Health

SJC activists arrested during protest outside Mayor’s office

Several Social Justice Coalition (SJC) members who chained themselves to railings at the Civic Centre in Cape Town this morning vowing they would not budge until Mayor Patricia de Lille addressed them, were arrested and held at Caledon Square Police Station. They have not yet been charged.

Tariro Washinyira

News | 11 September 2013

Help kickstart Khayelitsha baker’s bicycle dream

An obsession with spinach makes a good baker -- that at least applies to 25-year-old Lufefe Nomjana.

Mary-Anne Gontsana

News | 11 September 2013

When the solution compounds the problem

In April 2012, the Eastern Cape Department of Health (ECDoH) put in place a moratorium on the appointment of healthcare workers to vacant posts at facilities throughout the province. This moratorium was instituted in an attempt to control the chronic overspending that was pushing the department deeper into financial crisis each year.

Daygan Eagar

Opinion | 11 September 2013

A Tale of Rural Health

The failing healthcare system in the Eastern Cape affects everyone: urban communities, migrants from Gauteng and Cape Town too sick to work anymore or returning home to retire, and healthcare workers who don’t have the medicines, equipment and a functioning referral system, to offer the care their patients need.

Marije Versteeg

Opinion | 11 September 2013

What to do with expired medicines

Most households have cupboards of expired pills and medicines and sometimes even use them. But what are the dangers?

Mary-Anne Gontsana

Brief | 3 September 2013

Dissatisfaction with service delivery at Khayelitsha District Hospital

The new Khayelitsha District Hospital, officially opened in April 2012, has attracted widespread criticism and unhappiness with its quality of service, which has fallen far short of expectation.

Thandile Majivolo

News | 21 August 2013

Religious leaders inspect Khayelitsha’s sanitation

Members of the Western Cape Religious Leaders Forum led a sanitation walkabout in Khayelitsha to collect evidence to present to the City of Cape Town, about the huge problem of sanitation in the township.

Amelia Earnest

News | 14 August 2013

Religious leaders inspect Khayelitsha’s sanitation

Members of the Western Cape Religious Leaders Forum led a sanitation walkabout in Khayelitsha to collect evidence to present to the City of Cape Town, about the huge problem of sanitation in the township.

Amelia Earnest

News | 14 August 2013

Do companies have the right to own your genes?

Patenting of genes incentivises research and the discovery of new treatments, tests and drugs. But does the exclusive ownership of biological material stop the sharing of information and prevent treatment getting to the people that need it?

Kerry Gordon

Opinion | 12 August 2013

Are we ready for universal breastfeeding in South Africa? A response to Vuyiseka Dubula

Vuyiseka Dubula’s opinion piece published in GroundUp raises some important issues concerning the promotion of breastfeeding in South Africa. Vuyiseka is correct: breastfeeding is much safer than formula feeding.

David Sanders, Tanya Doherty, Debra Jackson, Ameena Goga

Opinion | 12 August 2013

Autistic child still has to be tied to couch

Three months ago we told the story of Patricia who raises her autistic son, Teko, in a shack in Khayelitsha. Patricia sometimes ties Teko to a couch for his own safety to prevent him wandering off. We followed up to see if life has become easier for them. [Patricia’s and Teko’s names have been changed.]

Nwabisa Pondoyi

News | 7 August 2013

Dying with dignity

Nelson Mandela may not be aware of it but he has got us talking about death; something we have never had the courage to do before. This is certainly a discussion he wanted us to have. As President of the country he appointed the South African Law Commission to write a report on end-of life issues, and it was Nelson Mandela himself who tabled this in parliament.

Sean Davison

Opinion | 6 August 2013

Zimbabwean injured in work accident receives no compensation

Jabulani Murire is a 38-year-old, married Zimbabwean man with three children. His family is struggling to survive after he became bedridden following a car accident while on duty.

Tariro Washinyira

News | 30 July 2013

Sex work and disability: a crucial need seldom spoken about

On 19 July 2013, the Sex Workers Education and Advocacy Taskforce (SWEAT) hosted the Sisonke Open University Seminar on sex workers and people with disabilities. Ntokozo Yingwana, an Advocacy Officer at SWEAT, said that the seminar dealt with disability in the sex industry. She said she hoped the conference would help lift the stigma on this topic.

Jonathan Dockney

News | 24 July 2013

Initiation deaths can be stopped

As this year’s winter circumcision season comes to a close, communities across the country are mourning the decline of a respected tradition that has fallen into criminal hands.

Edirin Okoloko and Thandile Majivolo

Feature | 24 July 2013

What patients are saying about Khayelitsha Hospital

On 17 April the Western Cape Health Minister, Theuns Botha, opened Khayelitsha Hospital, “Today marks a milestone of improved service delivery for the people of the Western Cape. Finally, after a lifetime of travelling to distant hospitals, the people of Khayelitsha now have access to a hospital in their immediate vicinity that will compare to the best in the world.”

Pharie Sefali

News | 17 July 2013