Everyone deserves a place they can call their own “Wherever I Lay My Hat (That’s My Home)” By the look in your eye I can tell you’re gonna cry. Is it over me? If it is, save your tears for I’m not worth it, you see. For I’m the type of boy who is always [...]Home is a post from:


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More work needs to be done to increase the number of small and medium businesses, while more focus should be put on improving South Africa’s investment prospects, President Jacob Zuma said on Wednesday. Speaking at the second annual Premier Business Awards ceremony on Wednesday evening, the President said although the State had taken bold steps [...]More needs to be done for small business is a post from: South Africa Business

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The availability of GeneXpert machines, which speed up the diagnosis of TB and Multi-Drug Resistant (MDR) TB, has resulted in quicker detection of MDR TB, says Gauteng Health MEC Hope Papo.

Since 2009, the province has made progress in improving the TB cure rate from 78% to 83% by the end of the third quarter of 2013/14. The percentage of TB patients who do not complete their treatment improved from 5.9% in 2009 to 4.9% in 2013.

“We have been able to save the lives of people whose conditions would have worsened, and at worst infected others while awaiting diagnosis,” MEC Papo said.

He said that he had given instructions to CEOs and clinical managers to formally inform the relevant districts whenever a case of MDR TB is diagnosed at hospitals, which have GeneXpert machines.

“If these patients are not followed up by districts, having these GeneXpert machines serves no useful purpose.”

Fifteen GeneXpert machines have been purchased and installed at Steve Biko, Dr George Mukhari, Chris Hani Baragwanath, Charlotte Maxeke, Helen Joseph, Tambo Memorial, Kopanong, Tembisa, Natalspruit, Dr Yusuf Dadoo, Pholosong, Bertha Gxowa, Sebokeng, Carletonvile, Edenvale and Jubilee Hospitals.

MEC Papo said regardless of the challenge faced by the province due to migration, the department has a responsibility to ensure that patients, who migrated from neighbouring countries while on TB treatment, are followed up on so that they don’t default.

The MEC, who visited Saulsville on Wednesday to commemorate World Stop TB Day, made a commitment for the department to work hard to reduce the burden of TB. He said in order to break the back of TB, heightened public awareness on the dangers of TB and its infectiousness was needed.

He also urged the families of patients, who are on TB treatment, to provide support and encourage them to adhere to treatment.

“We must continue to educate our people on the signs and symptoms of TB and we must emphasize the importance of completing TB treatment and make patients aware of the consequences of failure to do so. Drugs alone will not win the war we are faced with. We have to reconsider the tactics that we have employed in the past in the fight against TB.

“We need to strengthen community awareness because there is evidence that our people are not presenting themselves to be tested for TB earlier when they begin to show symptoms. Identification of areas where there are high rates of infection in any sub-district should raise alarm bells to district clinical specialist teams,” he said.

Since 1994, government has prioritised reducing the burden of TB by also addressing other social determinants which contribute to its burden. – SAnews.gov.za

Tabloid reporter Jamie Parkes makes up stories, secretly listens to voicemail and uses material from the bins of celebrities and MPs. But after one of his major stories is spiked by scheming editor Warren Fitton, he turns whistleblower to uncover phone hacking and corruption on his newspaper. His whistleblower status turns into an epic battle [...]
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Silhouette, the iconic eyewear brand renowned for its premium lightweight eyewear, proudly announces style icon Cate Blanchett as the face of its ICON FOR AN ICON campaign. Shot by the legendary Peter Lindbergh on location in Hollywood, this campaign showcases Blanchett in Silhouette’s rimless TITAN MINIMAL ART glasses and sunglasses, bringing together two uniquely purist... [Continue Reading]Cate Blanchett Silhouette icon is a post from: FashnSpire


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Officials from South Africa and Saudi Arabia have met to discuss further avenues of business that have not yet been fully explored between the two...

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The North West Provincial Executive Council (Exco) has thanked parents for embracing the roll out of the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) vaccine campaign, which will protect many girls from cervical cancer.

Premier Thandi Modise on Tuesday said community mobilisation and consultation with schools has ensured that parents are informed to make healthy lifelong decisions for their children.

“The HPV vaccination campaign is an investment in the health of our young girls and that of future generation of women from contracting cancer of the cervix,” Premier Modise said.

She announced that the provincial government has budgeted R6 million for the roll out of the vaccination campaign. The campaign is run through the Integrated School Health programme implemented by sub-district school health teams.

For adequate lifetime protection against cervical cancer to be achieved, the World Health Organisation recommends that a minimum of two doses should be administered with a six-month interval between doses.

“Girls aged nine and above in grade 4 in all public schools across the province, who received the first dose, will receive the second dose to be administered from 29 September to 24 October 2014.

“From next year, the target will be extended to other groups but girls in grade 4 each year will be the main target group,” the Premier explained.

Cancer of the cervix, caused by HPVs transmitted through sexual contact, is among the common cancers affecting women in sub-Saharan Africa.

In the North West province, cervical cancer is among the first 10 causes of death for women above the age of 45 years. Nationally, 6 000 women get cervical cancer every year. About 80% are African women. Between 3 000 and 3 500 die annually, even after treatment. - SAnews.gov.za

Mbombela - The Mpumalanga Department of Health has assured the public that all precautions have been taken to prevent fatalities in the upcoming traditional circumcision season.

Last year, 31 initiates died. Traditional circumcisions in the province take place between May and July every year.

“We have put in place measures to ensure that this year’s circumcisions are as safe as possible,” said department spokesman Ronnie Masilela, adding that if the measures are adhered to, there should be no deaths.

Masilela said that processes would include the screening and clearing of all initiates before undergoing operations, and the proper registration of initiation sites.

“Our medical practitioners will be visiting all the sites, and traditional initiation schools need to be registered. Traditional surgeons are also being properly trained by the department,” he said.

He added that the department still promoted Voluntary Male Medical Circumcisions (VMMCs) at registered healthcare sites as the safest way to prevent botched operations.

The department carried out 100 239 VMMCs at 10 hospitals and three community health centres during the 2013/14 financial year, out of a targeted 500 000.

“Circumcision is still a doctor-driven procedure and Mpumalanga has a shortage of doctors as a rural province. We are also a province that practices traditional circumcision as part of our culture,” Masilela said.

The spokesman said that not a single death had been caused by the VMMC programme since its inception in 2010.

The province saw 30 148 boys undergo traditional circumcisions during 2013/14.

“These numbers could have been counted under the medically done circumcisions. The wrong perception that circumcision is safe in winter still remains a challenge, which we advise against going forward,” said Masilela.

According to Masilela, the investigation into a R182-million contract awarded to Mkhago Health Care Services, who were contracted by the department to perform 260 000 circumcisions without the deal being put out to tender, is still ongoing.

Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi instructed the department to report back to him on the findings of the investigation and how the contract was awarded, after Corruption Watch exposed the deal in October 2013.

Makuke Mashile, chairman of the Mpumalanga House of Traditional Leaders, said that safe traditional circumcisions depended on adherence to the recently passed Ingoma Bill.

“To prevent loss of life during initiations, focus should be on the implementation of the Bill. The Act categorically explains what procedures should be followed and, if they are not deviated from, the circumcision should be safe,” Mashile said.

He said that illegal initiation schools in the Nkangala district of the province, where the majority of deaths took place last year, remained a problem.

“Schools and surgeons need to be properly authorised,” he said.

The scale up of VMMCs in South Africa is part of the National Department of Health’s Right to Care programme, which targets HIV negative men from ages 14 up.

Research studies have shown that circumcision reduces HIV infection by up to 60%.

If done under sterile conditions, the operation is low-risk and takes between 20 and 30 minutes. The majority of traditional circumcision deaths are caused by infection as a result of unsterilised equipment and improper medical care. – SAnews.gov.za

The damage caused by the heavy rains on the Gauteng provincial road network is estimated to be over R50 million.

On Tuesday, Gauteng MEC for Roads and Transport Ismail Vadi joined his department’s 260-strong maintenance crew to repair potholes developed on the N14 and Hendrik Potgieter Road as a result of the heavy rains.

“The estimated damage to the provincial road network is in excess of R50 million. We’ve made a province-wide assessment of damages to our roads and repair work has started in earnest.

“It is not just potholes that worry us, but a number of low lying bridges have been severely damaged and sinkholes have emerged in some areas. Fortunately, no major provincial road has been washed away,” MEC Vadi said.

Some of the bridges that have collapsed are along Weaver Road in Kameeldrift; Shickfontein Road in Heidelberg and Heronbridge Road near Krugersdorp. Vadi said these are earmarked for urgent repairs.

He confirmed that repairs to the damaged bridge on Witkoppen Road will commence shortly.

Vadi also announced that the N14 – a part of province’s freeway network that serves as a link between Mogale City and Tshwane, carrying more than 25 000 vehicles per day – is to be rehabilitated over the next two years.

The 40-km freeway stretch from the Brakfontein Interchange in Centurion to the intersection with Hendrik Potgieter Road in Mogale City is estimated to cost R500 million and will be tackled in two phases.

MEC Vadi said tenders have been issued for the upgrading of the N12 between the Misgund Interchange (near Eldorado Park south of Johannesburg) and Merafong; the R28 between Randfontein and Vereeniging; and the R55 (Quagga Road) between Laudium and Atteridgeville.

Other key provincial roads to be repaired are the remaining portions of Golden Highway along Eldorado Park/Devaland and the R101.

The MEC reiterated that the upgrades of the N12 and N14 freeways will not be tolled and that funding will come from the department’s budget. - SAnews.gov.za

Bushbuckridge – Water and Environmental Affairs Minister Edna Molewa has unveiled the completed phases of a project aimed at supplying water to 15 additional villages in the Bushbuckridge local municipality in Mpumalanga. Minister Molewa, together with Premier David Mabuza, unveiled the Inyaka Integrated Water Supply Scheme in Bushbuckridge on Monday, as part of National Water […]Project to improve Mpumalanga water supply is a post from: KZN News and Information


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