Bhekisisa Centre for Health Journalism

25/11/2025

In our latest newsletter:

Follow Sean Christie & Jay Caboz through the bowels of ’s ancient engineering systems to Theatre Street, where state-of-the-art surgery is performed with world-class technology.

https://mailchi.mp/bhekisisa.org/8480782-15074338-nb3qcrn17v-15074425

24/11/2025

[HAPPENING NOW]

What happens to HIV treatment when floods or droughts hit? Our and experts will unpack how climate shocks affect access to care, and deepen inequality.

Sign up 👉 https://forms.gle/nqMMhT96BtUE22w69

24/11/2025

"It's like a dance. Nobody has to speak, the hands go out and find each other"

Sister Janine Watson was a cardiothoracic scrub nurse for 19 years at Groote Schuur Hospital. She ran the department for 14 of those years and says she'd scrub in now if asked.

But today she manages about 180 personnel. Some of her nurses commute from as far as Atlantis and Grabouw, leaving home at 4.30am and returning at 9pm on dangerous public transport. Most work their 40-hour week then overtime on Friday, sometimes Saturday shifts in public-private projects.

"Everyone here works under immense pressure."

Still, Watson maintains her faith in public healthcare: "If something was seriously wrong with me, like a car accident with multiple issues, I would rather come here than go private, because you have all the expertise on hand, and people are very dedicated."

This is one story from our rare behind-the-scenes access to Groote Schuur Hospital.

Read the full feature: https://bhekisisa.org/article/profiles/2025-11-24-anatomy-of-a-hospital-groote-schuur-in-a-time-of-budget-and-staffing-cuts/

From porters to engineers, hospital staff navigate chronic underfunding and staffing shortages while maintaining world-class care at one of South Africa's most storied medical institutions.

24/11/2025

[ONE HOUR TO GO]

In the run to , tell a story that bridges two crises. Join experts Christopher Jack & Coceka Nogoduka as they reveal how climate change is reshaping HIV risks and resilience.



https://forms.gle/nqMMhT96BtUE22w69

24/11/2025

[TWO MORE HOURS TO GO]

Meet the experts taking part in our latest webinar on how affects the spread of :

- Christopher Jack — climate scientist
- Coceka Nogoduka — HIV leader
- Moderator: Ida Jooste — Bhekisisa.

Tune in: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81059480789?pwd=inYxoKguuGpc5tDTk12ElnjsbVcRs0.1

24/11/2025

Meet the porter who speaks tsotsi-taal to calm gunshot victims.

Sibusiso Sonjica says the biggest change at Groote Schuur Hospital in recent years is the rise in gunshot wounds from gangsterism. Patients come in angry, panicking, sometimes followed by groups wanting to retaliate.

One night, a patient with a bullet in his pelvis started swearing at nurses. Sonjica switched to street language: "My bru, moenie so maak.” It worked.

"Sometimes you find yourself in situations you aren't taught to handle, but the instincts kick in."

During COVID, porters became "jacks of all trades: halfway porter, halfway counsellor and translator" when families couldn't visit.

This is one story from our rare behind-the-scenes access to Groote Schuur Hospital.

Read the full feature: https://bhekisisa.org/article/profiles/2025-11-24-anatomy-of-a-hospital-groote-schuur-in-a-time-of-budget-and-staffing-cuts/

From porters to engineers, hospital staff navigate chronic underfunding and staffing shortages while maintaining world-class care at one of South Africa's most storied medical institutions.

21/11/2025

The same shocks that threaten our planet also threaten people’s health.

Climate expert Christopher Jack joins us to explain how climate and HIV collide.

Register for the webinar: https://forms.gle/nqMMhT96BtUE22w69

20/11/2025

What happens to when floods or droughts hit?

Public health specialist, Coceka Nogoduka, is one of the panelists who will unpack how climate shocks affect access to HIV care.

Join our session and discover more.

👉 https://forms.gle/nqMMhT96BtUE22w69

19/11/2025

Many countries’ parliamentarians, heads of state and ministers don’t fight hard enough against industry interference when it comes to laws meant to get strict on smoking. Is that why South Africa’s planned new To***co Bill has stalled for 7 years? Read what researchers say in this op-ed.

Although a new draft To***co Bill for South Africa was published in 2018 to get the country’s ni****ne habit under control, it’s stalled for years, and it’s unclear when — or if — it will become law. What’s behind the slow progress? The to***co industry, suggests the research from the au...

19/11/2025

Twisted truths. That’s what sits behind SA’s stalled new to***co law, researchers write in an op-ed today. Check out for more. https://mailchi.mp/bhekisisa.org/8480782-15074338-nb3qcrn17v-15074410

19/11/2025

In Florida, a new pilot programme teaches doulas how to prepare pregnant people for hurricanes, flooding and extreme heat, addressing a growing climate and maternal health crisis. Read Nicole Ludolph’s pick, from Grist, in today’s .

https://mailchi.mp/bhekisisa.org/8480782-15074338-nb3qcrn17v-15074410

19/11/2025

Going nowhere slowly. That’s what SA’s planned new To***co Bill is doing. But why has it been in limbo since 2018? Researchers point to Big To***co’s tactics. Find out more.

Although a new draft To***co Bill for South Africa was published in 2018 to get the country’s ni****ne habit under control, it’s stalled for years, and it’s unclear when — or if — it will become law. What’s behind the slow progress? The to***co industry, suggests the research from the au...