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African Health Care News

69K views 335 replies 42 participants last post by  MarciuSky2 
#1 ·
(Can somebody make this a Stickey thread)

Made this thread for people to post news in their countries make great leaps in Health care for the masses, disease curing etc...

Researchers are close to producing a new malaria
vaccine that could see the number of deaths from
the disease drop significantly in Africa.
The vaccine, known simply as RTS,S, is expected
to be available for public use in 2014 subject to
approval by the Ministry of Public Health.
Results from the recent large-scale third stage of
trials show that the vaccine can protect infants
against the deadly disease.
The vaccine is to be administered to children in
three doses.
Speaking on Friday at a conference in Nairobi, the
scientists involved in the research said the
vaccine would give a lifeline to many families in
Africa.
Tool kit
In Kenya, the research is being undertaken by
scientists based at the Centres for Disease Control
and Kenya Medical Research Institute.
“An effective malaria vaccine would be a welcome
addition to our tool kit, even as we record
significant progress in recent years,” a principal
investigator, Ms Patricia Njuguna, said.
“When administered along with standard
childhood vaccines, the efficacy of RTS,S in
infants aged six to 12 weeks at first vaccination
against clinical and severe malaria was 31 and 37
per cent respectively,” Mr Salim Abdulla, a
Tanzanian researcher, said.
He noted that the efficacy level observed with the
dosage last year among children aged five to 17
months against clinical and severe malaria
recorded 55 per cent and 47 per cent success
rates.
An estimated 655,000 people from sub-Saharan
Africa die of malaria annually with children below
five the worst hit, according the World Health
Organisation (WHO).
In Kenya, malaria is one of the top three killers
among infants along with pneumonia and
diarrhoea.
The 2010 Kenya Demographic Health Survey
results showed that at least 84 per cent of
children below 15, which translates to over six
million people, are at the risk of contracting
malaria.
The survey also indicated that over 19,000
infants succumb to the disease annually in Kenya.
Though the current success rating is lower than
the one reported last year, Mr Abdulla said the
information will enable the team gather and
analyse more data from the vaccine trials.
“This will help to determine what factors might
influence efficacy against malaria and to better
understand the potential of RTS,S in our battle
against this devastating disease,” he said.
Ms Njuguna said they will provide more data for
analysis to enable the public to understand the
findings better.
 
#28 · (Edited)
Two vaccines to be introduced in Dar
Thursday, 06 December 2012 00:37

By Mbarwa Kivuyo
The Citizen Correspondent

Dar es Salaam. Tanzania will this week witness the introduction of two vaccines under the auspices of Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation (Gavi).
The two vaccines, pneumococcal and rotavirus, will protect children against pneumonia and diarrhoea, respectively. The two diseases claim lives of millions of children worldwide.

Gavi policy and performance managing director Nina Schwalbe said Tanzania was unique in the sense that for the first time the country was introducing two vaccines at once. She said this in Bagamoyo yesterday, when Gavi board members visited Ifakara Health Institute (IHI) clinical trial facility. According to Ms Schwalbe, the launch of the pneumonia and diarrhoea vaccines will take place during the Gavi partners’ forum scheduled for Dar es Salaam from yesterday to tomorrow.

She explained that the partners’ forum would be attended by about 700 delegates from all over the world representing all key players in vaccines and immunisation programmes.
Ms Schwalbe added that the delegates came from developing and donor countries, the World Health Organisation, Unicef, the World Bank, the vaccine industry in both industrialised and developing countries, research and technical agencies, civil society organisations, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and other private philanthropists.

Gavi is a public-private partnership focused on saving children's lives and protecting people's health by increasing access to immunisation in developing countries. Gavi board members, who visited the IHI’s clinical trial facility in Bagamoyo, said Tanzania was in the forefront to look for lasting solutions to African public health problems.

Bagamoyo District medical officer Dr Mastidia Rutaihwa told Gavi delegates that the district had advanced in the implementation of immunisation programmes. Dr Rutaihwa noted that the introduction of both the pneumococcal and rotavirus vaccines would bring Tanzania to a higher level in terms of “averting deaths due to preventable childhood diseases.”

Ms Schwalbe said she appreciated the cutting-edge research going on in Tanzania and promised that Gavi would continue working with institutions like IHI in the search for tools to protect children’s lives.

IHI is known for its clinical trials involving the testing of safety and efficacy of a malaria candidate vaccine called RTSS and TB drugs.
The TB phase II clinical trials of the new TB drug candidates PA-824 and moxifloxacin in combination with pyrazinamide started in Bagamoyo early this year.
The TB trial is also taking place at the National Institute for Medical Research (NIMR) in Mbeya. Dr Klaus Reither from IHI told the delegates that the TB vaccine trials made the country an important partner in international TB clinical trial networks.

http://www.thecitizen.co.tz/news/4-national-news/27613-two-vaccines-to-be-introduced-in-dar
 
#29 ·
Trial results create prospect of a malaria-free Africa
IN SUMMARY

Some commentators have moaned about the disappointing results of the latest round that showed less efficacy among children aged 3-4 months compared with previous trial among ages 5-17.
Other commentators see the slightest efficacy among any age group as a big win for Africa.
There have been mixed reactions regarding the results of the malaria vaccine trial released in November that showed efficacy levels lower than previous trial results.

