Michelle J. Groome, National Institute for Communicable Diseases; Adrian Puren, National Institute for Communicable Diseases e Harry Moultrie, National Institute for Communicable Diseases
Communities with high vaccine coverage rates are likely to see lower case numbers, hospitalisations and deaths related to COVID-19 compared to those with poor vaccine coverage.
Emmanuel Osodi/Majority World/Universal Images Group via Getty Images.
A lot is based on how effective our system of test, trace, isolate and quarantine is. And we’ll still have to accept some level of new cases.
A researcher prepares reagents for testing the samples for the COVID-19 coronavirus at the laboratory of Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI)
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Countries must be encouraged to distribute essential healthcare provision - like diagnosis - to where people most need them and where they can be accessed more easily.
South Africa recorded an increased number of teenage pregnancies during COVID-19.
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Dr Kim Jonas, South African Medical Research Council
An increase in the adolescent pregnancy rate strongly suggests challenges with accessing sexual and reproductive healthcare services for this vulnerable age group.
The government must prioritise organ donation.
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One tissue donation can save or improve the lives of more than 65 people. So it’s important to unpack and address the reasons South Africans are reluctant to register as tissue and organ donors.
A police officer patrols Trinity Bellwoods Park in Toronto in May 2020.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Frank Gunn
The COVID-19 pandemic revealed how disruptions to global supply chains could also affect access to health care.
GPS devices on 20 bats in a Ugandan cave in 2018 as part of a research project to determine flight patterns and how they transmit Marburg virus to humans.
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The main sign of the illness is disfiguring swelling followed by peeling of the affected area. In women this swelling mainly affects arms and legs. In men it can cause enlargement of the scrotum.
South African police minister Bheki Cele has lamented the “dismal” rise in crime in the last quarter.
EFE-EPA/Nic Bothma
Many countries around the world recorded dramatic declines in crime under lockdown. South Africa was among them, with major reductions across most crime types.
Malaria control must move away from relying too much on insecticides to more innovative and sustainable options. Genetic programming of mosquitoes is one.
An immediate police investigation into the deaths was prevented because the cause of death was indicated as ‘natural causes’ on their death certificates.
A child gets a dose of the oral polio vaccine.
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After enduring a devastating wave of infections, deaths and lockdowns at the start of the pandemic, Italy is putting in place tougher anti-COVID measures, including a vaccine passport.
Potential benefits of human genome editing include new ways to diagnose, treat and prevent genetic disorders. But there’s a significant gap in regulation.
Dean Faculty of Health Sciences and Professor of Vaccinology at University of the Witwatersrand; and Director of the SAMRC Vaccines and Infectious Diseases Analytics Research Unit, University of the Witwatersrand
Principal Medical Scientist and Head of Laboratory for Antimalarial Resistance Monitoring and Malaria Operational Research, National Institute for Communicable Diseases
Professor and Programme Director, SA MRC Centre for Health Economics and Decision Science - PRICELESS SA (Priority Cost Effective Lessons in Systems Strengthening South Africa), University of the Witwatersrand