There’s more to self-care than scented candles or massages, it’s a key public health toolÂ
Social media for sex education: South African teens explain how it would help them
Eye on crisis: KZN’s water woes could be fuelling pink eye outbreak
Tackling climate change can improve public health in Africa – new report highlights how
Chris Malley, University of York; Alice Akinyi Kaudia, University of Nairobi; Andriannah Mbandi, South Eastern Kenya University; Kevin Hicks, University of York; Philip Osano, Stockholm Environment Institute, and Youba Sokona, UCL African countries can simultaneously address climate change and improve public health by reducing air pollution. In many cases these actions…
Giving South Africa’s disabled children the care they need
by Chantelle Kriel, CEO of Casa Caritas. Most children with disabilities require care beyond what parents or primary caregivers can provide. In South Africa, many parents with disabled children struggle to earn a basic living, let alone afford the optimal…
How we talk to young boys is key to curbing the gender-based violence scourge in South Africa
by Dr Ntombifikile Mtshali, CEO of Shout-It-Now, a South African NPC that delivers youth-friendly, community-based HIV prevention, sexual and reproductive health and related services in the Gauteng and North West provinces. Young children learn by imitating the behaviours of those around…
Health risks at home: a study in six African countries shows how healthy housing saves children’s lives
Hellen Gitau, African Population and Health Research Center; Blessing Mberu, African Population and Health Research Center; Kanyiva Muindi, African Population and Health Research Center, and Samuel Iddi, African Population and Health Research Center Housing is a critical social determinant of…
Mental health is key to maternal health
One in 3 South African women experience depression and/or anxiety during and after pregnancy. Empathy and positive mental health screening at clinics are essential parts of maternity care. This film by the Perinatal Mental Health Project at the University of…
Way too many young people’s lives are cut short on our roadsÂ
by Dr Lee Randall an independent road safety researcher and co-founder of the Road Ethics Project Globally, young people aged 5-29 – especially males – are the most likely to die in road crashes. This is very concerning in Africa…
HIV among trans women is at crisis levels. Discrimination is fuelling the fireÂ
By Chris Bateman, Freelance Journalist With HIV positivity among urban transgender women in South Africa estimated at 46%, it is becoming increasingly urgent for healthcare workers to undergo sensitivity training. A transgender woman is a person who was assigned the…
Diabetes is South Africa’s second biggest killer disease: hiking the sugar tax would help
Karen Hofman, University of the Witwatersrand and Susan Goldstein, University of the Witwatersrand Death rates in South Africa have declined slightly during the past few years. But the country faces a steady rise in both death and disability caused by…
Children are a blind spot in South Africa’s HIV responseÂ
By Chris Bateman, Freelance Journalist Only two-thirds of children in South Africa getting treatment for HIV are virally suppressed. Viral suppression is a measure of how well antiretroviral (ARVs) drugs reduce HIV viral load. A high HIV viral load suggests…
TB report shows the urgent need for a new vaccineÂ
The global measures to end the tuberculosis epidemic are showing signs of recovery post-Covid. More cases have been diagnosed and the number of people who died from the disease has gone down. Despite this apparent recovery, the World Health Organisation…
Diabetes-related deaths more than doubled in the past decade
Dr Patrick Ngassa Piotie is a Senior Programme Manager at the University of Pretoria Diabetes Research Centre and the Chairperson of the Diabetes Alliance Deaths due to non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are on the rise in South Africa. The increase in…