Nelson Mandela Hsrc Study Of Hiv Aids Executive Summary

This watershed cultural and demographic survey monitors the HIV/AIDS epidemic in South Africa.

Over 20 years ago Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) was first documented and more than 15 years ago HIV was first identified as a causative agent for AIDS. Since then, the epidemic has spread throughout the world, but at an uneven pace. It is estimated that more than 60 million people worldwide have lived with HIV/AIDS since the beginning of the epidemic and 20 million of these have died (UNAIDS 2002). HIV/AIDS now affects every country in the world. Despite advances made in knowledge about HIV prevention, the disease continues to spread. Globally, sub-Saharan Africa is the most severely affected, with the Southern African Development Community (SADC) being home to half of the estimated 24 million people living with HIV/AIDS in this region (UNAIDS 2000). Country level estimates of HIV infection are usually based on surveys of women attending antenatal clinics. In South Africa over the past decade, this has been the primary means of monitoring the spread of HIV. Antenatal surveillance systems provide countries with a low-cost tool for regularly monitoring key aspects of the HIV epidemic. For example, the data can be used to track the epidemic in different parts of a country or among a specific age cohort. The antenatal survey's major usefulness is to track trends of HIV infections over time.

A follow-up to the Nelson Mandela Foundation's 2002 national household survey of HIV/AIDS prevalence in South Africa, this 2005 report seeks to provide further understanding of the HIV pandemic. Using data that tested for HIV incidence rather than just using mortality statistics, this study looks at which socio-demographic groups are most vulnerab≤ whether new policies have been successful in fighting the disease; what exactly is being done by key players, such as the government, churches, and other civil society organizations; and how the spread of HIV can be reduced in South Africa.

The aim of this book is to better understand the phenomenon of HIV in a country that has faced the fullest might of the disease and yet, after first faltering, has made more progress than any other country in the world in its response to HIV. It aims to reflect the complexity of this narrative and the range of widely differing insights by featuring what is likely the largest number of contributors in a single publication on the subject in South Africa, as well as a full spectrum of specialised areas, ranging from high-end science to personal reflections.

This series of studies provides answers to three broad questions -- "To what extent does HIV/AIDS affect the health system in South Africa?", "What aspects or subsystems are most affected?", and "How will the impact progress over time?" Health personnel and ambulatory and hospitalised patients across the nine provinces of South Africa were surveyed. Specific questions addressed issues such as loss of staff due to illness, absenteeism, low staff morale, and increased patient load. Taking into account the anticipated increase in patient load in the public and private sector health facilities in South Africa, the study makes recommendations not only for managing the HIV/AIDS case load, but also for the care and services provided to people with HIV/AIDS in South Africa.

This anthology provides insightful political analysis of post-apartheid South Africa. Written by leading South African intellectuals, these analyses cover topics such as unemployment, trade unionism, race relations, land reform, education, international relations, and the South Africanisation of the African economy. Within each work the inherited apartheid legacy, the policies introduced to overcome those legacies, and the effectiveness of those policies are addressed.

South Africa has, until now, focused its HIV prevention efforts on youth and adults, and now needs to expand its focus to include children. Much is already known about vertical transmission, which is the dominant mode of HIV transmission among children.

This history of the African AIDS epidemic is a much-needed, accessibly written historical account of the most serious epidemiological catastrophe of modern times. The African AIDS Epidemic: A History answers President Thabo Mbeki’s provocative question as to why Africa has suffered this terrible epidemic. While Mbeki attributed the causes to poverty and exploitation, others have looked to distinctive sexual systems practiced in African cultures and communities. John Iliffe stresses historical sequence. He argues that Africa has had the worst epidemic because the disease was established in the general population before anyone knew the disease existed. HIV evolved with extraordinary speed and complexity, and because that evolution took place under the eyes of modern medical research scientists, Iliffe has been able to write a history of the virus itself that is probably unique among accounts of human epidemic diseases. In giving the African experience a historical shape, Iliffe has written one of the most important books of our time. The African experience of AIDS has taught the world much of what it knows about HIV/AIDS, and this fascinating book brings into focus many aspects of the epidemic in the longer context of massive demographic growth, urbanization, and social change in Africa during the latter half of the twentieth century. The African AIDS Epidemic: A History is a brilliant introduction to the many aspects of the epidemic and the distinctive character of the virus.