Trump, Cyril meet amid healthcare crisis

AS PRESIDENT Cyril Ramaphosa braces for a meeting with his US counterpart Donald Trump to iron out some of the claims that have led to the US withdrawing funding of key TB and HIV programmes, the situation on the ground continued to worsen with the closure of the Clinical HIV Research Unit’s (CHRU) Cervical Cancer Screening and Prevention Clinic.

The closure, directly linked with the termination of US funding, will significantly impact cervical cancer prevention efforts in SA, which faces one of the highest rates of cervical cancer in the world, said the unit.  

CHRU Specialist Gynaecologist and Fertility Specialist Dr Mark Faesen said the closure of the screening unit at Helen Joseph Hospital leaves a major gap in services and will further strain the health service.

“For over two decades, our colposcopy clinic has been a lifeline for surrounding clinics, with a referral base from clinics as far as Springs, Randburg, Bellavista, Soweto, Roodepoort, and Hillbrow. We’ve been able to manage a waiting time of just 2-3 weeks, but now, these same clinics will be faced with months of delays, and women will be turned away.”

This week’s closure follows reports that highlight the decline in viral load testing - a crucial measure that determines the amount of HIV virus present in the bloodstream of patients undergoing antiretroviral treatment. The staggering 21% drop in testing rates among key demographics over the past two months was directly linked to the loss of US funding. 

The Treatment Action Group and Doctors Without Borders also recently confirmed that 39 TB and HIV clinical research sites in the country are under threat due to funding cuts by the US, placing at least 27 HIV trials and 20 TB trials at risk.

With the closure of the cervical cancer screening unit at Helen Joseph Hospital, the overburdened clinics will have to absorb additional patients, extending the waiting periods and further jeopardising care for women at risk of cervical cancer, said the CHRU. 

Faesen said that local clinics, including Charlotte Maxeke, Rahima Moosa, and Baragwanath, are already overwhelmed with high patient volumes. 

“Many patients are turned away at Charlotte Maxeke Hospital and come to us. Rahima Moosa currently has a waiting list of approximately one to two months for colposcopy appointments and we provided a service that alleviates the waiting list at Rahima Moosa.”

Faesen said the closure of this cervical cancer screening unit represented a significant loss to women’s health, highlighting the urgent need for continued funding and resources to address cervical cancer in South Africa.

“We’ve seen more than 1,200 patients in the last three years, and now these patients will be added to the already overburdened systems at other hospitals, such as Rahima Moosa and Baragwanath. The closure of this service will result in deaths, and we can’t afford to let that happen,” said Faesen. 

Trump pulled the plug on funding South African health programmes over false claims that land was being confiscated from white minorities, with the signing into law of the Expropriation Bill into law.

This is expected to be among the key issues set to be discussed when Ramaphosa and Trump meet on Wednesday. 

Presidential spokesperson Vincent Magwenya told the media on Tuesday that Ramaphosa will not address the alleged persecution of white people in South Africa during the meeting as it has been deemed a falsehood.

Instead the meeting will focus on AGOA, high tariffs and trade relations, he said.

“The whole world knows there is no such thing as a persecution of any particular race in South Africa. So, we don’t need to spend any effort dispelling something that is not there,” he said.

“It’s about refocusing our trade relationship. We would still like to see AGOA being extended and see South Africa’s participation in AGOA.

“However, if the Trump administration decides to do away with the trade scheme, we will be ready to table a new trade relationship framework.”

The meeting will also discuss ways for the US to attend the G20 summit in South Africa later this year.

Cape Times