According to a study by the United Nations Programme on HIV/ADS (UNAIDS) 42 500 more lives than usual would be lost to HIV/AIDS in the next year. This is the figure projected if half the people in SA on treatment were unable to get their medication for six months; a figure that rises to 112 000 excess deaths should antiretroviral supplies collapse completely.
In a media statement, the Ear nose and Throat Society (ENT) informed its members of the passing on of one of its respected colleagues, Dr Nthabi Rankhethoa on July 3.
As the infection rate continues to climb and gets closer to the 200 000 mark, private hospital groups Netcare, Life Healthcare and Mediclinic have had to shift their focus to dealing with the pandemic while their regular patients choose to stay away, reported Fin24 (6 July 2020).
According to a study, published by the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC), the inadequate
reporting of the side-effects of drug-resistant TB (DR-TB) were one of main reasons for patients defaulting on medication.The Western Cape Health Department is implementing a new model of care diabetics to admitted to hospital with Covid-19. The mortality rate among those admitted with diabetes and Covid-19 was 45%, almost twice the average of 25%.
Indian drug manufacturer Cipla announced that it will soon provide SA with its generic version of the coronavirus drug remdesivir. An initial batch of 35 000 vials should arrive in the week of July 20.This is the firstdrug to have been approved by US authorities to treat Covid-19.
According to an article in the latest SA Medical Journal international experts in diabetes say they
suspect the virus might trigger the disease in some C-19 survivors.Four SA researchers, Agnes Erzse, Heather Fraser and Karen Hoffman, from the SA Medical Research Council (SAMRC) and Johannesburg’s Wits Centre for Health Economics and Decision Science, and Naomi Levitt, from the University of Cape Town (UCT), said the C-19 emergency should be used as an opportunity to intensify the war on diabetes.
“The problem with the numbers is they do not allow you to make any sort of extrapolation as there are too many moving parts,” wrote - Tamar Kahn in Business Day (2 July 2020).
A local biotechnology firm, CapeBio Technology, is stepping up to try plug the shortfall in SA’s testing capacity.
CapeBio Technologies plans to roll out 5 000 test kits a day from the end of July, with support from the government. The kits will produce results within two hours, down from the three to four hours taken by the imported kits available in the market at present, reported Reuters.
A new healthcare framework, developed by Prof Alex van den Heever, was proposed to resuscitate the country’s ailing private healthcare sector, which has been dealt a huge blow by the outbreak of theCovid-19 coronavirus, reported City Press (28 June 2020).
The Council of Medical Schemes (CMS) has stepped in to halt the proposed merger of black-owned Sizwe Medical Aid and Hosmed Medical Scheme, in what may be a serious blow to the much-needed transformation of the sector,” reported Mail & Guardian (26 June 2020).
On June 25, Health Minister, Zweli Mkhize, appointed Professor Lungile Pepeta as the new Chairperson of the Council for Medical Schemes (CMS), the regulator of the medical schemes industry. This appointment is effective from 18 June 2020 to the end of November 2020.