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The Bhekisisa Centre for Health Journalism is based in Johannesburg, South Africa.
Bhekisisa is one of only a few media outlets in the Global South specialising in solutions-based narrative features and analysis. We not only uncover problems but also critically evaluate the solutions meant to fix them. It’s an approach we also take with our opinion pieces.

What makes a good op-ed? What can I expect from the editing process? Who do I pitch a possible opinion piece to? Get the answers to all these questions along with some handy writing tips here before you make a submission.

Reality check: Women are victims twice over. Here’s why, says Tlaleng Mofokeng

High rates of sexual and gender-based violence and low access to safe abortions prove deadly for South Africa's women, writes activist Tlaleng Mofokeng.

From COVID vaccine hoarders to donors: Why rich countries shouldn’t just pawn off expiring...

Rich countries have an excess supply of COVID-19 vaccines. Now they’re either dumping or donating these close to expiring doses. But it takes a lot more to address the issues of vaccine inequity and the supply shortfall in poorer countries.
Discovery Health CEO Jonathan Broomberg responds to allegations that the scheme could have made arrangements to waive a waiting period to cover a returning member's pregnancy.

‘Without waiting periods, medical aids couldn’t survive,’ Discovery says

Would you join a medical aid if you were perfectly healthy? Most won’t. That’s why we need waiting periods, says Discovery CEO Jonathan Broomberg.
Nurses make up 80% of health workers in Lesotho. But they have little power to help their patients.

Meet the nurses fighting on the front lines — with no ammunition

Public health systems are driven by nurses. Yet, they have little authority.
Mbeki was ousted as president in 2008

Snub Mbeki like he did Nkosi

About 35 000 babies could have been born without HIV had the president listened to the boy.
Kenya

Why Africa needs PrEP: A two-in-one pill to prevent HIV infection

Truvada, which contains two antiretrovirals, reduces the risk of HIV infection with up to 96%.

TB: This pee test could save your life

What if diagnosing South Africa’s deadliest disease was as simple as taking a drug store pregnancy test? That day might be closer than you think.
Where will newly qualified doctors go if provinces are being told to scale back staff under budget pressures?

Hundreds of medical graduates may be unemployed amid budget cuts

More than 200 newly qualified doctors may be left with worthless degrees if provinces can't raise funds for internship positions

‘How COVID has affected my mental health as a doctor’

During epidemics doctors face moral dilemmas forcing them to make decisions against their conscience — such as having to follow treatment guidelines designed to cope with limited resources. COVID-19 is no different.
Methadone is used in countries around the world including Indonesia

‘I thought drug users just made bad choices. Then this happened’

Until two years ago, it was Sibonelo Gumede’s job to help developers get rid of people who used drugs in neighbourhoods. Then his life changed.

Pushing up daisies – by becoming compost? How you can choose a greener death

Mainstream methods of burial need to be left in the past as they take a toll on climate change. According to researchers, leaving the body to naturally break down its organic matter until a heap of soil is all that’s left, should be more accessible.
“Whenever I heard about comics I thought of jokes. I never knew I could develop my own comics and use them to talk about important issues”

Antibiotic resistance: Three ways to stop the rise of the superbugs

We are facing possibly the greatest health threat of our time: drug-resistant infections. But here's why there's hope the world can change course.

Would you screen yourself for cervical cancer at home?

When South Africa introduced self-tests for HIV, far more people knew their status and were put on treatment. The same could happen for cervical cancer, argues this cancer advocate, and the country already has the networks, testing capacity and funding in place to make a project like this work.

How to fix South Africa’s backlog in COVID-19 tests

The COVID-19 outbreak has overwhelmed our laboratories. Many labs can no longer deliver results within 24 hours and for some, these times have stretched up to 14 days. Is it time to South Africa to rethink its testing strategy?
Helen Zille's short-sighted tweets about HIV and Aids fuel HIV stigma.

​#AIDS2016: Yes, Helen Zille racism and inequality do fuel the spread of HIV

The Western Cape premier should know that inequality, not just science, lies at the root of the Aids epidemic.
How your period could be messing with your mental health

Suicide and the violence of our words

What if we thought of suicide as the outcome of a terminal illness instead of the outcome of an action?