While some commentators have moaned about the disappointing results of the latest round that showed less efficacy among children aged 3-4 months compared with previous trial among ages 5-17, other commentators see the slightest efficacy among any age group as a big win for Africa.

This is because malaria is claiming nearly a million people per year in sub-Saharan Africa alone and, unfortunately, the majority of those dying are children aged under five years.

“The trials we have conducted indicate that the vaccine as it is can help to protect young babies against malaria. More importantly, we observed that it provided this protection in addition to the widespread use of bed nets by the trial participants,” said Salim Abdulla, a principal investigator for the vaccine trial from the Ifakara Health Institute of Tanzania.

Assuming the vaccines achieve near 100 per cent efficacy levels in curbing malaria, what will be the impact? The Institute of Security Studies (ISS), a pan-African think tank on human security issues, attempts to answer this question by building a scenario of a malaria-free sub-Saharan Africa by 2025.

According to a new policy briefing released by the ISS and written by Jonathan Moyer and Graham Emde, a malaria-free sub-Saharan Africa will eliminate 12 million deaths resulting from malaria, with the greatest absolute reduction in Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

It will add more than 50 million years of healthy life, increase overall economic output by nearly $430 billion largely due to increases in production, increase per capita income for Africans by more than $30 per person in 2050 and prevent nearly 2.5 million people from living on less than $1.2 per day in 2050.

“Malaria eradication would contribute nearly $430 billion to Africa’s economy by 2050, but it would also be an expensive investment,” notes the report by the ISS, Malaria No More: Expectations for Eradication.

It is expected that developing a vaccine will cost $1 billion. In addition, the World Health Organisation currently estimates that it will cost $5.1 billion each year from now until 2020 just to reach malaria control targets.

“Economic costs and benefits aside, policymakers must consider the implications for African people. Eliminating the disease would prevent 12 million deaths and 50 million years of life lived with a disability by 2050. These humanitarian impacts should be reason enough to make malaria eradication a top priority,” says the ISS report.

It notes that while eradicating malaria will not solve all of Africa’s social and economic problems; it will, however, be a step in the right direction and could contribute to broader and more comprehensive efforts to truly transform the future of the continent.

Meaningful gains

According to the policy brief, while by 2050, the population of Africa would be only about 0.03 per cent larger in a scenario in which malaria was fully eradicated by 2025, this difference in population would have small impacts on the overall size of the labour force, education spending, and health spending.

However, the full elimination of malaria would lead to increases in overall economic output. Currently, efforts directed towards eradication of the disease are multi-pronged, giving hopes for success as long as the efforts are sustained.

In most countries, education on the use of treated mosquito nets is being encouraged, with governments across Africa scrapping the import duty on the nets and others encouraging local manufacturing of the nets.

There are also efforts to seek different medicines for the disease , with the medicines with the highest comparable efficacy levels being recommended by the WHO and national health departments for use in public and private health centres. And research is going beyond the medical field.

Users of smartphones, for example, can download a free application that emits ultrasonic waves that repeal mosquitoes. Recently, consumer electronics manufacturer LG Electronics unveiled an air conditioner that also emits similar waves to repel mosquitoes.

Xinhua
http://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/new...732/-/view/printVersion/-/gbjlqn/-/index.html
 
#30 ·
2 more child vaccines come aboard in Dar es Salaam
By In2EastAfrica Reporter


In less than a week after it announced the introduction of two new vaccines, Tanzania has announced that it is in the final steps to introduce the Hepatitis B (HPV) and second dose of measles vaccines in 2014.


Dr Hussein Mwinyi

Last Thursday, the government announced the introduction of Pneumococcal Vaccine or Pneumonia Vaccine and Rotavirus Vaccines which are aimed at protecting children under five years of age against pneumonia and diarrhea. Vaccination starts early next month.

Speaking at the International Conference for Immunization held in the city, the Minister for Health and Social Welfare, Dr Hussein Mwinyi, said all the achieved milestones are meant to ensure all children country-wide receive vaccinations under the campaign christened as “Reaching Every Child Approach.”

We need to ensure these children are reached by immunization services through the Reaching Every Child Approach. Our mission is to build on past achievements and use our knowledge and experience to save more lives,” he said. He said the last Effective Vaccine Management Assessment conducted in mid-2012 indicated that Tanzania has greatly improved in the vaccine management at all levels.

Dr Mwinyi noted that Tanzania has expanded the vaccine storage capacity at National Vaccine Level five times compared to 2008 whereas in each region it has managed to install Movable Cold Rooms. The minister said the Cold Rooms have the capacity ranging between 30 and 40 cubic metres to ensure all traditional and new vaccines are accommodated.

He added that the country’s priority was now on installing the District Vaccine Stores. However, he said there were some challenges accompanying the recorded achievements including shortage of skilled staff, inadequate allocation of funds to support immunization services, lack of reliable transport for vaccine distribution and lack of adequate funds for supervision at region and district levels.

