Investigating competencies needed by European-trained doctors in rural South African hospitals

Background: Many European-trained doctors (ETDs) recruited to work in rural district hospitals in South Africa have insufficient generalist competencies for the range of practice required. Africa Health Placements recruits ETDs to work in rural hospitals in Africa. Many of these doctors feel inadequately prepared. The Stellenbosch University Ukwanda Centre for Rural Health is launching a Postgraduate Diploma in Rural Medicine to help prepare doctors for such work.Aim: To determine the competencies gap for ETDs working in rural district hospitals in South Africa to inform the curriculum of the PG Dip (Rural Medicine).Setting: Rural district hospitals in South Africa.Methods: Nine hospitals in the Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal and Mpumalanga were purposefully selected by Africa Health Placements as receiving ETDs. An online survey was developed asking about the most important competencies and weaknesses for ETDs when working rurally. The clinical manager and any ETDs currently working in each hospital were invited to complete the survey.Results: Surveys were completed by 19 ETDs and five clinical managers. The top clinical competencies in relation to 10 specific domains were identified. The results also indicate broader competencies required, specific skills gaps, the strengths that ETDs bring to South Africa and how ETDs prepare themselves for working in this context.Conclusion: This study identifies the important competency gaps among ETDs and provides useful direction for the diploma and other future training initiatives. The diploma faculty must reflect on these findings and ensure the curriculum is aligned with these gaps.

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Gender factors associated with sexual abstinent behaviour of rural South African high school going youth in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Health Education Research ◽

10.1093/her/cyn041 ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 24 (3) ◽

pp. 450-460 ◽

Cited By ~ 14

Author(s):

S. Dlamini ◽

M. Taylor ◽

N. Mkhize ◽

R. Huver ◽

R. Sathiparsad ◽

...

Keyword(s):

South Africa ◽

High School ◽

South African ◽

Rural South ◽

Factors Associated ◽

Kwazulu Natal

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Revision of the South African genus Neopimus (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Paederinae)

Zootaxa ◽

10.11646/zootaxa.4577.2.8 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 4577 (2) ◽

pp. 361

Author(s):

JIŘÍ JANÁK

Keyword(s):

South Africa ◽

South African ◽

Eastern Cape Province ◽

Eastern Cape ◽

The South ◽

Additional Material ◽

Kwazulu Natal ◽

First Time ◽

African Genus

A revision of the south African genus Neopimus Özdikmen, Demir & Türkeş, 2008 is presented. Based on revision of the type and additional material, three species are recognised. The genus Neopimus is redescribed and all species are described or redescribed and illustrated, two of them for the first time: Neopimus capensis Janák, sp. nov., from Eastern Cape Province, South Africa and N. zulu Janák, sp. nov., from KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa. The distribution of the genus is mapped and a key of species is presented.

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A new genus and three new species of South African Cicadettini (Hemiptera: Cicadidae: Cicadettinae)

Zootaxa ◽

10.11646/zootaxa.4885.4.7 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 4885 (4) ◽

pp. 579-590

Author(s):

ALLEN F. SANBORN ◽

MARTIN H. VILLET

Keyword(s):

South Africa ◽

New Species ◽

South African ◽

New Genus ◽

Eastern Cape ◽

Key To Species ◽

Kwazulu Natal ◽

Three New Species

Ingcainyenzane irhiniensis n. gen., n. sp. and Ingcainyenzane nolukhanyoensis n. gen., n. sp. are described from Eastern Cape and Ingcainyenzane umgeniensis n. gen., n. sp. is described from KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Notes on its biology of the species and a key to species of the genus are also provided.

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The Mollusc collections at South African institutions: Development and current status

South African Journal of Science ◽

10.17159/sajs.2021/8984 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 117 (7/8) ◽

Author(s):

Mary Cole

Keyword(s):

