle newborn deaths
While South Africa is one of the countries showing sterling outcomes in reducing the under-five mortality rate (overwhelmingly due to the success of the programme which prevents the HIV-positive mother...
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HIV+ mom feels ‘blessed’ with new medication
OurHealth visited Imbalenhle Clinic in KwaZulu-Natal when they issued the first patient there with the new treatment. ‘I’m very excited to be the first among many to receive this pill,’ said...
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Patients and health workers excited about new HIV treatment
This new regimen will save the Department of Health money and they will now spent R89 a month per patient instead of the R400 on the previous regimen. The new treatment is also expected to improve...
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Moves to safeguard water amid proposed fracking may not be enough
Hydraulic Fracturing, also known as “fracking,” is a technique in which typically water is mixed with sand and chemicals, and injected at high pressure into rock to create small fractures. These...
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Proposed policy could mean fewer patents, cheaper drugs
South Africa currently grants almost every patent application it receives as it doesn’t have a patent review system. Easy patents for pharmaceutical companies mean South African patients pay up to...
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Government unveils NCD strategic plan
The 80-page Strategic Plan for the Prevention and Control of Non-Communicable Diseases 2013-2017 outlines three main components to combat NCDs, including healthy lifestyle promotion, health systems...
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Need to rethink palliative care in South Africa
Diederik Lohmanphoto credit: hrw.org Diederik Lohman is a senior researcher working on palliative care issues for Human Rights Watch. He spoke to Health-e about what palliative care is, why it matters...
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Infant and Young Child Feeding Policy (2013)
In August 2011, the South African government took a decision to actively promote breastfeeding and phase out the distribution of free infant formula as part of prevention of mother-to-child HIV...
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Proposed legislation: Environmental health norms, standards
The South African Department of Health’s director general intends to set norms and standards for environmental health, in terms of Chapter 2, Section 2(a)(iii) of the National Health Act, 2003 (Act 61...
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Strategic Plan for Nurse Education, Training and Practice
In April 2011, the Department of Health called together nurses at a national nursing summit with the aim of reconstructing and revitalizing the nursing sector. Stakeholders identified seven key areas...
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Proposed tobacco regulations more than “smoke and mirrors”
Recently, News24 columnist Chris Moerdyk penned a piece entitled, Tobacco regulations just smoke and mirrors, questioning the value of proposed regulations to limit in-store tobacco displays. In his...
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Policy: South Africa’s Integrated School Health Programme
South Africa’s schools health programmes have struggled in the past due to factors such as poor management, inequitable distribution of resources and a historical lack of collaboration between the...
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‘Cigarette displays aimed at children’
The proposed regulations would limit tobacco product displays to no more than 1m2 in the case of retailers and wholesalers, or 4m2 in the specialist tobacco shops. While the tobacco and retail sectors...
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