Discovery South Africa

Along with eight other people, GP Dr Grant Bekker was quarantined following close contact with one of the first patients to contract COVID-19 in South Africa. Since returning to work, the way in which he runs his practice has changed entirely and digital tools have taken precedence in staying connected with patients. Dr Bekker explains how he sees many of his patients are seen first through teleph...

Dr Neliswa Goglela is a hepatologist at UCT Private Academic and Groote Schuur hospital. She is also the first recipient of the Discovery Foundation Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Fellowship Award) where she managed patients with complex liver disease as well as patients needing liver transplants. Dr Gogela is a generalist and has a special interest in liver disease; from viral hepatitis to...

The COVID-19 pandemic has put the spotlight on mental illness. A common statistic cited before the pandemic was that 1 in 7 people at work would have had a common mental health disorder at any given time. Now, our lives and ways of working have been disrupted in significant ways. Psychiatrist, Prof. Christoffel Grobler discusses the need for added sensitivity to mental illness in the workplace goi...

Have you found that the pressures of ongoing lockdown and enforced containment measures, have put pressure on your marriage or intimate relationship? Psychotherapist, Louisa Niehaus, explains how confinement, adapting to new routines under duress, working remotely, home schooling, the stress of confronting an uncertain future and the added gravity of COVID-19 – can be a tinder box for couples. How...

Children thrive when they feel safe and protected, when their routines are in place and when their family and community are healthy and stable. However, COVID-19 pandemic and the global measures enforced to contain its spread have disrupting nearly every aspect of children’s lives. Clinical psychologist Joanna Kleovoulou explains the impact these dynamics have children and teenagers. She also delv...

Many GPs have understood that their patients are extremely anxious about the risk of exposure to COVID-19 at their doctor’s rooms, and will avoid seeing their doctor even if they have a medical issue that requires attention. Dr Charlene de Greef, a GP based at Mayo Clinic in Johannesburg, has recently embraced online consultations, done through Discovery DrConnect, to allow her to continue to care...

The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the uptake of telehealth technologies and remote consultation with patients using telephonic or virtual platforms. These platforms have existed for a long time, but the time of COVID-19 and increased physical distancing, they have become indispensable to patient care. Psychiatrist, Prof. Christoffel Grobler shares his insights on the ways in which telehealth p...

In the coming weeks and months, even more businesses will resume operations and employees will return to their places of work. What should employers and their staff understand about COVID‑19 to stay healthy, and to prevent discrimination in the workplace against individuals affected by COVID‑19? Dr Ahmad Haeri Mazanderani is a clinical virologist in the Centre for HIV and STIs at the National Inst...

In her role as Head of Corporate Sustainability at Discovery, Ruth Lewin has made it her mission to apply Discovery’s expertise, intellectual capital and corporate network in such a way that her team has redefined corporate social investment as we know it. Ruth and Azania delve into examples of several brilliant projects and initiatives funded by Discovery, and how the funding models at play have...

In Sepedi, “Hlokomela” means “to care”. And, that is exactly what the Hlokomela healthcare project does for low-income employees on farms, in nature conservation and tourism in Limpopo and Mpumalanga. Azania chats to Hlokomela’s founder, Christine du Preez, to find out just how this award-winning HIV and AIDS educational and treatment programme has been running successfully for 14 years, reaching...

Dentist, Dr Sabelo Mngomezulu, grew up herding cattle, expecting to drop out of school and work on the mines. Today he has pristine dental rooms at Mosvold Hospital and his patients access a standard of dental care they never imagined possible in a rural area. Azania’s interview this UYDF graduate is exceptionally moving. As a student, Dr Mngomezulu made a poor decision to defraud UYDF. This almos...

She is a medical officer, chair of the Rural Doctors Association of South Africa, an UYDF graduate and trustee, as well as a princess of the Nxumalo royal clan. Dr Lungile Nxumalo’s passion for rural healthcare knows no bounds. And, it all started with the support she received from UYDF. She shares her remarkable story with Azania.

Young people in rural areas usually attend under-resourced schools and end up working on mines or herding cattle. What would happen if they could finish school, go to university and return as qualified healthcare professionals (many of them medical doctors) to turn local hospitals into institutions of healthcare excellence? Unheard of? The Umthombo Youth Development Foundation (UYDF) has, since 20...

Raising healthy children is one of the toughest challenges facing today’s parents. That’s why this podcast is a must-listen for parents and caregivers of children and young teens. Azania speaks to three experts - paediatrician, Dr Hanneke Heyns; Principal clinical specialist and Head of Research at Vitality South Africa, Dr Deepak Patel; and specialist child and adolescent psychiatrist, Dr Wendy D...

For many moms, pre- and post-natal depression (also called perinatal depression) and other mood disorders, make the process of a growing and caring for a baby a very challenging time. The truth is that a mother’s mental and physical health are intricately linked to her baby’s health. Specialist psychiatrist Dr Bavi Vythilingum, shares key insights with Azania about how moms might better understand...

We have started to develop a good idea of why the period from conception to age two is the most critical time for the development of a person’s mental, physical and emotional potential. Now Developmental Paediatrician, Dr Reneva Petersen, takes it further and tells Azania more about all that is needed to optimise mom’s health a baby’s development before and after birth.

Are you planning or expecting a baby? How well do you understand the concept of “The First 1000 days”? This is a window of phenomenal opportunity to determine a child’s mental, physical and emotional potential for the rest of its life. Azania talks to psychologist Katharine Frost to explain it all to us. Katharine is also Executive Director of The Ububele Educational & Psychotherapy Trust.

What makes for a good leader in the face of a crisis? There is no easy way to navigate the unprecedented impact that COVID-19 has had on our country and the world. The reality is that, for South African people, businesses and our economy, the consequences of COVID-19 will play out over the rest of 2020 and beyond. What does it take for the people who lead others, no matter their context, to adapt...

Pregnancy is a time in which a woman’s health is of utmost importance. What does it mean to be pregnant in the time of a pandemic such as COVID-19 and what does this illness mean for mothers to be? Azania Mosaka interviews Professor Priya Soma-Pillay to find out all that pregnant women need to know. Prof. Soma-Pillay She is the newly appointed head of Obstetrics and Maternal and Fetal Medicine at...

Meditation teacher Vani Pavadai from the Art of Living Foundation takes us on a guided meditation journey.

Meditation teacher Vani Pavadai from the Art of Living Foundation takes us on a guided meditation journey.

Meditation teacher Vani Pavadai from the Art of Living Foundation takes us on a guided meditation journey.

Meditation teacher Vani Pavadai from the Art of Living Foundation takes us on a guided meditation journey.

A guided meditation for achieving stillness with Vani Pavadai, a meditation teacher with the Art of Living Foundation.

A guided meditation on resetting the busy mind with Vani Pavadai, a meditation teacher with the Art of Living Foundation.