Treatment

 

South Africa needs stronger leadership and increased budgets in mental healthcare

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The psychiatric profession should play a greater role in advocating for patients’ rights and improving management of mental health in the public sector after a series of recent tragedies that highlighted the neglect of mental healthcare in South Africa.

Professor Bonga Chiliza, incoming South African Society of Psychiatrists (Sasop) president, says the deaths of 144 patients in the now-notorious Life Esidimeni tragedy; allegations of abuse and human rights violations at the Tower Psychiatric Hospital in the Eastern Cape; and the suicide of UCT Health Sciences Dean Prof Bongani Mayosi following his battle with depression all point to need for better management of public sector psychiatry

Therefore, the organisation will ramp up its lobbying for mental healthcare to be allocated an equitable share of the national health budget. Chiliza says Sasop would also be doing more to encourage medical students to specialise in psychiatry, in order to grow the numbers of qual
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New portable technology takes primary healthcare to the people

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Portable medical technology makes it possible to take primary healthcare to low-income populations that frequently have a disproportionate burden of ill health.

It allows mobile clinics and screening days to take healthcare services to schools and local communities that would ordinarily not have access.

Instead of expecting patients to travel to static clinics, they can be screened and diagnosed on the spot and receive preventive healthcare where they are, rather than incurring travel costs or having to take time off work. ”The South African medical environment is still in the early stages of adopting mobile solutions to preventive screening and healthcare.

“Screening for common health issues like loss of hearing or vision helps to avoid a heavier cost burden on constrained healthcare resources once the diagnosed conditions worsen,” says Dr Dirk Koekemoer, founder and CEO of eMoyo. “But this approach, when effectively managed through a collaboration betwe
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A change in birth options: What’s behind SA’s skyrocketing C-section rates?

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Almost one in four babies born at public hospitals come into the world via c-section but is it costing some women their lives?

For decades, Caesarean sections were a last resort for mothers and babies in distress. If you had access to this kind of procedure, you could count yourself among the world’s lucky.

At the dawn of the 21st century, rates of the procedure in almost all African regions save for the continent’s north dragged along at less than 5%, recently published research in The Lancetshows. Meanwhile, the continent was home to more than half of the 13 countries responsible for the majority of the world’s maternal deaths, World Health Organisation (WHO) data from the year 2000 shows.

At the same time, C-section rates in much of Asia and Eastern Europe hovered around 7%.

Almost 30-million babies will come into the world this year by Caesarean if 2015 figures are anything to go by — nearly double the number of infants delivered in this way alm
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A cancer drug offers more affordable treatment for diabetic retinopathy

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Treatment for diabetic retinopathy can be expensive, especially in low and middle-income countries such as South Africa, but a recent doctoral study at Stellenbosch University (SU) found that a relatively cheap drug called bevacizumab could be effective.

“We found that injecting bevacizumab into the eyes could help treat diabetic eye disease and prevent blindness in people living in low and middle-income countries,” says Dr Jose Fernando Arevalo, chairperson of the Department of Ophthalmology at the Bayview Medical Center in the Wilmer Eye Institute at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore in America.

Aevalo, who is also the president of the Pan-American Association of Ophthalmology, obtained his doctorate in ophthalmology at the second ceremony of SU’s December graduation.

He says the rapid increase in the prevalence of diabetes means that by 2040 more people will be at risk of developing diabetic eye disease and therefore less ex
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Government health care system a disgrace – Elderly man from Sasolburg fear for his life after told to only come back to Boitumelo Regional Hospital in 2020 for much needed surgery

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A 61-year-old Sasolburg man has been left angered and fearing for his life after being told he has to wait until 2020 before he can have surgery at a hospital in Kroonstad to treat his debilitating condition.

Joseph Morake had already waited seven months for November 30, the initial date of surgery given to him in April this year at Boitumelo Regional Hospital to alleviate the severe swelling in his scrotum – a condition known as bilateral hydrocele.

“To my understanding, if left untreated, this swelling could lead to a hernia or even prostate cancer.

“I already had anxiety throughout the seven months waiting for the surgery meant for last month … At my age, it really isn’t easy. And the swelling was getting enormous, making it difficult for me to sit or even use the toilet,” Morake told City Press this week.

