South African medical journal = Suid-Afrikaanse tydskrif vir geneeskunde
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In South Africa (SA), injuries are the second leading cause of years of healthy life lost, and interpersonal violence dominates the SA injury profile. Half of all injury-related deaths in SA are intentional, and firearms contribute to a quarter of these deaths. Injury surveillance systems are essential to develop, implement and monitor strategies that reduce preventable trauma. ⋯ Firearm injuries represent a substantial proportion of the trauma burden at district emergency centres in the Western Cape Province. Managing patients with firearm injuries is resource intensive, as evident by their high acuity, the need for operative care, the long length of stay, the high burden on emergency medical services with interfacility transfers and the high demand for tertiary care. Data from this study aid our understanding of the prevalence and burden of firearm injuries at district level emergency centres, and multisectoral action, supported by evidence-based primary and secondary preventive strategies, is required to reduce the burden of firearm injuries, and mitigate their effects.
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Community health worker (CHW) programmes contribute towards strengthening adherence support, improving maternal and child health outcomes and providing support for social services. They play a valuable role in health behaviour change in vulnerable communities. Large-scale, comprehensive CHW programmes at health district level are part of a South African (SA) strategy to re-engineer primary healthcare and take health directly into communities and households, contributing to universal health coverage. ⋯ As important stakeholders in CHW programmes, exploring community acceptance, appreciation and support is critical in understanding the drivers of programme performance. Community acceptance of the CHWs in the Ekurhuleni health district was high. The perspective of the community was that the CHWs were quite effective. This was demonstrated when they reported changes in household behaviour with regard to improved access to care through early screening, referrals and improved management of chronic and other conditions.
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Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-COV-2) is the virus responsible for the COVID-19 (C19) pandemic. South Africa (SA) experienced multiple periods of increased transmission. Tertiary, regional and central hospitals were overwhelmed, resulting in low acceptance rates. ⋯ The Beta variant was the most virulent, with the highest case and crude fatality rates in wave 2.