South Africa ◽

South African ◽

Southern Africa ◽

Current Status ◽

Temporal Data ◽

Eastern Cape ◽

Marine Molluscs ◽

Wide Range ◽

Kwazulu Natal ◽

Southwestern Indian Ocean

There are three major mollusc collections in South Africa and seven smaller, thematic collections. The KwaZulu-Natal Museum holds one of the largest collections in the southern hemisphere. Its strengths are marine molluscs of southern Africa and the southwestern Indian Ocean, and terrestrial molluscs of South Africa. Research on marine molluscs has led to revisionary papers across a wide range of gastropod families. The Iziko South African Museum contains the most comprehensive collections of Cephalopoda (octopus, squid and relatives) and Polyplacophora (chitons) for southern Africa. The East London Museum is a provincial museum of the Eastern Cape. Recent research focuses on terrestrial molluscs and the collection is growing to address the gap in knowledge of this element of biodiversity. Mollusc collections in South Africa date to about 1900 and are an invaluable resource of morphological and genetic diversity, with associated spatial and temporal data. The South African National Biodiversity Institute is encouraging discovery and documentation to address gaps in knowledge, particularly of invertebrates. Museums are supported with grants for surveys, systematic studies and data mobilisation. The Department of Science and Innovation is investing in collections as irreplaceable research infrastructure through the Natural Science Collections Facility, whereby 16 institutions, including those holding mollusc collections, are assisted to achieve common targets and coordinated outputs.

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Early transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in South Africa: An epidemiological and phylogenetic report

10.1101/2020.05.29.20116376 ◽

2020 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Jennifer Giandhari ◽

Sureshnee Pillay ◽

Eduan Wilkinson ◽

Houriiyah Tegally ◽

Ilya Sinayskiy ◽

...

Keyword(s):

South Africa ◽

South African ◽

Medical Research Council ◽

Western Cape ◽

Eastern Cape ◽

The South ◽

Transmission Potential ◽

Kwazulu Natal ◽

Whole Genomes ◽

Novel Coronavirus

BackgroundThe emergence of a novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, in December 2019, progressed to become a world pandemic in a few months and reached South Africa at the beginning of March. To investigate introduction and understand the early transmission dynamics of the virus, we formed the South African Network for Genomics Surveillance of COVID (SANGS_COVID), a network of ten government and university laboratories. Here, we present the first results of this effort, which is a molecular epidemiological study of the first twenty-one SARS-CoV-2 whole genomes sampled in the first port of entry, KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), during the first month of the epidemic. By combining this with calculations of the effective reproduction number (R), we aim to shed light on the patterns of infections that define the epidemic in South Africa.MethodsR was calculated using positive cases and deaths from reports provided by the four major provinces. Molecular epidemiology investigation involved sequencing viral genomes from patients in KZN using ARCTIC protocols and assembling whole genomes using meticulous alignment methods. Phylogenetic analysis was performed using maximum likelihood (ML) and Bayesian trees, lineage classification and molecular clock calculations.FindingsThe epidemic in South Africa has been very heterogeneous. Two of the largest provinces, Gauteng, home of the two large metropolis Johannesburg and Pretoria, and KwaZulu-Natal, home of the third largest city in the country Durban, had a slow growth rate on the number of detected cases. Whereas, Western Cape, home of Cape Town, and the Eastern Cape provinces the epidemic is spreading fast. Our estimates of transmission potential for South Africa suggest a decreasing transmission potential towards R=1 since the first cases and deaths have been reported. However, between 06 May and 18 May 2020, we estimate that R was on average 1.39 (1.04–2.15, 95% CI). We also demonstrate that early transmission in KZN, and most probably in all main regions of SA, was associated with multiple international introductions and dominated by lineages B1 and B. The study also provides evidence for locally acquired infections in a hospital in Durban within the first month of the epidemic, which inflated early mortality in KZN.InterpretationThis first report of SANGS_COVID consortium focuses on understanding the epidemic heterogeneity and introduction of SARS-CoV-2 strains in the first month of the epidemic in South Africa. The early introduction of SARS-CoV-2 in KZN included caused a localized outbreak in a hospital, provides potential explanations for the initially high death rates in the province. The current high rate of transmission of COVID-19 in the Western Cape and Eastern Cape highlights the crucial need to strength local genomic surveillance in South Africa.FundingUKZN Flagship Program entitled: Afrocentric Precision Approach to Control Health Epidemic, by a research Flagship grant from the South African Medical Research Council (MRC-RFA-UFSP-01- 2013/UKZN HIVEPI, by the the Technology Innovation Agency and the the Department of Science and Innovation and by National Human Genome Re- search Institute of the National Institutes of Health under Award Number U24HG006941. H3ABioNet is an initiative of the Human Health and Heredity in Africa Consortium (H3Africa).Research in context Evidence before this studyWe searched PubMed, BioRxiv and MedRxiv for reports on epidemiology and phylogenetic analysis using whole genome sequencing (WGS) of SARS-CoV-2. We used the following keywords: SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19, 2019-nCoV or novel coronavirus and transmission genomics, epidemiology, phylogenetic or reproduction number. Our search identified an important lack of molecular epidemiology studies in the southern hemisphere, with only a few reports from Latin America and one in Africa. In other early transmission reports on SARS-CoV-2 infections in Africa, authors focused on transmission dynamics, but molecular and phylogenetic methods were missing.Added value of this studyWith a growing sampling bias in the study of transmission genomics of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, it is important for us to report high-quality whole genome sequencing (WGS) of local SARS-CoV-2 samples and in-depth phylogenetic analyses of the first month of infection in South-Africa. In our molecular epidemiological investigation, we identify the early transmission routes of the infection in the KZN and report thirteen distinct introductions from many locations and a cluster of localized transmission linked to a healthcare setting that caused most of the initial deaths in South Africa. Furthermore, we formed a national consortium in South Africa, funded by the Department of Science and Innovation and the South African Medical Research Council, to capacitate ten local laboratories to produce and analyse SARS-CoV-2 data in near real time.Implications of all the available evidenceThe COVID-19 pandemic is progressing around the world and in Africa. Early transmission genomics and dynamics of SARS-CoV-2 throw light on the early stages of the epidemic in a given region. This facilitates the investigation of localized outbreaks and serves to inform public health responses in South Africa.

