Governor

Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi has launched an integrated health school policy in partnership with the Departments of Basic Education and Social Development to deal head-on with health problems confronting school-going youth.

Motsoaledi said it was a constitutional imperative to provide health care to all children, even those out of the school system. “We want all vulnerable children to develop their full potential.”

He was speaking at the opening of the South African Conference on Orphans, Children and Youth made vulnerable by HIV and Aids, which included the launch of Child Protection Week and Pledge, held at Inkosi Albert Luthuli International Convention Centre in Durban.

South Africa is moving closer to reducing the infection rate of HIV, with the country having experienced a decline in Aids-related deaths in the last three years, Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe said.

Responding to a question by an MP in the National Assembly on Wednesday, on what progress the government had made in tackling HIV/Aids and TB, Motlanthe conceded that though the country needed to do more to tackle TB and HIV/Aids, several inroads had already been made.

Motlanthe, who chairs the SA National Aids Council (SANAC), said the transmission of HIV from mother to child had decreased significantly over the last three years, falling from 8% of infants to 2.7% nationally.

Background
In late 2012 the Minister of Health, Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, announced that fixed-dose combination (FDC) antiretroviral drugs (ARVs) will be used in the first line treatment of HIV-positive patients from 1 April 2013.

This fact sheet explains everything that civil society needs to know about the changeover to fixed-dose combination ARVs – how it impacts on civil society sectors and their constituents.

What is a fixed-dose combination ARV?

Fixed dose combination, or FDC as it will be referred to from this point, is a combination of two or more active drugs in a single pill.

REQUEST FOR EXPRESSION OF INTEREST FROM GENERAL PRACTITIONERS TO PROVIDE CLINICAL SERVICES IN PUBLIC PRIMARY HEALTH CARE CLINICS WITHIN THE 10 NHI PILOT DISTRICTS

The National Department of Health has embarked on an initiative to improve and expand access to healthcare services through the contracting of private General Medical Practitioners (GPs) to render sessional service in Primary Healthcare facilities. This initiative is in support of the National Health Insurance (NHl) pilot that aims to improve access to high quality public sector health care services. The initial phase of GP contracting for sessional services will take place in the 10 NHI pilot Districts, which are:

Preamble

One of the key recommendations in the 2011 National Health Research Summit Report<http://www.doh.gov.za/docs/reports/2012/summitreport.pdf> is to build human resources for health research through a large-scale PhD programme for all health professional categories with degree-based qualifications.  The aim is to fund the education and training of 1000 PhDs in health sciences over the next 10 years.

The University of Cape Town and the Department of Health of the Western Cape Government invite applications for the above position in the Department of Public Health and Family Medicine linked to the Chief Directorate: Strategy and Health Support.

The successful person:

The Senior Specialist will be an experienced and highly motivated senior development professional with extensive experience and knowledge of the health sector in low and middle income countries. He/She will also have significant experience as a team leader/manager, ideally within multilateral and/or bilateral and/or international non-governmental organisation operations.
 
The Senior Specialist will provide high quality policy and technical advice, overseeing and growing the Australian health portfolio in East Timor and representing the Australian Government in dialogue with the Government of East Timor and other development partners on relevant health and development issues.  
 

Stability is returning to Gauteng public hospitals as the provincial Health Department prepares to enter into the final phase of paying all outstanding debts to suppliers.

Payments to suppliers has improved significantly since February when the Gauteng provincial government released R1 billion to the department to pay suppliers. This in turn has encouraged suppliers to release more stock to provincial health facilities.

The department has developed a plan to clear all debts by the end of June this year. In terms of this plan all suppliers owed less than R1 million will be paid in April. Suppliers owed less than R100 million will receive their money in May and those owed over R100 million will be paid in June.

The Department of Health has released draft regulations relating to foodstuffs for infants and young children for public comment.

The document - the Draft Regulations Relating to Foodstuffs for Infants and Young Children - has been published in the Government Gazette No. R 184. Interested persons have until 2 May to submit comments before the regulations are finalised.

The purpose of the draft regulations is to contribute to safe nutrition for infants and young children, by means of setting standards for foods for infants and young children and by restricting inappropriate marketing practices used to promote these products.

The regulations will benefit the public by: