why there is no doctor: denial is the first step (7)
(photo: downtown Zonkizizwe, South Africa) Since the early 1990s, Mbeki had turned his back on scientific evidence linking HIV as the cause of AIDS. Mbeki’s stance on the cause of AIDS is the largest contributing factor in the South African government’s failure to scale-up treatment. In 2000, Mbeki called together a group of scientists including … Read more
why there is no doctor: introduction to an epidemic (1)
Subtitle: The Impact of HIV/AIDS in the Post-Apartheid Health Care System of South Africa Introduction to an Epidemic Everyone in the car remained silent as we passed a sea of gravestones on the way to Zonkizizwe, an informal settlement south of Johannesburg (1). The cemetery seemed to extend for miles. This was the reality of … Read more
music to your ears: this year with hiv/aids
This year, 2007, there is some good news about the HIV/AIDS pandemic. The percentage of people living with AIDS has leveled off and the number of new cases has fallen. This is attributed to the prevention programs. However, risk remains high in sub-Saharan Africa. Eight sub-Saharan African countries represent one-third of all new cases and … Read more