The minister thanked the World Health Organization (WHO) for choosing Tanzania to host the 4th Annual Regional Conference on Immunization with the theme “Innovation, access and the rights of all to vaccines.”

“This is an important forum in the African region bringing together partners and experts in the area of immunization to review the progress and make recommendation of the following year,” he said.

The minister said the immunized children, who are protected from the threat of vaccine-preventable diseases, have the opportunity to thrive and a better chance of realizing their full potential.

He said Reaching Every District reaching Every Child approach has made Tanzania routine immunization vaccination coverage to be above 80 per cent in most of the districts in the country in five consecutive years and above 90 per cent at national level in three consecutive years.

Speaking at the event, Dr Luis Chambo of the WHO, said the introduction of the vaccinations was great achievements and the perfect illustrations of the progress the country has made in improving its immunization programme.

“The leadership and commitment of President Jakaya Kikwete has allowed Tanzania to remain on track in achieving some of the health-related Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by attaining the highest immunization coverage in the last two years,” he said.

The conference is attended by more than 200 participants from various African countries and Development Partners supporting various health programmes in the continent.

By PIUS RUGONZIBWA, Tanzania Daily News

Do you have a story or an article to publish? Please email us to submit@in2eastafrica.net.
http://in2eastafrica.net/2-more-child-vaccines-come-aboard-in-dar-es-salaam/
 
#31 ·
The Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital (MTRH) has commissioned an oxygen and gas piping project, which is valued at approximately Sh83 million.

The hospital director, John Kibosia, said the project will ensure the institution has uninterrupted supply of oxygen and other medical gases. “This will also save the institution a lot of money that would have otherwise gone into purchasing the same,” he said.

The contractor for the piping of oxygen and other medical gases, Onsite Gas Systems International, completed the project last month.

Dr Kibosia said the hospital is committed to providing excellent healthcare, training and research services. NHIF supported the Oxygen and Gas Piping Project in collaboration with Indiana University.

He also disclosed that the hospital has earmarked Sh1 billion for setting up a cancer and chronic disease centre and Sh90 million for the construction of modern mental health ward. Between Sh400 million and Sh600 million will be used for equipping the centre while the rest will be used in the facility.

Speaking during the groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of the centre, Dr Kibosia said the centre will help the increasing number of patients in the region who are suffering from cancer and other chronic diseases.

“The complex, once operational, it will help alleviate the suffering of the patients in this region who have been affected by increase of non-communicable diseases such as cancer,” said Dr Kibosia.

He also disclosed that the hospital in partnership with Dutch agency, have plans to expand the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) from the current six-bed to a 20-bed facility.

“Plans are also underway to upgrade the Cardiac ICU to six beds,” said Dr Kibosia adding that the hospital will also be re-designing the accident and emergency unit.

He disclosed that the ground breaking for the 60-bed Shoe 4 Africa Children hospital will be done at the end of the year.

He said cancer is a global health problem and accounts for one in eight deaths worldwide, outpacing Aids, tuberculosis, and malaria combined.

Dr Kibosia said in the next 10 to 15 years, according to World Health Organisation (WHO), the incidence of new cancers will rise to 15 million cases annually, 75 per cent in developing countries.

He lamented the country has only four radiation oncologists, six medical oncologists, four paediatric oncologists and no trained surgical oncologists with MTRH having two doctors who are currently undergoing training in Medical Oncology, one in Alexandria University, Egypt and the other in Stellensbosch University, South Africa.


http://www.businessdailyafrica.com/...oject-/-/539550/1643274/-/ox2rbb/-/index.html
:cheers:
 
#35 ·
Penda Health, a Nairobi-based women’s healthcare provider, has attracted renewed interest from investors after winning an international competition for small and medium-sized enterprises from emerging economies.

Competition for the BiD Network Entrepreneur of the Year 2012 was open to SMEs from emerging markets with viable business models that require funding of between $10,000 (Sh850,000) and $5,000,000 (Sh425 million) over the next five years.

The award ceremony was held in the Hague, Netherlands.

Penda Health co-founder Nicholas Sowden said in an interview that the healthcare firm had established contact with at least six investors following the win.

He said negotiations with the potential financiers are still at an early stage, but estimated that Penda Health will require about Sh85 million ($1 million) for expansion in the next two years.

“From 2014 we plan to be opening a clinic a month,” Mr Sowden told the Business Daily. Penda Health’s business model is based on serving a large number of low-income patients who are shunned by bigger hospitals that target higher profit margins.

The firm specializes in women health services such as breast and cervical cancer screening and family planning, in addition to general consultation, diagnostic tests and medicines.

Penda Health, which so far has one branch based in Kitengela, received $100,000 (Sh8.5 million) from six US and local investors in August to expand its business.

The money was raised from Eleos Foundation, an American group, and G7, a local investment company.

The health clinic said in August it charges outpatient consultation fee of Sh150 per patient, which increases to an average revenue per visit of Sh610 for patients who require medicine or several tests.

The Penda Health clinic has capacity to serve at least 80 patients a day and generate $50,000 (Sh4.2 million) in annual revenues, returning a 25 per cent profit margin.