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DNA barcoding of the mesic adapted striped mouse, Rhabdomys dilectus in the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal provinces of South Africa

Vertebrate Zoology ◽

10.3897/vz.71.e68897 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 71 ◽

pp. 503-515

Author(s):

Emmanuel Matamba ◽

Leigh R. Richards ◽

Michael I. Cherry ◽

Ramugondo V. Rambau

Keyword(s):

South Africa ◽

Dna Barcoding ◽

South African ◽

Population Genetic ◽

Mammalian Species ◽

Molecular Data ◽

Morphological Data ◽

Coi Gene ◽

Eastern Cape ◽

Kwazulu Natal

Abstract South African small mammals are under-represented in DNA barcoding efforts, particularly from the eastern forested regions of the country. This study reports DNA barcoding of Rhabdomys taxa from previously unsampled parts of the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal provinces of South Africa. The complete mitochondrial DNA cytochrome oxidase I (COI) gene was sequenced for 101 Rhabdomys sp. individuals from 16 localities from all three main forest groups (coastal, mistbelt, and scarp forests). Molecular data were supplemented with external morphological measurements, including those deemed potential taxonomically diagnostic characters. Findings indicate the area to be inhabited solely by Rhabdomys dilectus chakae. Haplotypes distributed across the three forest groups were separated by shallow sequence divergences ranging from 0.001–0.015 (Kimura 2-parameter model) and displayed very little population genetic structure (FST= 0.071787). Morphological data revealed some regional metric differences in external morphology, but all the head-and-body to tail (HB: tail) ratios match that of R. d. chakae, and consequently, molecular and morphological data are congruent. These data confirm a range extension of R. d. chakae, supporting the utility of COI barcodes in the identification of small mammalian species.

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Prevalence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies among blood donors in Northern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, Eastern Cape, and Free State provinces of South Africa in January 2021.

10.21203/rs.3.rs-233375/v1 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Wendy Sykes ◽

Laurette Mhlanga ◽

Ronel Swanevelder ◽

Tanya Nadia Glatt ◽

Eduard Grebe ◽

...

