South Africa

This study evaluated whether the provider-initiated HIV testing and counseling approach increased HIV testing amongst patients with a new episode of sexually transmitted infection, as compared to standard voluntary counseling and testing at the primary care level in South Africa, a high prevalence and low resource setting. [from abstract]

HIV scale-up has triggered innovations in nurse training, task shifting, retention, and scope of practice that need not remain HIV specific. Lessons learned in the context of HIV have the potential to enhance nursing practice and human resources for health more generally, strengthening South Africa’s health systems and improving access to effective health services. [from abstract]

This paper presents the experiences, impact and lessons of the innovative approach of working with traditional healers in HIV and TB prevention and control programmes, especially at the primary health care level. [from abstract]

The policy framework is intended to provide an effective and efficient occupational workforce to support a comprehensive multidisciplinary health care service; strengthen partnerships between government, civil society and communities to consolidate, manage and focus the services offered by Community Care Workers; and delineate strategies that address systemic change within the complex systems both within the public sector and its partners. [from introduction]

The aim of this study was to provide a baseline assessment in PMTCT in the traditional health sector to determine the views of women who have used the services of traditional practitioners before, during and/or after pregnancy; and to conduct formative research with traditional health practitioners (THPs), i.e. herbalists, diviners and traditional birth attendants on HIV, pregnancy care, delivery and infant care. [adapted from abstract]

The report reflects the key milestones achieved by the department in its quest to improve the health status of South Africans, through the delivery of accessible, caring and good quality services. Most importantly, the report also reflects the department’s limitations and constraints encountered during the reporting period, which will have to be addressed going forward. [from foreword]

This study tested the feasibility, acceptability, and cost of two models for integrating HIV prevention services, including counseling and testing, within established family planning programs, and evaluated their quality against the standard practice. [from author]

This study sought to gain understanding of the motivations of community service (CS) officers to continue working at the same district hospital for a subsequent year after their obligatory year was over. The objectives were to determine the number of CS officers who actually remained at the same district hospital after completing their CS in 2002, the major factors that influenced them to remain and factors that would encourage the 2003 cohort of CS officers to remain at the same district hospital for an additional year. [from abstract]

The aim of the study was to investigate the profile of South African qualified physicians who had emigrated from South Africa. [from abstract]

This article discusses the prevalence of traditional health practitioners and what South Africa has done to support the cadre, including formalized recognition and licensing through the South African Traditional Health Practitioners Act.

This article describes an attempt at developing a community-based model of stroke care based on the discharge planning of stroke patients, available resources and continuity of care between hospital and community in a remote rural setting in South Africa. [adapted from introduction]

This article reports on cross-sectional survey documenting staff/population ratios in public sector mental health services in South Africa. [from abstract]

This article reports on cross-sectional survey documenting staff/bed ratios in public sector mental health services in South Africa. [from abstract]

This article details the results of a South African study assessing the feasibility of utilizing volunteers in tracing patients who had defaulted from scheduled psychiatric clinic appointments. [adapted from introduction]

This article describes the impact of community service doctors on offsetting the shortage of health professionals in public hospitals in South Africa. [adapted from introduction]

This article describes the imbalance between the influx of foreign nurses and the out-migration of indigenous personnel in South Africa. [adapted from introduction]

This article reports on the obstacles to care and the outcome of treatment for patients presenting with tuberculosis to four hospitals in the rural South African region of Sekhukhuneland. [adapted from article]

This article provides an assessment of the number and types of missed opportunities by health workers for the prevention of mother-to-child HIV transmission in Eastern Cape, South Africa. [adapted from introduction]

This article discusses the estimated requirements and imbalances of province-specific health personnel required for introducing cervical screening in South Africa. [adapted from introduction]

This article offers an analysis of the role community health worker programs and activities in South Africa. [adapted from introduction]

This article discusses the role of traditional healers in pediatric care in South Africa. [adapted from introduction]

This article discusses the feasibility of including traditional healers in the primary health care team to achieve true co-operation between the modern and the traditional health care sector in South Africa. [adapted from introduction]

Increasing the proportion of rural-origin students in health sciences faculties has been shown to be one way of addressing of health care professionals in rural areas. This article discusses a retrospective descriptive study to determine the proportion of rural-origin students
at all medical schools in South Africa. [adapted from abstract]

This paper explores the organisation of traditional healers, their perspective on HIV/AIDS and how these can be engaged by companies. [from abstract]

This presentation from the 2004 Seminar on Health and Migration details factors contributing to international migration of healthcare workers and strategies to counter this trend.

The HIV status of surgeons is a contentious matter in the context of the informed consent obtained from patients. This article presents the results of a survey of the views of practicing surgeons in South Africa regarding aspects of HIV and its impact on surgeons. [adapted from introduction]

With the scarcity of African health professionals, volunteers are earmarked for an increased role in HIV/AIDS management, with a growing number of projects relying on grassroots community members to provide home nursing care to those with AIDS - as part of the wider task-shifting agenda. Yet little is known about how best to facilitate such involvement. This paper reports on community perceptions of a 3-year project which sought to train and support volunteer health workers in a rural community in South Africa. [from abstract]

The human resources crisis in Africa is especially acute in the public health field. This paper describes the innovative aspects of the distance education program at the School of Public Health of the University of the Western Cape, South Africa. Strategies are proposed for scaling up such a program to meet the growing need in this essential area of health human resource capacity development in Africa. [adapted from abstract]

This study aims to undertake a national assessment of existing district management structures, competencies and current training programmes in order to inform a national strategy and plan to strengthen district management capacity to ensure effective delivery of primary health care in South Africa. [from introduction]

The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of scaling up antiretroviral treatment (ART) on the working environment and motivation of health workers in South Africa; and to suggest strategies to minimize negative effects and maximise positive effects. [from summary]