Irene Madongo presents Healthbeat. Pregnant women in rural Zimbabwe are being forced to give birth at home because they can’t afford to travel to hospitals. In addition, many are in need of advice about babies. Carol Mubaira of the Community Working Group on Health tells Irene how her organisation’s volunteer village health workers are helping women deal with these problems.
Then Irene Madongo presents Healthbeat. It appears it’s not only some religious groups that shun vaccinations for their children. Some middle class families have now turned to ‘new age’ medication and are not having their children vaccinated against measles. Dr Portia Manangazira of the Epidemiology and Disease Control section in the Ministry of Health and Child Welfare talks about the many challenges of ensuring that children are immunised.
On Healthbeat, treating tubercolisis remains a problem in Zimbabwe, especially with the emergence of drug-resistant strains of the illness and the influx of fake anti-TB drugs on the black market. Dr Noni Zwangobani and Dr Mahachi talk about patient’s attitudes towards medication and the problems created by the lack of medical facilities.
In Healthbeat, The Zimbabwe Association for Crime Prevention and Rehabilitation of the Offender tells Irene Madongo that it fears another serious disease outbreak in Zimbabwe’s jails, because of the squalid conditions. Deputy Minister of Justice Senator Obert Gutu comments on the problems in the prisons, including the dire food shortages.
Healthbeat, Irene Madongo speaks to Dr. Sydney Mukonowoshuro from Bulawayo’s Mpilo Hospital. He talks about the newly formed Doctors Outreach Trust, set up to help tackle the country’s health care crisis in rural areas and he appeals to Zimbabweans in the diaspora to help with donations. doctorsoutreachtrust@gmail.com
On Healthbeat, Irene Madongo speaks to Kollega Mlisana from the Center for the AIDS Program of Research in South Africa, about a new vaginal gel that has been developed that can reduce a womans risk of HIV infection by 40%. She also talks to Dr Nyikadzino Mahachi of the Zimbabwe AIDS prevention services, about what the new gel could mean for HIV prevention in Zimbabwe.
On Healthbeat, Irene Madongo looks into the difficulties that nurses in Zimbabwe face, and why these problems force so many of them to leave the country. Irene speaks to Tula Sibanda, a nurse who works in the north of Zimbabwe, about the challenges there and she then questions the Minister of Health, Dr Henry Madzorera, about these issues.
In Healthbeat today Tererai speaks to our Harare correspondent, Simon Muchemwa who tells us about the launch of a new campaign in Zimbabwe called C.A.R.M.M.A which means the campaign for the accelerated reduction of Maternal Mortality in Africa.
On Healthbeat today Mandisa speaks to Tabitha Khumalo who is the new chairperson for the SADAC Parliamentary Forum for HIV and Aids. They discuss the role of the forum and the difficulties it faces in the face of such a massive epidemic in Sub Saharan Africa
HEALTHbeat, which takes an holistic view of issues concerning health and well-being. Mandisa speaks to Stanford Chinanana of the Savannah Trust Theatre Group
