Credits: The Council for Medical Schemes Script Newsletter Issue 13 2014
Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women in rich and poor countries. In 2012, breast cancer was present in 6.3 million women worldwide. According to the World Health Organization, breast cancer is the most common cause of cancer death among women with over 522 000 deaths recorded in 2012. According to the National Cancer Registry, 1 in 27 South African women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in her lifetime. Men can get breast cancer but it is rarely diagnosed. Conditions related to breast cancer are prescribed minimum benefit (PMB) conditions. To read more, please click here.
If you are a member of a medical scheme you need to understand the concept of PMBs. For more information click here.
In memory of Yvonne October 2014
Treatment guidelines and essential medicines list for South Africa. Hospital level adults 2012 edition National Department of Health, Pretoria. To download click here
After months of painstaking work, the result of the South African Civil Society NCDs Benchmarking exercise is out for your comment. While every effort has been taken to ensure that this draft is correct and supported by documentary evidence and other input, we apologise in advance for any errors.
We sincerely ask for your input to ensure it is as accurate as possible. Written input using the item number concerned is most welcome.
Click here to download The attached draft copy of the SA Civil Society NCDs Benchmarking Exercise for your constructive comment and correction by 11 November 2014.
This NCD Benchmarking Exercise aims to assess the national capacity for responding to NCDs – from a civil society perspective.
It is framed to complement national reporting processes on NCDs, as well as WHO monitoring on NCDs.
It includes elements of the NCD national response/capacity that are not reflected in official government/WHO reporting, such as elements that relate to civil society organization engagement and capacity.
The benchmarking tool was developed in consultation with an expert working group of the NCD Alliance.
It is piloted as part of the NCD Alliance programme “Strengthening Health Systems, Supporting NCD Action” in Brazil, the Caribbean Community and South Africa.
The programme is funded by a generous grant from Medtronic Philanthropy.
Please return comments to Vicki Pinkney-Atkinson
After months of painstaking work, the result of the South African Civil Society NCDs Benchmarking exercise is out for your comment. While every effort has been taken to ensure that this draft is correct and supported by documentary evidence and other input, we apologise in advance for any errors.
We sincerely ask for your input to ensure it is as accurate as possible. Written input using the item number concerned is most welcome.
Click here to download The attached draft copy of the SA Civil Society NCDs Benchmarking Exercise for your constructive comment and correction by 11 November 2014.
This NCD Benchmarking Exercise aims to assess the national capacity for responding to NCDs – from a civil society perspective.
It is framed to complement national reporting processes on NCDs, as well as WHO monitoring on NCDs.
It includes elements of the NCD national response/capacity that are not reflected in official government/WHO reporting, such as elements that relate to civil society organization engagement and capacity.
The benchmarking tool was developed in consultation with an expert working group of the NCD Alliance.
It is piloted as part of the NCD Alliance programme “Strengthening Health Systems, Supporting NCD Action” in Brazil, the Caribbean Community and South Africa.
The programme is funded by a generous grant from Medtronic Philanthropy.
Please return comments to Vicki Pinkney-Atkinson
How long have you been at the head of SADAG?
I started SADAG in 1994, at the encouragement of Prof Michael Berk, who was my psychiatrist. I had had massive Panic attacks for ten years without the right treatment, but when I got the treatment, (medication from the psychiatrist,) I became well within four weeks. It just goes to show what the right treatment can do for patients.
SADAG held its first meeting at Sandton Library on a Thursday morning and SADAG over filled the Sandton Library, at 11am.
I have been the founder from the beginning. Have a fabulous, small, active board who make quick decisions. Some have been with me for 18 years. Have a strong committed team of six staff.
What have been the biggest achievements for the organisation over the last 20 years?
- SADAG fought to get Bipolar registered as a PMB
- SADAG opened the first ever Counselling Container in Diepsloot, with over 200,000 people and two counsellors, subsequently SADAG has started 3 support groups, working in the clinics (2), have three schools SADAG are wo, king on in Suicide prevention, Bullying, Exam Stress, Substance Abuse, and work with the police station, churches, other stakeholders and the big local Diepsloot mall.
- SADAG has trained just under a million children, teens, on Teen Suicide prevention and Depression. Class by Class and school by school. SADAG also train the teachers. All nine provinces and send 12 trainers for the day to each school. Leave three pieces of info for the youth, what symptoms to look out for; what are their local resources, what are our emergency numbers and contacts where SADAG can help them.
What is SADAG’s biggest focus at this current moment?
SADAG would like to further develop our partnerships with the Department of Health, and education, instead of doing a huge volume of work on their behalf with no recognition or support. SADAG would like to establish an ombudsman on Mental Health with toll free lines, to investigate drugs not being available, as they currently are not at Helen Joseph or Tara, or Eastern Cape
How would you change current practise to best serve the greater country in regards to mental health?
- Put back psychiatric nurses in rural clinics, where they previously were. Give them more prescription writing permission in the more rural areas.
- Put more beds in place for mental health particularly for children and youth.
- Put all the interns and community psychologists in place in rural hospitals and clinics, not in the Johansseburg, Cape Town and Durban, etc.
- Put more pilot counselling containers in place in rural large townships. They are economical, effective and build wonderful community relationships.
What does the future hold for the organisation and what do you hope achieve?
The organisation will continue to develop more support groups, currently SADAG has 200 groups, and they put in place community skills and access to better treatment is very important. SADAG are aiming for 300 in the next 3 years. SADAG need more brochures in various languages and funding for speaking books on Bipolar and Schizophrenia for rural communities, very hard topic to understand. These books can be distributed, played, and replayed by patients, family members, and community groups.
