The University of the Witwatersrand continues to acknowledge heroic work undertaken by staff during Covid-19. In December 2021, Ngoni Ngwarai, Assistant Director of Systems and Operations at the MRC/Wits Rural Public Health and Health Transitions Unit received this accolade. Ngoni shares his experience of adapting the MRC/Wits Agincourt Research Unit
All Posts by kurium Govender
Professor Xavier Gómez-Olivé denounces travel bans on South Africa in the wake of Omicron variant announcement
The emergence of the Omicron variant of SARS-COV-2 (the virus that causes Covid-19) has caused global alarm. This variant was sequenced by South African scientists and made public on 24 November 2021. On receiving this news, the United Kingdom promptly banned travel to South Africa as well as 6 other
What has changed for rural South African women in the last 25 years
The MRC/Wits-Agincourt Research Unit has, for nearly three decades, engaged in population research in the rural Agincourt area of Mpumalanga Province, South Africa. Rural communities have witnessed and participated in political, economic, socio-demographic changes, and experienced changes to their health status. In this article in The Conversation, Ryan Wagner, Chodziwadziwa
VAPAR adapts its process
Supporting CHWs to connect with communities in rural South Africa during COVID-19
Conversation article by Dr Ryan Wagner on traditional healers and their access to PPE
https://theconversation.com/traditional-healers-in-south-africa-are-exposed-to-infection-but-few-can-get-protective-gear-155412
Rural doctors gather online to share knowledge
During a time of physical disconnection, video conferencing has created a virtual space for people to gather and share knowledge in ways previously not considered. In the spirit of strengthening rural health systems, Dr Jacques du Toit from the MRC/Wits-Agincourt Research Unit organised a webinar in collaboration with the Rural
Congratulations on your PhD, Kirsten!
Kirsten Rowe is a medical doctor from Cape Town, South Africa with a passion for global mental and neurological health. She was recently awarded her doctorate at the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom where she studied as a Rhodes scholar. Most of her PhD data was collected at
Passing of Prof Peter Byass, MRC/Wits-Agincourt Unit collaborator and friend
A colleague and a dear friend to many in the MRC/Wits-Agincourt Unit, Prof Peter Byass sadly passed away unexpectedly on the 16th August 2020 at his home in the UK. We all feel heartsore for his wife, Margaret and their three sons and their families. Not only did Peter work
Week long event on ‘Health and Ageing in Southern Africa: Addressing Inequities over the Life Course’
For a week in the middle of October 2019, researchers from Harvard and Wits, along with many other interested parties, worked head to head, discussing the past and future of the Health and Ageing in Africa: Longitudinal study of an INDEPTH Community in Africa (HAALSI) study. The themes are addressed
Second most downloaded article from JAIDS is on work in the Agincourt HDSS
The 2nd most downloaded article from the Journal of the International AIDS Society [4214 downloads] in 2018 is: Pettifor A, Lippman S, Gottert A, Suchindran CM, Selin A, Peacock D, Maman S, Rebombo D, Twine R, Gómez-Olivé FX, Tollman S, Kahn K, MacPhail C (2018). Community mobilization to modify harmful
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