A clinic needs initial working capital of $30,000 (Sh2.5 million) and it takes seven months to break even.

Penda Health won the top prize out of eight finalists shortlisted from hundreds of proposals presented at the Growing SMEs conference held on November 15.

Divine Masters, a food processing plant based in Uganda and AxIs, a Rwandese IT company, were among the eight finalists.

BiD International, the competition’s organisers, focuses on SMEs in emerging economies, acting as a bridge to link entrepreneurs and potential financiers.
http://www.businessdailyafrica.com/...award/-/539552/1646028/-/sh5hjxz/-/index.html
 
#36 ·
NSSF to establish modern clinic in Arusha
Specialists to be drawn from Apollo hospital in India

Arusha residents will soon benefit from the National Social Security Fund (NSSF) planned modern clinic to treat major ailments.

The pension fund’s director general Dr Ramadhan Dau said five modern and well-equipped clinics would be established in five different regions.

He made the announcement last week in Zanzibar when speaking to the Editors Forum.

He was quoted by the Guardian as saying the clinics would help treat a number of chronic diseases, a move that would help save foreign exchange spent in sending people abroad for treatment.

The clinics would be equipped with the best of modern medical equipment, including information and communication technology systems.

The project is likely to be completed in February next year with the first major clinic being built in Dar es Salaam.
In recent months Aga Khan hospital also established a well equipped clinic in Arusha’s Central Business District
Patients who have been going outside the country for treatment would now be treated in the country, Dr Dau said, unveiling information that NSSF has signed an agreement with Apollo Hospital of India whereby its specialists would be made available to treat patients in the country via a video-camera system.

Under such arrangements diagnosis is made in India and the results brought back through the ICT system to enable treatment to take place, he said.

The agreement with Apollo Hospital involves the latter furnishing the NSSF clinics with modern medical equipment. Other centres where the facilities are expected to be set up are Mwanza, Zanibar and Mbeya. The project is expected to cost about TSh 4.8 billion.

NSSF signed an agreement with Apollo Hospital last year in the presence of President Jakaya Kikwete and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to build Apollo hospital in Tanzania.
http://arushatimes.co.tz/Local News_1.html
 
#37 ·
Government to spend 15bn/- on new hospital in Tanga
By In2EastAfrica Reporter


The Tanzania government is to spend about 15bn/- for construction of Tanga city hospital in order to reduce burden from the regional referral hospital of Bombo.


Bombo Regional Referral Hospital in Tanga

The Tanga City Medical Officer, Dr Peter Neema, told the ‘Daily News’ in his office that construction work which has already started, was being done by Ibra Contractors from Dar es Salaam.

He further said so far they have started with the consultation block which has to be accomplished by the end of this year or early next year. Dr Neema noted that the city council has allocated about 24 hectares of land for the project, enough to accommodate a large project like a hospital.

According to him, the hospital will have 24 storey buildings to cater for the present and future medical needs of the residents of Tanga city.

“This will be one of the modern and biggest city hospitals in the country – and it might be bigger than even Bombo referral hospital in terms of area and buildings,” he explained. He estimated that the hospital will have about 400 beds and that Tanga was a fast growing city, therefore even the hospital was planned to cater for the needs of a growing population now and 50 years to come.

The city medical officer called upon Tanga residents to come up and contribute for the rapid development of the hospital, instead of leaving everything to the government. Dr Neema said the government will implement the project in phases, depending on the availability of funds, but if residents contribute, then the process will be faster.

By NESTORY NGWEGA, Tanzania Daily News
http://in2eastafrica.net/government-to-spend-15bn-on-new-hospital-in-tanga/
 
#38 ·
KNCU starts mother, child health programme
By In2EastAfrica Reporter


The Kilimanjaro Native Cooperative Union (KNCU) has started a Mother Child Health programme in collaboration with ZENSHO of Japan and Family Planning Association (UMATI), Union Board Chairman Mr Maynard Swai has said.


Mr. Meynad Swai

Mr Swai said the programme has been introduced in nine primary cooperative societies under KNCU with the aim of providing quality services to mothers and their children, safe delivery, family planning and education on HIV/AIDS.

The chairman stated that to-date there were 24 health service providers who have been posted to six primary cooperative societies, saying the target was to establish the programme in all 92 societies under the union.

Established in 1959, UMATI is an autonomous, not for profit organization providing sexual and reproductive health education, information and services in Tanzania.

Meanwhile, Mr Swai said that the union has started implementing a Health Insurance Policy, whose idea was hatched in 2007, since April 2011 after KNCU was sponsored by a Holland-based NGO, “Pharma Access.”

Mr Swai said the policy was initially introduced in five primary cooperative societies with the ultimate goal of introducing the policy to all 92 societies under KNCU. According to him, at the moment there are 8,000 members who have access to quality health services covered under the policy.

By PETER TEMBA, Tanzania Daily News

Do you have a story or an article to publish? Please email us to submit@in2eastafrica.net.
http://in2eastafrica.net/kncu-starts-mother-child-health-programme/
 
#39 ·
Scientists in Kenya have launched research of a vaccine to be used against African swine fever. The study is still at an early stage where scientists at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) are identifying antigens and best-bet delivery systems to be used.