But to his surprise and horror, Morake said on the long-awaited date of surgery he and a group of about 14 other patients were “rudely d
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Less than 2000 state ambulances nationally may be on the road

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The national health department says it is against outsourcing emergency services. But with a grave shortage of ambulances, it may have no choice.
Just 1971 state ambulance vehicles are on the road nationally, a Bhekisisa survey reveals.

Health department guidelines say there should be at least 5 700 ambulances in operation — or one for every 10 000 people, according to standards quoted in the KwaZulu-Natal health department 2017 annual report. But with less than 2 000 actually functioning, there are only enough state emergency vehicles to cater for about a third of the population, data from provinces show.

A May audit of provincial health departments by the Treatment Action Campaign (TAC) found shortages of ambulances and emergency medical services (EMS) personnel in several provinces.

In response, Bhekisisa requested the latest EMS vehicle and personnel numbers from all nine provinces. The Gauteng, North West, Western Cape, Mpumalanga, and Eastern Cape hea
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Wonderful news, Genetics may be the key to new epilepsy therapies

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An international study has discovered 11 new genes associated with epilepsy, which greatly advances knowledge of the underlying biological causes of epilepsy and may inform the development of new treatments for the condition.

Researchers compared the DNA of more than 15,000 people with epilepsy to the DNA of 30,000 people without epilepsy. This has created a better understanding of genetic factors that contribute to the most common forms of this condition, and the results tripled the number of known genetic associations for epilepsy and implicated 11 new genes.

The majority of current anti-epileptic drugs directly target one or more of the associated genes and identified an additional 166 drugs that do the same. These drugs are promising new candidates for epilepsy therapy as they directly target the genetic basis of the disease.

“This work illustrates the power of scientists collaborating across countries and continents. Discovering these new genes for epil
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Verkeerde diagnose by Steve Biko- akademiese hospitaal ontaard in lewensgevaarlike kanker wat vrou se hele gesig skend

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’n Pretoriase vrou is in skok nadat haar “koorsblaar” in ’n lewensgevaarlike kanker ontaard het wat al groot dele van haar gesig geskend het.

Clara van Heerden (52), van Hermanstad in Pretoria-Wes, beskuldig die dokters van die Steve Biko- akademiese hospitaal dat hulle haar al sedert 2016 verkeerd gediagnoseer het.

Sy sê die dokters daar het aanhoudend gesê sy het ’n infeksie. Hulle het verskeie reekse antibiotika voorgeskryf, maar nooit ’n biopsie gedoen nie.

“Niks het gehelp nie,” sê sy. “Dit was die heeltyd net seer.”

En elke keer was die “koorsblaar” groter.

Sy sê sy is al sedert verlede jaar op ’n waglys om ’n biopsie te kry.

Sowat ’n maand gelede het sy dit met die finansiële hulp van ander in die private sektor laat doen.

Dr. Fritz Hoogendijk, ’n private kaak- en mondchirurg, het twee weke gelede vir haar die uitslag van die biopsie gegee: Sy het nog al die tyd kanker en nie ’n koorsblaar nie.

Clara
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The shock and horror over quality of Johannesburg and Pretoria drinking water

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Outa has expressed concern over the state of drinking water in several parts of Gauteng following a survey.
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Children in South Africa’s aren’t getting the mental health care they need

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Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has received increased scientific, clinical and public attention over the past few decades. It’s the most common psychiatric disorder in children – affecting 2% to 16% of the school going population.

But in South Africa data on prevalence rates, access to care, and treatment for ADHD is limited. Despite the known efficacy of treatment, access to health care and treatment remains limited for many children in the country. This is a problem as untreated ADHD results in substantial costs and has a negative impact both on educational attainment and quality of life.

We have recently completed a study that looked at the mental health barriers South African school children face. Our research focused on the work of a not for profit organisation, set up in 2017 to provide mental health screening services for school children and with a particular focus on ADHD.

Our research found a prevalence rate of 2.5% among the more th
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Be careful, your favourite birth control might put you at risk of HIV?