Keyword(s):

South Africa ◽

South African ◽

Blood Donors ◽

Population Level ◽

Free State ◽

Eastern Cape ◽

The South ◽

Short Supply ◽

Kwazulu Natal ◽

Northern Cape

Abstract Background: Population-level estimates of prevalence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibody positivity (seroprevalence) is a crucial epidemiological indicator for tracking the Covid-19 epidemic. Such data are in short supply, both internationally and in South Africa. The South African blood services (the South African National Blood Service, SANBS and the Western Cape Blood Service, WCBS) are coordinating a nationally representative survey of blood donors, which it is hoped can become a cost-effective surveillance method with validity for community-level seroprevalence estimation.Methods: Leveraging existing arrangements, SANBS human research ethics committee permission was obtained to test blood donations collected on predefined days (7th, 10th ,12th ,15th ,20th ,23th and 25th January) for anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies, using the Roche Elecsys Anti-SARS-CoV-2 assay on the cobas e411 platform currently available in the blood services’ donation testing laboratories. Using standard methods, prevalence analysis was done by province, age and race, allowing age to be regarded as either a continuous or categorical variable. Testing was performed in the Eastern Cape (EC), Free State (FS), KwaZulu Natal (ZN) and Northern Cape (NC) provinces.Results: We report on data from 4858 donors - 1457 in EC; 463 in NC; 831 in FS and 2107 in ZN. Prevalence varied substantially across race groups and between provinces, with seroprevalence among Black donors consistently several times higher than among White donors, and the other main population groups (Coloured and Asian) not consistently represented in all provinces. There is no clear evidence that seroprevalence among donors varies by age. Weighted net estimates of prevalence (in the core age range 15-69) by province (compared with official clinically-confirmed COVID-19 case rates in mid-January 2021) are: EC-63%(2.8%), NC-32%(2.2%), FS-46%(2.4%), and ZN-52%(2.4%).Conclusions: Our study demonstrates substantial differences in dissemination of SARS-CoV-2 infection between different race groups, most likely explained by historically based differences in socio-economic status and housing conditions. As has been seen in other areas, even such high seroprevalence does not guarantee population-level immunity against new outbreaks – probably due to viral evolution and waning of antibody neutralization. Despite its limitations, notably a ‘healthy donor’ effect, it seems plausible that these estimates are reasonably generalisable to actual population level anti-SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence, but should be further verified.

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A taxonomic study of the South African terricolous weevil genus Pentatrachyphloeus Voss (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Entiminae: Trachyphloeini)

Zootaxa ◽

10.11646/zootaxa.4574.1.1 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 4574 (1) ◽

pp. 1

Author(s):

ROMAN BOROVEC ◽

JIŘÍ SKUHROVEC

Keyword(s):

South Africa ◽

South African ◽

Host Plants ◽

Free State ◽

Taxonomic Study ◽

Immature Stages ◽

Eastern Cape ◽

North West ◽

Ecological Information ◽

Kwazulu Natal

The genus Pentatrachyphloeus Voss, 1974, with two known species, is redefined and compared with related genera. An additional thirty seven new species are described here: P. andersoni sp. nov. (South Africa, Mpumalanga); P. baumi sp. nov. (South Africa, Gauteng); P. brevithorax sp. nov. (South Africa, KwaZulu-Natal); P. bufo sp. nov. (South Africa, Mpumalanga); P. endroedyi sp. nov. (South Africa, Mpumalanga); P. exiguus sp. nov. (South Africa, Mpumalanga); P. frici sp. nov. (South Africa, Limpopo); P. grobbelaarae sp. nov. (South Africa, KwaZulu-Natal); P. hanzelkai sp. nov. (South Africa, KwaZulu-Natal); P. holubi sp. nov. (South Africa, Mpumalanga); P. howdenae sp. nov. (South Africa, Mpumalanga); P. hystrix sp. nov. (South Africa, Mpumalanga); P. insignicornis sp. nov. (South Africa, KwaZulu-Natal); P. kalalovae sp. nov. (South Africa, Gauteng); P. kuscheli sp. nov. (South Africa, KwaZulu-Natal); P. laevis sp. nov. (South Africa, Mpumalanga); P. lajumensis sp. nov. (South Africa, Limpopo); P. leleupi sp. nov. (Zimbabwe, Manica); P. lesothoensis sp. nov. (Lesotho, Qacha’s Nek); P. machulkai sp. nov. (South Africa, Free State); P. marshalli sp. nov. (South Africa, KwaZulu-Natal); P. muellerae sp. nov. (South Africa, Mpumalanga); P. musili sp. nov. (South Africa, Limpopo); P. ntinini sp. nov. (South Africa, KwaZulu-Natal); P. oberprieleri sp. nov. (South Africa, Gauteng, North West); P. pavlicai sp. nov. (South Africa, Free State); P. rudyardi sp. nov. (South Africa, Limpopo); P. schoemani sp. nov. (South Africa, Limpopo); P. soutpansbergensis sp. nov. (South Africa, Limpopo); P. spinimanus sp. nov. (South Africa, Mpumalanga); P. stingli sp. nov. (South Africa, Limpopo); P. tenuicollis sp. nov. (South Africa, Mpumalanga); P. tuberculatus sp. nov. (South Africa, Mpumalanga); P. vavrai sp. nov. (South Africa, Eastern Cape); P. vossi sp. nov. (South Africa, Mpumalanga); P. vrazi sp. nov. (South Africa, Limpopo) and P. zikmundi sp. nov. (South Africa, Free State). All of the species are keyed and illustrated; ecological information is presented only where available. All species seem to be very localised, being known only from one or only a very limited number of localities. Immature stages or host plants are not known for any of the species. The species are distributed as follows: South Africa: Mpumalanga (13), Limpopo (8), KwaZulu-Natal (7), Free State (3), Gauteng (3), Eastern Cape (3), North West (1); Lesotho: Qacha’s Nek (1) and Zimbabwe: Manica (1).

