South African medical journal = Suid-Afrikaanse tydskrif vir geneeskunde
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Antimicrobial resistance (AMR), in which microbes adapt to and resist current therapies, is a well-recognised global problem that threatens to reverse gains made by modern medicine in the last decades. AMR is a complex issue; however, at its core, it is driven by the overuse and inappropriate use of antimicrobials. ⋯ Behavioural factors, such as purchasing antibiotics without a prescription from a registered healthcare professional, not completing the prescribed course or overly prolonged courses of antibiotics, using antibiotics to treat viral infections, lack of access to quality antibiotics, and the proliferation of substandard or falsified (SF) drugs, have also been identified as significant contributors to AMR. Low- and middle-income countries have a higher incidence of antibiotics being dispensed without a prescription than higher-income countries.
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Rare diseases (RDs) are individually rare but collectively common, affecting an estimated 1 in 15 individuals in South Africa (SA). Patients with an RD often face a long diagnostic odyssey (>5 years on average) and many obstacles in accessing healthcare. ⋯ Fourteen studies met the inclusion criteria and were explored using thematic analysis, which showed that RD patients were further marginalised during the pandemic, particularly in access to healthcare. Increased inclusivity in policy creation and integrated community-based healthcare are recommended to ensure that RD patients are not an afterthought in future crises.
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Rare diseases (RDs) are individually rare but collectively common, affecting an estimated 1 in 15 individuals in South Africa (SA). Patients with an RD often face a long diagnostic odyssey (>5 years on average) and many obstacles in accessing healthcare. ⋯ Fourteen studies met the inclusion criteria and were explored using thematic analysis, which showed that RD patients were further marginalised during the pandemic, particularly in access to healthcare. Increased inclusivity in policy creation and integrated community-based healthcare are recommended to ensure that RD patients are not an afterthought in future crises.
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Review
Sexual and reproductive health and rights, HIV and migration in southern Africa: A rapid review.
Migration, a prevalent global phenomenon, significantly impacts health, particularly in low- to middle-income countries. This article presents a rapid review aimed at mapping projects, lessons and policies concerning sexual and reproductive health (SRH), HIV and migration in southern Africa. Utilising a population-concept-context framework, the review focuses on understanding the scope, nature and extent of interventions, identifying lessons learnt, and assessing existing policies and strategies. ⋯ Despite these efforts, challenges persist, including gender-based violence, financial barriers and xenophobic attitudes among HCWs. Limited access to comprehensive sexuality education and social protection for migrants underscores the need for further policy development and implementation. Nevertheless, existing policies, such as Botswana's inclusive HIV treatment policy and South Africa's National Strategic Plan for HIV, TB and STIs, demonstrate steps towards ensuring migrants' rights to healthcare.
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HIV/AIDS remains one of the world's most significant public health and economic challenges, with approximately 36 million people currently living with the disease. Considerable progress has been made to reduce the impact of HIV/AIDS in the past years through successful multiple HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment interventions. However, barriers such as lack of engagement, limited availability of early HIV-infection detection tools, high rates of HIV/sexually transmitted infections (STIs), barriers to access antiretroviral therapy, lack of innovative resource optimisation and distribution strategies, and poor prevention services for vulnerable populations still exist and substantially affect the attainment of the UNAIDS 95-95-95 targets. ⋯ From a list of collected publications, researchers used inclusion and exclusion criteria to screen and select relevant papers for inclusion in this review. This study unpacks emerging opportunities that can be explored by applying machine learning techniques to further knowledge and understanding about HIV service design, prediction, implementation, and evaluation. Therefore, there is a need to explore innovative and more effective analytic strategies including machine learning approaches to understand and improve HIV service design, planning, implementation, and evaluation to strengthen HIV/AIDS prevention, treatment, and awareness strategies.