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Six influential health experts questioned the ANC, DA, EFF and independent candidate Zackie Achmat on how they plan to fix South Africa’s health system in Bhekisisa’s elections webinar on Tuesday. Here’s a summary of what was said.

Governments have the power to make decisions that can mean the difference between life and death when it comes to health matters. Watch four politicians say what they’ll do to fix South Africa’s health system after the 29 May elections and answer questions from civil society and public health advocates.

Geneveve Heinse, is one of an estimated 7.8-million South Africans infected with HIV. Over the years, treatment — and the stigma attached to HIV — have changed; yet each day, about 400 people in the country still get infected with HIV. Travel to Masiphumelele in the Western Cape with our Health Beat team to find out what treatment is available for free at government clinics today.

Malegapuru Makgoba, South Africa’s former health ombud, has seen the country’s health system grow, change and sometimes falter under six health ministers over the last 30 years. Mia Malan asks him what lessons we have learnt in this Health Beat show, Bhekisisa’s monthly TV programme.

From struggles and scandals to feats and forward thinking — South Africa’s health system has seen it all over the past 30 years. In this month’s Health Beat, we ask public officials, activists, health workers, legal experts and ordinary citizens to look back on how things have changed — and what it means for the future of healthcare in the country.

When South Africa’s medical schemes lose R28-billion a year, it puts a dent in your pocket. What could private medical aid funds’ teams who work to get back that money teach the National Health Insurance? Mia Malan talks to Botho Mhozya of Discovery Health in the March edition of Bhekisisa’s monthly TV programme Health Beat.

The National Health Insurance scheme is supposed to provide all South Africans with the healthcare many have fought and died for. But citizens are wary of trusting politicians with the public purse and point to Tembisa Hospital on the East Rand as an example of how money set aside for health, has been used for anything but.

In theory, the National Health Insurance (NHI) could transform our failing healthcare system. But, many South Africans have little faith in the politicians who are supposed to look after the public purse. We take a look at how the residents of Tembisa cope with the results of corruption at their hospital, the systems that private medical aid schemes have in place to curb fraud, and how the planned NHI could benefit from being more transparent.

More and more studies are showing that vaping is not harmless and that electronic smokes should be regulated the same way as traditional cigarettes — and governments are getting on board. A lung health expert from the University of Cape Town tells Mia Malan why in the February edition of Health Beat, Bhekisisa’s monthly TV programme.

South Africa needs to produce more electricity to end loadshedding. But at the same time we also need to move away from coal-fired power to fight global warming. In this tug-of-war, people who live close to power stations will keep falling ill from breathing in dirty air.

When you’re not feeling rested and refreshed after a night’s sleep, your thinking is fuzzy, your reaction time drops and you feel sluggish at work. But more and more research shows that sleeping poorly is a big public health worry. Today, on World Sleep Day, two experts explain why.

When e-cigarettes were first tested by cigarette smokers, there were complaints about them being too smooth. So propylene glycol was added to give users that harsh hit at the back of the throat they were used to. A lung doctor explains why the clouds of smoke that accompany vapes aren’t clean steam, but chemicals.

Cervical cancer affects almost 11 000 women a year in South Africa, leading to about 5 000 deaths. It starts with an infection by the human papillomavirus (HPV). If the infection is caught early enough, it can be treated to prevent cancer from developing in the first place. Doing a self-test for an HPV infection can help. Here’s how it works.

Curious about how we run our operations? Meet Soley Crooks Chissano – our programme associate – the brains behind our newsletter, social media and events.

“We are not saying tobacco should be banned,” says Tshweu Mosedi, an anti-tobacco activist who wants to keep e-cigarettes away from kids. He supports the new Tobacco Bill that will restrict vape marketing and sales. The Health Beat team meets Mosedi in Katlehong on Joburg’s East Rand, where fruity flavours and flashy adverts have tricked youngsters and parents into believing that e-cigarettes are healthy.

Are e-cigarettes healthier than traditional smokes? The vaping and tobacco industries would have us believe that they are, but doctors and researchers are sceptical. We find out why young people are getting hooked on nicotine-enhanced fruity flavours — and break down the potentially deadly consequences.