It gives me great pleasure to introduce the 11th edition of the South African Health Review (SAHR) which has a special focus on Maternal, Child and Women’s Health.
As our democracy has matured, so too have editions of the SAHR - moving away from providing only general commentary on health systems issues - to a more thematic and focused approach in response to national and international health priorities.
The 2006 Review, therefore, seeks to provide a South African perspective on prevailing international public health issues, and in particular provides an opportunity to reflect on progress to achieving the Millennium Development Goals many of which are linked to maternal and child health. It also seeks to stimulate debate and critical discourse, to provide a platform for assessing progress and to identify key gaps and opportunities for future action that is realistic and sustainable.
This SAHR provides valuable policy and empirical information on key child health challenges including child morbidity and mortality, health promotion and prevention programmes, nutrition, HIV and infant feeding, chronic conditions and disabilities in children. Women and maternal health issues covered include a review of mortality data, cervical cancer, women’s mental health, maternal care and the impact of male sexuality on the health of women and children.
The Review also contains core chapters providing updates on health legislation and policy, financing of health, health information systems, and HIV and TB. The Health Indicators chapter again provides the best available and most recent data on a range of health, socio-economic and health service indicators as an important resource.
On behalf of the Board of HST, I wish to extend our appreciation to all authors, contributors and reviewers who have given of their time and expertise to the 2006 SAHR. We also acknowledge and thank the editorial team, the SAHR Editorial Board who provided oversight and direction, and all HST staff who have participated in the production of the SAHR.
We also extend our gratitude to the national Department of Health for providing access to health information sources, and for comments and suggestions on various chapters. Finally, the support of Atlantic Philanthropies in publishing this Review is gratefully acknowledged.