“Research in this area, with the ultimate goal of generating resistant and productive domestic pigs, is just beginning,” said ILRI molecular biologist Dr Richard Bishop.

He said that ILRI has just been awarded major funding from BMZ for vaccine development in collaboration with FLI (Riems) Germany to help save the global pig industry that is worth $150 billion.

Africa-wide economic impacts of swine fever are hard to quantify due to a dearth of disease recording, especially as this infection rapidly turns lethal in pig herds and active surveillance for the infection is rare. The prevalence of the disease has thwarted investment in the smallholder pig sector.

The disease is still emerging in Africa and in the last 20 years, it has spread to parts of West Africa, Madagascar, Mauritius and most recently (in 2011) to Chad from Cameroon.

In Uganda, pig numbers have increased to four million today and continue to rise from 100,000 in the 1970s and pork consumption is now close to that of beef.

There were 20 recorded outbreaks of African swine fever in Uganda in 2010 alone.

“This is an underestimate due to a difficulty in diagnosing the disease and under-reporting of livestock diseases,” Bishop said.

Although the absolute total number of pigs kept in Africa remains relatively small (less than 50 million), pig keeping is very profitable for many of Africa’s rural poor, providing a flexible means of generating an income in the right environments.

Bishop noted that experimental live attenuated vaccines already exist, providing proof of concept for the feasibility of developing a recombinant vaccine against this disease.


http://www.nation.co.ke/business/ne...vaccine/-/1006/1850560/-/dcdqlgz/-/index.html
Great
 
#40 ·
Niger offers cash reward to help eradicate Guinea worm


May 14 (Reuters) - Niger is offering cash rewards to anyone reporting a case of Guinea worm as part of efforts to permanently eradicate the parasitic disease in the impoverished West African nation, the health ministry said.

Though it once afflicted around 3.5 million people annually across Asia and Africa, according to the U.S.-based Carter Center, Guinea worm disease is now on the verge of being eradicated worldwide.

Niger had been due to join the list of countries free from the disease last year before an influx of some 60,000 refugees fleeing fighting in neighbouring Mali where the parasite is present.

Anyone reporting a case of Guinea worm, confirmed as such by health authorities, would be offered a reward of 20,000 CFA francs ($39.58).

"A reward of 40,000 CFA francs ($79.17) will be offered to anyone sick with Guinea worm who declares themselves to health workers within 24 hours of the worm's emergence," the health ministry said in a statement late on Monday.

Landlocked and largely desert, uranium-producing Niger is the world's least developed country according to the United Nation's Human Development Index's ranking of 185 nations.

Guinea worm disease, or dracunculiasis, is transmitted through contaminated water and causes painful skin lesions incapacitating victims and making them unable to work or attend school.

South Sudan accounted for 521, or around 96 percent, of the world's remaining cases of the disease last year, though a small number of cases were also reported in Ethiopia, Chad and Mali. ($1 = 505.2620 CFA francs) ($1 = 505.2620 CFA francs) (Reporting by Abdoulaye Massalatchi; Writing by Joe Bavier)
 
#41 ·
SA child Aids deaths plummet

A highly respected study has found deaths of young children from Aids have decreased more than tenfold in the past decade in South Africa.

Published in The Lancet on Tuesday, the study was conducted by an international consortium of researchers led by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) at the University of Washington.

“More people die from HIV/Aids in South Africa than anywhere else in the world but substantial progress has been made in saving young children from the disease, according to a new, first-of-its-kind analysis of trend data,” said Andre Pascal Kengne of the South African Medical Research Council.

The data demonstrated “the need to be diligent in prevention and treatment efforts to decrease incidence and mortality rates for all age groups”.

Washington University explained: “Researchers found the scale-up of interventions for HIV/Aids – including antiretroviral therapy, programmes to prevent mother-to-child transmission and the promotion of condom use – have helped drive reductions in years of life lost to the disease, particularly in more recent years.

“HIV/Aids is increasingly a condition people live with rather than die from, and the world has added nearly 20 million life years as a result of these programmes.

The university reported that in South Africa, it was likely that expanded access to child-focused interventions had contributed to preventing new HIV infections and deaths among children under five years old.

There were over 56 000 new HIV/Aids infections recorded for this age group in 2003 but 10 years later, that number had fallen to 7 611.

Dr Christopher Murray, IHME director and one of the authors of the study, said: “The global investment in HIV treatment is saving lives at a rapid clip. But the quality of antiretroviral programmes varies widely. In order to reduce HIV-related deaths even further, we need to learn from the best programmes and do away with the worst ones.”

The study also found that TB and malaria were killing fewer South Africans than in 2000, when the Millennium Development Goals were established to stop the spread of these diseases by next year.

“Of these three diseases, South Africa has shown the greatest gains against malaria, recording a 13 percent decline in malaria mortality rates from 2000 to 2013. By contrast, the global rate of decline was 3 percent during this time.

“The country aims to eliminate malaria by 2018,” the study reported.

http://www.iol.co.za/news/south-afr...ld-aids-deaths-plummet-1.1723838#.U88q_vmSzZE
 
#42 ·
New state-of-the-art hospitals to be built in SA

About 43 new state-of-the-art hospitals are expected to be built across South Africa within the next five years.

Over and above, 216 new clinics will also be built by the national Department of Health, and 816 old hospitals across the country will be renovated, said Health Minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi.

Minister Motsoaledi was speaking to media after the official opening of the R1-billion Dr Harry Surtie Hospital in Upington, on Tuesday.

The Hospital was officially opened by President Jacob Zuma, as part of government's infrastructure roll-out programme.

Minister Motsoaledi said these developments will be done to accomplish the National Health Insurance (NHI) mission, which will ensure that everyone has access to appropriate, efficient and quality health services.

He said his department deliberately built state-of-the-art hospitals in small towns and rural areas to provide quality services to the public.

“… quite often when you ask doctors why they don’t go to the rural areas, they will tell you that there is no equipment. Some will tell you that they want to advance their careers and it won’t be possible in rural area,” said Motsoaledi.

He said the equipment found in the recently built hospitals was of a world class standard, and it was advanced in technology.

He added that SA has talented medical practitioners, health professionals and clinical technologists.

“One of the state-of-the-art equipment in Dr Harry Surtie Hospital is the Lodox Machine (X-ray scanner), a South African product… which was invented in SA,” said the Minister.

Motsoaledi added that by building these hospitals in rural communities, more doctors will be attracted to serve the public regardless of their residential areas.

“It will also be important to get some medical students to come and help people in rural areas,” said Mostoaledi.

A community member, who attended the opening ceremony, Mponeng Mabe, 62, of Pabalelo location, said she was delighted to have the hospital built closer to her community.

Before the new hospital opened, Mabe used to take two taxis to get health services from the old Gordonia hospital.

“Whenever I got transferred there [Gordonia] by the clinic, I got so frustrated by the thought of sitting for almost an hour in a taxi not feeling well, plus I would have to queue again when I get to the hospital. This is great for us, I am really happy,” said Mabe, who lives almost eight kilometres away from the new 327-bed hospital.

Another resident who visited a neighbour admitted at the hospital, Sonia Lephepha, also from Pabalelo, said it has been her long term wish to have a hospital closer to her because she was aging.

“My husband and I are aging, and travelling to the hospital is already a problem. So I am happy because I just take one taxi from my house to this new hospital,” said the 63-year-old Lephepha.

Lephepha, who has been living at Pabalelo for more than 30 years, said she was aware that the new hospital, located in Progress, will also create jobs for youth in Upington and neighbouring areas.

“Maybe my children or grandchildren will work at the hospital,” she said.

Zuma said building decent health facilities is designed to move South Africa a step forward.

“Together we will move our country forward to security and comfort for all.

“I committed our Government during the State of the Nation Address this year that the target for this administration is to ensure that at least 4.6-million people are enrolled in the anti-retroviral programme,” said the President.

Zuma was pleased to realise that the construction of Dr Harry Surtie hospital did not only offer health services, but created more than 200 direct and indirect jobs to residents of Upington and surrounding Areas.

Public Works MEC David Rooi said women contractors also participated in building the hospital.

“We want to make sure that we develop women contractors,” MEC Rooi said.

The new hospital serves the western half of the Northern Cape Province, as Upington alone has a population of about 70 000 people.

Nursing College expands

“Many people in and around the area of Upington continue to benefit, and economic growth and development shows positive trends. However, we must intensify our efforts at improving on training on clinical staff,” Zuma said.

He said the transfer of hospital services from the old Gordonia Hospital to the new Dr Harry Surtie Hospital has provided an opportune moment for training through expanding Nursing College facilities.

“In addition to the Henrietta Stockdale Nursing College in Kimberley, I am pleased to announce that there will be satellite colleges in Upington, De Aar and Kuruman,” said Zuma.

He further announced that the new Upington Nursing College will be located at the old Gordonia Hospital site.

“There will be improved access to training for our nurses and ensuring that training takes place within the province,” President Zuma said.

He said part of the college will provide training for Emergency Care services.

He said through Service Transformation Plan (STP), government is committed to the reconfiguration of services, to ensure a larger proportion of the population have appropriate access to district, regional and tertiary hospital services.

The expansion of regional services in the new Dr Harry Surtie Hospital will reduce referrals to Kimberley and improve local access to more specialist services.

Zuma said Dr Harry Surtie, a dentist whom the new hospital is named after, always put the interests of people first.

“He gave assistance to people who could not afford treatment. We dare not fail him,” he said.

Northern Cape Premier Sylvia Lucas said it was important to acknowledge the role played by people who struggled due to apartheid, but fought for freedom of the country.

“I don’t think we can express our appreciation enough for having this kind of facility erected in our town,” said Lucas, speaking in a tent full of more than 2 500 residents from Upington and surrounding areas.

http://www.engineeringnews.co.za/article/state-of-the-art-hospitals-for-sa-2014-09-03
 
#45 ·
I was surprised by the doctors salaries in SA- very good considering its a developing country and the low cost of living. I saw something like £35000 p.a for a senior doctor. In the UK you will earn 3-4 times that amount but obviously cost of living is far more. So its quite proportionate.
 
