South Africa celebrates National Disability Rights Awareness Month (DRAM) annually between 3rd November and 3rd December, the latter being International Disability Rights Awareness Day. This year’s DRAM will be observed under the theme “Disability-Inclusive Society For a Better Quality of Life and Protection of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities”. Family Digest 65 – National […]
Since 1967, the annual celebrations of International Literacy Day (ILD) have taken place on 8th September around the world to remind policy-makers, practitioners, and the public of the critical importance of literacy in creating more literate, just, peaceful, and sustainable societies.1 This year, ILD is being celebrated under the theme of ‘Promoting multilingual education: Literacy for mutual understanding and […]
Mpox is a matter of increasing public health concern internationally. It is a viral illness caused by the monkeypox (MPXV) virus. Common symptoms include a skin rash, pus-filled lesions, fever, headache, muscle aches, back pain, low energy and swollen lymph nodes.1 Mpox transmits through close physical contact, including sexual contact, but unlike previous global pandemics such as COVID-19, […]
World Mosquito Day, observed annually on 20th August, is a commemoration of British doctor Sir Ronald Ross’s discovery in 1897 that female Anopheline mosquitoes transmit malaria. This discovery provided the first evidence that mosquitoes transmit malaria to humans.1 The mosquito is the world’s deadliest animal, and it remains one of the biggest global health threats of the 21st […]
Recently, SECTION27, the Cancer Alliance, and the Treatment Action Campaign (TAC) marched to the Gauteng Department of Health demanding that the R784 million set aside for radiation treatment for cancer patients be used. The monies were budgeted by the provincial treasury in March 2023 to outsource radiation treatment, but activists and patients say that not a single patient […]
The start of the new school year has seen much discussion on the high incidence of pregnancy among teenage school girls. Also, the prevalence of teenage pregnancy in South Africa comes back into the spotlight during Pregnancy Awareness Week, which is from 10th – 16th February.1 Pregnancy Awareness Week takes place in February each year and is a way […]