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Transforming the Rural Agricultural Landscape Through Groundwater Optimisation: Exploring A Chinese-South African Partnership

Commonwealth Youth and Development ◽

10.25159/1727-7140/3307 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 15 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Nirmala Dorasamy ◽

Olayemi Bakre

Keyword(s):

South Africa ◽

South African ◽

Agricultural Landscape ◽

Agricultural Practices ◽

Subsistence Farming ◽

Water Shortages ◽

Subsistence Farmers ◽

Farming Communities ◽

Standards Of Living ◽

Kwazulu Natal

The majority of the South African rural populace is directly or indirectly engaged in agricultural practices to earn a livelihood. However, impediments such as climate change, water shortages, and inadequacy of institutional support have undermined these once thriving subsistence farming communities. Furthermore, poor leadership in hydrology, coupled with a lack of depth in skills at all government levels to facilitate the understanding of the importance of groundwater, has made it near impossible for subsistence farmers to benefit optimally from groundwater. The 2012 drought experienced in South Africa paralysed several subsistence farming communities in KwaZulu-Natal. To revamp subsistence farming and assist these farmers across South Africa, the Department of Water and Sanitation launched interventions, but despite the enormous resources expended, indicators (e.g. unsustainable farming practices, poor crop yield, pitiable living conditions, and poor standards of living) provide evidence that these interventions have not yielded the desired results. This paper seeks to suggest practicable interventions aimed at reducing the vulnerability of subsistence farmers in KwaZulu-Natal. The study pursued a qualitative approach in that it solicited the views of experts on groundwater and in related fields to gain an in-depth perspective. Some of the core challenges undermining the sustainability and growth of subsistence farming in the study area were found to be the inadequacy of experts on groundwater, water shortages, institutional deficiencies, lack of political will, and lack of coordination among stakeholders. Pragmatic recommendations are made to address these challenges, among other things to encourage a South African-Chinese partnership in the hydrology sector.

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Exploring the South African Government Communication on Land Expropriation without Compensation

Journal of Human Ecology ◽

10.31901/24566608.2020/72.1-3.3275 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 72 (1-3) ◽

Author(s):

Lungisani Moyo

Keyword(s):

South Africa ◽

Food Security ◽

South African ◽

Small Scale ◽

South African Government ◽

Eastern Cape ◽

The South ◽

Land Expropriation ◽

African Government ◽

Government Communication

ABSTRACT This paper used qualitative methodology to explore the South African government communication and land expropriation without compensation and its effects on food security using Alice town located in the Eastern Cape Province South Africa as its case study. This was done to allow the participants to give their perceptions on the role of government communication on land expropriation without compensation and its effects on South African food security. In this paper, a total population of 30 comprising of 26 small scale farmers in rural Alice and 4 employees from the Department of Agriculture (Alice), Eastern Cape, South Africa were interviewed to get their perception and views on government communications and land expropriation without compensation and its effects on South African food security. The findings of this paper revealed that the agricultural sector plays a vital role in the South African economy hence there is a great need to speed up transformation in the sector.

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