#47 · (Edited)
World's first successful p-e-n-i-s transplant carried out in South Africa

South African scientists have announced the world's first successful p-e-n-i-s transplant, helping a 21-year-old who suffered an amputation following a botched traditional circumcision three years ago.

Professor Andre van der Merwe, head of Stellenbosch University's Division of Urology, announced details of the "ground-breaking" operation at Tygerberg Hospital in Bellville, Cape Town.

The nine-hour operation, which involved the attachment of a p-e-n-i-s taken from a donor who had died, was carried out in December. The results were announced on Friday after doctors confirmed that the recipient of the donor organ has made a full recovery and is sexually active.

Mr van der Merwe said the recipient, whose identity has not been revealed, had to have his p-e-n-i-s amputated three years ago after developing complications from a traditional circumcision.

The practice is seen as a rite of passage for young South African boys entering manhood including Nelson Mandela. He described the traditional stay in the bush that accompanies the operation in his book Long Walk to Freedom.
However, experts believe that up to 250 initiates lose their penises to amputation each year, and many more suffer horrific disfigurements because of unskilled or unscrupulous practitioners, unsterilised instruments and infection.
Mr van der Merwe said the prevalence of such practices, and of severe complications, meant it was fitting that South African surgeons should be able to offer a way back.

"For a young man of 18 or 19 years the loss of his p-e-n-i-s can be deeply traumatic. He doesn't necessarily have the psychological capability to process this. There are even reports of suicide among these young men," he told News 24 during a briefing in Cape Town on Friday.

"There is a greater need in South Africa for this type of procedure than elsewhere in the world, as many young men lose their penises every year due to complications from traditional circumcision." Dr van der Merwe said one previous penile transplant attempt had failed.

Nine other patients are now scheduled for transplants, which could also help those with penile cancer and severe erectile dysfunction.
He said the first recipient had regained sexual function and was "very excited".

"Our goal was that he would be fully functional at two years and we are very surprised by his rapid recovery," he said.

Prof Frank Graewe, head of the Division of Plastic Reconstructive Surgery at Stellenbosch University, said the operation represented "a massive breakthrough".

"It's a massive breakthrough. We've proved that it can be done – we can give someone an organ that is just as good as the one that he had," he said. "It was a privilege to be part of this first successful p-e-n-i-s transplant in the world."



http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/wor...*-transplant-carried-out-in-South-Africa.html
 
#48 ·
South Africa and US collaborate on medical research

The South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC) and the American National Institutes of Health (NIH) are awarding 31 grants to American and South African scientists to support research targeting HIV/Aids, tuberculosis and HIV-related co- morbidities and cancers.

The NIH is a unit of the US's Department of Health and Human Services.
Totalling $8-million in first-year funding, the awards are the first to be issued through the South Africa–US Program for Collaborative Biomedical Research. The programme, which was established in 2013 with funding from NIH and SAMRC, is designed to foster and/or expand basic, translational, behavioural and applied research to advance scientific discovery among American and South African researchers working collaboratively in the areas of HIV/Aids and TB.

The new awards will support research conducted at eight South African institutions and link scientists at these institutions with American researchers at more than 20 US-based research organisations, including the NIH.
"South Africa is a major partner in the fight to end both HIV/Aids and tuberculosis," said Anthony S Fauci, the managing director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), which is part of the NIH.

Scientific collaboration
"These new awards tap the scientific expertise of both of our countries in an effort to further key research in these disease areas. We are particularly gratified to work with the South African Medical Research Council given its history of visionary leadership and outstanding commitment to fostering biomedical research excellence and innovation."

Among the newly funded research projects are those targeting HIV prevention, particularly among high-risk young women; identifying HIV-infected individuals and determining how best to link them to and retain them in medical care; developing strategies for optimising the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of HIV-associated cancers; and addressing scale-up of TB prevention and treatment strategies, particularly among TB-infected mothers and children.

Twelve of the awards will support two years of research; 19 awards will fund five- year collaborative projects. The list of initial 24 awards will be updated to include the seven remaining projects once they are awarded.
In addition to NIAID, other NIH institutes and centres participating in the South Africa–US Program for Collaborative Biomedical Research include the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, the National Cancer Institute, the National Institute of Mental Health, the Fogarty International Center and the Office of AIDS Research.
It is anticipated that NIH and SAMRC will solicit additional applications for the programme in two years.

American partners
NIAID conducts and supports research — at NIH, throughout the US, and worldwide — to study the causes of infectious and immune-mediated diseases, and to develop better means of preventing, diagnosing and treating these illnesses.
NIH is the US's primary federal agency conducting and supporting basic, clinical, and translational medical research, and investigates the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases.

Read more: http://www.southafrica.info/about/health/medical-grant-160415.htm#.VS-F8_nF-Gs#ixzz3XSrks1rt
 
#49 ·


NPR News

The idea for an African CDC first came to light at the 2013 African Union Special Summit on HIV and AIDS, Tuberculous and Malaria in Abuja, Nigeria. If Ebola wasn't the specific catalyst for forming the African CDC, the epidemic definitely sped up the timeline, U.S. health officials said Monday.

