Your Health

 

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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The South African Nuclear Energy Corporation (Necsa) board are being replaced, will the new members approve nuclear deals??

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General financial misconduct, not adhering to shareholder instructions and repetitive legislative non-compliance are among a litany of challenges which lead to the government replacing the South African Nuclear Energy Corporation (Necsa) board.
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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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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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NEW DRINK DRIVING LAWS:- Offenders to spend 7 days in jail before getting a bail hearing

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The Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC) wants drunk drivers to spend at least 7 days in jail before they can be considered for bail.
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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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Why are the private sector remaining wary of universal healthcare

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Globally, one in four private healthcare groups surveyed won’t work with governments. Whether the National Health Insurance (NHI) succeeds or fails will depend on public-private partnerships. But the scheme will have to overcome more than just money woes to get the two sectors to settle old quarrels if new research is any indication.

Under the NHI, a centralised fund will procure a package of services from both the public and private sectors on behalf of South Africans. But it’s unclear how this will work and South Africa isn’t the only country trying to figure this out. Countries such as Indonesia, Egypt and Kenya are also looking to buy services from the private sector as part of the move towards universal healthcare.

But a recent survey of 20 of the world’s biggest private healthcare providers showed many remain wary of working with governments. Collectively, these companies owned 500 hospitals and 7 000 clinics across 40 low- and middle-income coun
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Oues se skokverhoging op Discovery-opsie

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Duisende pensioenarisse wat op die Discovery Health Medical Scheme (DHMS) se Keycare Plus-opsie is, moes tot hul skok hoor hul premies styg volgende jaar met sowat 47%.

Lede op die KeyCare Plus-opsie betaal premies gegrond op hul maandelikse inkomste.

Die skerp premieverhoging raak 139 000 lede wat op die laagste inkomstevlak van KeyCare Plus is. Van hulle is 19 000 ouer as 65.

’n Leser van Netwerk24 het gekla omdat haar 77-jarige ma, wat ’n maandelikse inkomste van R8 000 het, meer sal moet opdok. “Sy het vanjaar R990 per maand betaal en die premie styg volgende jaar tot R1 456, en die voordele bly dieselfde.”

Haar ma wou anoniem bly omdat sy nie wil hê mense moet weet wat haar inkomste is nie.

“My ma sit aan die hoër inkomstekant van wat al die jare Keycare se kliëntebasis was. Wat van al die ander mense wat veel minder verdien?”

Volgens haar is talle voordele tussen 2017 en 2018 weggeneem.

“Sy het natuurlik ander uitgawes ook, s
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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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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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Rahima Moosa Mother and Child Hospital:- Possible link between baby formula, deaths in Joburg hospital

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Two types of bacteria were found in baby formula tested at the Rahima Moosa Mother and Child Hospital, but toxicology tests haven’t been done.

A possible link between baby formula and necrotising enterocolitis (NEC) in premature babies could explain the deaths of nine babies recently at Rahima Moosa Mother and Child Hospital in Johannesburg, an expert has suggested.

But Stasha Jordan, director at SA Breastmilk Reserve, warned that while studies suggest a correlation between the use of formula in new-born babies and NEC – a medical condition – several factors had to be considered when such outbreaks occur.

After several infant deaths in hospitals around the country this year, the National Institute for Communicable Diseases couldn’t find the cause of the outbreak.

According to the institute, the presence of two types of bacteria were found in the baby formula they tested at the hospital. The testing revealed the presence of Bacillus and Streptococcus
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Malaria is still a major problem in Africa, now there are a novel approach that brings African scientists closer to a malaria vaccine

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Originally published by Faith Osier on The Conversation. There are over 200 million clinical cases each year and approximately half a million deaths.

There are different ways in which malaria can be controlled. Preventive measures include use of insecticides in bed nets or indoor spraying programmes. Medicines can also be used to prevent or treat malaria, but resistance often develops and drugs lose their effectiveness.

The World Health Organisation reported that progress in controlling malaria has stalled.

As an immunologist, I dream that one day we will have an effective vaccine that will help eliminate malaria. I think this is possible because for over a century, we have known that humans do become immune to malaria. In places where there is lots of malaria adults don’t succumb to the disease, but their young children do.

In experiments conducted over 50 years ago, researchers showed that blood could be taken from adults who had become immune and used
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Hospital News:- Rahima Moosa Hospital: “The hospital has violated the right of access to health” – says SAHRC

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The South African Human Rights Commission inspected the Rahima Moosa Mother & Child Hospital on 8 November.

The investigation at the Rahima Moosa Hospital followed after a necrotising enterocolitis outbreak at the hospital took the lives of nine infants from March to July 2018.

After the visit to Rahima Moosa Hospital , Buang Jones from the South African Human Rights Commission said in a press briefing:

“From what we’ve gleaned so far, the hospital has violated the right of access to health. [..] They’ve also violated Section 28 of the Constitution which says that’s the best interest of children are of paramount importance.”

The hospital, which assists in the delivery of the approximately 13,000 babies yearly, acknowledged the death of the infants in August, but the cause of the outbreak is still unknown. The outbreak was contained in August.

According to a tweet posted by Jacaranda News, the SAHRC’s investigation also revealed that the Rahim
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