Multimedia

Teen girls and young women in Africa are up to eight times more likely to contract HIV than their male peers. Biology, unequal access to education and bad laws all play a role in this. Find out more from this short video.

Charlotte Maxeke Academic Hospital’s radiation waiting list gets longer each year because of too few staff to operate life-saving cancer equipment. This episode of our monthly television show, Health Beat, puts these problems to the health department. Mia Malan asks if the National Health Insurance scheme can fix the country’s broken health system.

South Africa’s drinking water comes from rivers and dams, but it’s cleaned at water treatment works. Here’s how it’s done.

Sleep apnoea means you stop breathing for some time while asleep. Your brain then tells your body to wake up so that you can get much-needed oxygen. Picture this happening 42 times an hour every night. That’s what Juanita Herholdt used to go through before getting tested and treated for this sleep disorder.

Dirty air makes it hard to breathe. Add hotter days or extreme cold into the mix and it will become harder still, especially for people who already have lung problems. In the latest episode of Health Beat, Mia Malan spoke to Caradee Wright, a public health specialist at the Medical Research Council, about what climate change will mean for people who already struggle to breathe, and what can be done about it.

Are e-cigarettes healthier than traditional smokes? The vaping and tobacco industries would have us believe that they are, but doctors and researchers are sceptical. We find out why young people are getting hooked on nicotine-enhanced fruity flavours — and break down the potentially deadly consequences.

HIV doctor Francois Venter explains why the treatment of obese people reminds him of the bad old days of the HIV epidemic.

About half of people who are infected with tuberculosis don’t have symptoms. Researchers still don’t know whether people with asymptomatic TB spread the bacteria to others, or whether they’ll always develop symptoms.

Mia Malan founded Bhekisisa in 2013. Since then the centre’s staff has grown from 3 to 20 full and part-time employees. Here’s what she’s had to do to make this happen.

If the National Health Insurance (NHI) Bill is passed in its current form, your medical aid will disappear in its current form. It’s not clear how the NHI will be funded, but raised taxes will be unavoidable — and the scheme will likely want your medical aid premium.

Abortions became legal in South Africa almost three decades ago. Yet we still have plenty of unsafe, illegal abortions. Why? Mia Malan speaks to physician Tlaleng Mofokeng in this podcast.

What do researchers, experts and policymakers think of South Africa’s new five-year action plan for HIV, TB and STIs?

Sex workers in South Africa want their profession decriminalised, a view supported by many medical professionals and civil society organisations.

Three in four employed people surveyed by the South African Depression and Anxiety Group (Sadag) said their bosses expected them to do the same amount of work despite consistent power cuts. Many feared that continued load shedding will lead to job losses and derail attempts to turn around the country’s struggling economy. Mia Malan speaks to Sadag’s Cassey Chambers for Bhekisisa’s monthly TV programme, Health Beat.

When health workers discriminate against people with a higher chance of getting HIV, the virus spreads like wildfire because such groups become less likely to use health facilities. Our Health Beat team asked transgender people about the service they get at government clinics and the health department about what happens to a doctor or nurse who refuses to help patients.

Playtime isn't just about fun and games - find out why it's an important part of young children's development.