The African CDC will initially set up shop in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, which is home to the African Union. That should happen later this year.

Soon after, five regional centers will open at undetermined locations across the continent. Field epidemiologists will staff each location and "will be responsible for disease surveillance, investigations, analysis and reporting trends and anomalies," the CDC said Monday in a statement.


Heffernan photographs health care worker Martha Lyne Freeman.
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In the event of a health emergency — such as Ebola — the office in Addis Ababa will act as a central command post, organizing and deploying teams of medical workers.

Some of that disease surveillance and emergency dispatching is already happening, says Dr. Thomas Kenyon, director of the U.S. CDC's Center for Global Health. The African CDC will "take advantage of existing structures to make it additive to what's already there," he tells NPR.

In other words, the African CDC won't create an epidemiological infrastructure from the ground up. It doesn't need to. What it will do is link together agencies and laboratories in various countries that aren't always great at talking to each other. "Countries that might be weak in one diagnostic area can benefit from a neighbor who might have a lot of capability in that area," Kenyon says.

To help make this happen, the U.S. CDC is donating both brainpower and troops on the ground. The Atlanta-based organization says it will provide "technical expertise" and help in the African CDC's long-term, strategic planning. It will also embed two public health leaders at the temporary headquarters in Addis Ababa and about 10 to 12 epidemiologists and support staff.

The CDC already trains hundreds of African epidemiologists each year, Kenyon says, and the establishment of an African CDC will help coordinate that force.

Of course, all of this comes at a cost. But how much funding it will take to get the African CDC off the ground isn't something either side is touting. Those figures are still being worked out, Kenyon says. But the 54 member states of the African Union will ultimately be responsible for funding the organization.

"I think we're all going to have to do our part," Kenyon says, "but the leadership and real commitment will have to come from African governments themselves."
 
#50 ·
Tygerberg breakthrough to revolutionise burn treatment

Until recently the outlook for patients in South Africa with extensive burns was bleak. The best they could hope for were highly specialised transplant techniques, depending on the availability of resources. If they survived, patients faced long and excruciating hospital stays, with mixed results at the end of their treatment alongside a very substantial bill. In some cases the total cost of skin grafting can be up to R1 800 000.

A new technique developed by doctors at Tygerberg Hospital is now challenging this prognosis for serious burn victims, offering life-saving, viable and affordable treatment and making their previously bleak outlook much brighter.

Dr Wayne Kleintjies, head of the adult burn unit at Tygerberg Hospital developed the new technique, which makes use of the patient’s own skin, which is then externally cultivated in a laboratory from skin harvested via a skin biopsy. Other options, using skin from donors or other species are soon rejected and have proven to be of limited value. The new technique is remarkable in the sense that it offer patients treatment at the fraction of the cost that similar techniques would normally cost. "With our new technique, we treated the first patient with a total cost of R995," Dr Kleintjies said.



http://www.health24.com/Medical/Ski...ough-to-revolutionise-burn-treatment-20150527
 
#51 ·
Namibia with one of the continent's higher per capita GDPs stands out. Zambia is surprising.

Prevalence of undernourishment: measures the probability that a randomly selected individual in the population is consuming an amount of dietary energy, which is insufficient to cover her/his requirements to lead an active and healthy life.


World Food Summit (WFS) goal: to eradicate hunger in all countries, with an immediate view to reducing the number of undernourished people to half their present level no later than 2015.


Millennium Development Goal 1, target 1C: halve, between 1990-92 and 2015, the proportion of people suffering from undernourishment, or reduce this proportion below 5 percent. This measures the proportion of the population below the minimum level of dietary energy consumption (undernourishment). The assessment is not conducted for developed regions.

Source:FAO
 
#52 ·
SA leads Africa in WHO targets

SA is the only African state that has met the targets set by the World Health Organisation’s (WHO’s) international health regulations, which detail the plans and infrastructure countries need to have in place to respond to a public health emergency like Ebola.

The finding underscores the weakness of most of the continent’s health systems.

This emerged on Monday at a high-level meeting on global health security convened by the WHO in Cape Town, which aims to develop a framework for countries to meet their obligations under these regulations.

The regulations were agreed to by the WHO’s 190 member states 10 years ago to prevent, detect and respond to health emergencies of global concern — yet only two thirds of members have met their obligations, said WHO assistant director-general Keiji Fukuda. "In order for countries to do so, there needs to be a combination of political will, technical know-how and funding, and for many countries that has proved difficult," he said.

Dr Fukuda said global health threats, such as Ebola and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome, had become more difficult to manage and the world needed to be better prepared for the next threat.

"There is no organisation, no single entity, no country that can do this by itself. The clock is ticking. The question is how do we accelerate our response (and) leap ahead in strengthening countries’ preparedness," he said.

http://www.bdlive.co.za/national/health/2015/07/03/sa-has-uns-hiv-testing-goal-in-sight
 
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