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We could be just months away from knowing whether Depo-Provera use is linked to a higher risk of HIV infection in women. For more than a decade, obstetrician Coceka Mnyani’s conversations with her patients followed a script.

Had they used contraceptives before? Did they want more children? What contraceptive did they plan on using after delivery and why?

“Depending on what a woman said, you would advise, you know, ‘that’s not such a great idea, have you thought about this’, ‘maybe this one would be a better option’,” Mnyani says.

“You’ve got this woman who has just had a baby, who’s tired, who has a crying infant — is she going to remember to take a pill every day?”

Health department data shows that most South African women visiting a public health facility for free contraception will leave with a shot of the three-month contraception depo-medroxyprogesterone acetate, which is most commonly sold under the name Depo-Provera. T
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The National Health Insurance (NHI): Who’s in, who’s out and how much will it cost

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The NHI was the centre of the presidential health summit. Now the pressure is mounting for Treasury to figure out how to fund it.

NEWS ANALYSIS

The health system is in crisis, government officials admit. Now, they have just weeks to produce an initial plan on how to fix it ahead of introducing a National Health Insurance (NHI), Deputy President David Mabuza revealed this weekend.

With its namesake, President Cyril Ramaphosa was absent from the presidential health summit. The gathering drew more than 100 representatives from civil society, government, unions, academia and the private sector. Prior to the event, that was held in Boksburg, each delegate received a 21-page concept note outlining challenges within the health system — this included corruption and how the NHI will incorporate the private sector.

Solutions proposed during the meeting will now form the basis for wider consultation ahead of a public plan to turn the health system.
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A DNAlysis Review for you: How DNA tests can help personalise medicine

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DNA tests have gained in popularity over the last few years. They reveal a lot about us, but the data can be overwhelming. We tried one to find out how it all works.

You’ve probably seen it somewhere. Personalised DNA tests are a big trend in medicine. Genetic tests are still a bit lowkey in South Africa, but globally, it’s a booming business.

These DNA tests can tell us a whole bunch of things.

From which diet is best, which exercise we might respond well to and, perhaps most crucially, help us understand how we process medication. It can also help us track our heritage, but for the purposes of this article, we’ll focus on the health aspects.

Are we doomed by our genes?
Most of the outcomes are theoretical, based on correlation, not causation.

And there is some debate around whether some of this information should even be shared with consumers. The reports have loads of info on them. Some scary, some less so. Some experts fear th
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Public hospitals in South Africa have become a death-trap for the poor

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Refiloe Nt’sekhe of the Democratic Alliance says that public hospitals have become a death-trap for the poor‚ says 

The party has produced this checklist of the top eight problems that it says require urgent intervention‚ following inspection visits to hospitals and clinics over the past month by DA provincial health spokespersons Jack Bloom MPL (Gauteng)‚ Dr Imran Keeka MPL (KwaZulu-Natal)‚ Dr Tutu Faleni MPL (North West) and Langa Bodlani MPL (Limpopo).

Here is a summary of their report:

1. Chronic staff shortages and long waiting times

All the facilities lacked staff in critical positions.

At the Bongani Hospital in the Free State‚ they found that the facility only had one nephrology Sister to attend to patients suffering from kidney diseases. This was despite health norms and standards indicating that hospitals should have nine.

While inspecting the Paediatric Ward in Taung District Hospital in North West‚ the DA fo
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Time to go back to basics in the fight against childhood pneumonia

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Pneumonia is a respiratory infection that affects the lungs. The viruses and bacteria that cause the disease are spread through airborne droplets from a cough or sneeze. An infection can cause the lungs to fill with pus and fluid, making breathing and oxygen intake difficult.

And while anyone can get pneumonia, children with weakened immune systems or underlying illnesses are more susceptible. That’s why, pneumonia kills more than a million children every year across the world.

There have been some critical advances in preventing and treating the disease. These include vaccines, antibiotics and providing supplemental oxygen. In 2009, South Africa became the first African country to include the pneumococcal conjugate vaccine in its routine infant immunisation programme. By 2012 an estimated 81% of one-year-old babies had received three doses of the vaccine.

South Africa has also reduced its pneumonia burden through the mass roll-out of antiretroviral therapy a
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