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No One Fights Cancer Alone: Breast Cancer Survivor Shares Experience

October 15, 2020 Michael Gwarisa

FRIENDS and family are an integral part of cancer care and support. Not only does cancer affect one’s physical health, it heavily weighs down on the patient’s mental health and that of family and caregivers. The anxiety and depression that kicks in following a cancer diagnosis is unimaginable. A cancer diagnosis could mean anything, and without the right support system in the form of friends, family, colleagues and peers, the worst could happen. The month of October the world over has been set aside as Breast Cancer Awareness Month and…

Zvisikana Zvidiki Zvotengesa Bonde MuChiredzi

October 7, 2020October 7, 2020 Michael Gwarisa

INGUVA dzepfumbamwe Manheru, vazhinji muguta re Chiredzi vakugadizirira kunorara kuti vafumo bata jongwe muromo vakananga kumabasa zuva rinoteverea. Vutunga huri mubishi kuita ma press up hwakamirira kuti vanhu varare huwane kusvusvura. Na Michael Gwarisa ari Muchiredzi Nechekure, kurikunzwika Redhiyo ichidandauka zvekuti huyai muone. Miridzo nemheterwa zvirikuridzwa kuratidza kuti vanhu vari kutamba chipisi. Haungatombofungiri kuti kune Lockdown. Mukuru umwe atakataura naye akati iye mhere mhere iyi yainge ichibva kubhawa re Chigarapasi, rinova zvakare bhawa gururusa kupinda mamwe ose munyika yeZimbabwe. Tati fambe Chinhamwe takananga kwaibva neruzha, takaona mumugagwa unoenda ku Chigarapasi…

Disabled & HIV Positive Chiredzi 24-Year-Old Retired Sex Worker Speaks Out

October 1, 2020October 1, 2020 Michael Gwarisa

RODHA (24) (real name protected) is a young girl living with a disability of the limbs. She has Locomotor Disability, a form of disability which affects the limbs and hinders one’s movement from point A to B. She has been walking on Clutches since she was a little girl. In 2013, Rodha fled her rural home in Chivi where she lived with her uncle and his wife. By Michael Gwarisa recently in Chiredzi Despite her condition, she says her uncle would verbally and physically abuse her, accusing her of philandering…

New normal could drive the future

September 25, 2020September 25, 2020 Healthtimes

…thinking outside the box to adapt THE upheaval of 2020 from a virus goes down in history as the worst to impact the global village negatively. By Catherine Murombedzi Humanity must learn to adapt, adopt and adept to the new frontier of 2020. It is a watershed that sets a new normal. Painful as it is, life will never be the same again after 2020. History repeats itself In 1918, a similar virus sent the world in panic mode. More than 50 million people said a ‘premature and permanent good night’…

Zim Young People Living With HIV Forced To Bribe Hospital Staff To Get Second Line Drugs, Told To Produce Empty ARVs Containers At Security Checkpoints To Prove They Are HIV+ During Early Stages Of Lockdown

September 23, 2020May 23, 2022 Michael Gwarisa

LIFE under the COVID-19 induced lockdown has never been the same since the day the Zimbabwean government announced a nationwide lockdown which commenced on March 30, 2020. For most young people living with HIV and on treatment, the emotional scars the lockdown has inflicted on them will take time to heal, as they had to surrender some of their rights and dignity just to access lifesaving Antiretroviral (ARV) drugs. By Michael Gwarisa For 22-year-old Takudzwa who lives in Harare and on second line Antiretroviral (ARVs) treatment, accessing HIV treatment under…

Apply Gender Lens For All WASH Programmes To Reduce SGBV Says UNICEF

September 22, 2020September 22, 2020 Michael Gwarisa

AS the world grapples to contain the COVID-19 health crisis, a silent pandemic in the form of Sexual and Gender Based Violence (SGBV) continues to roam around untamed. According to the Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey of 2019, about one in every two women aged 15-49 in Zimbabwe had experienced emotional, physical and sexual abuse committed by the current or last husband/partner in their lifetime. By Michael Gwarisa To address the continued surge in GBV and SGBV cases, there is need to identify the loopholes and gaps that may be contributing…

Patents Could Impact Negatively on Zim’s Access to COVID-19 Treatment

September 16, 2020September 16, 2020 Michael Gwarisa

DOZENS of coronavirus vaccines are currently under development as the world races towards getting a vaccine that could rescue the world from the prevailing misery. To date, more than 150 coronavirus vaccines are in development across the world—and hopes are high to bring one to market in record time to ease the global crisis. By Michael Gwarisa The World Health Organization is also coordinating global efforts to develop a vaccine, with an eye toward delivering two billion doses by the end of 2021. However, in the midst of all these…

Zim A Level Girl Ventures Into Sex Work To Raise Tuition and University Funds

September 14, 2020September 14, 2020 Michael Gwarisa

FOR 18-year-old Mercy (not real name), life took a twist soon after completing her Ordinary Level studies in 2018 in Chivhu. Having bagged 10 ‘O’ level subjects including Mathematics, English, and science subjects, Mercy enrolled for Advanced level at the same school she did her ‘O’ levels. By Michael Gwarisa After government announced closure of schools in March following confirmation of COVID-19 in the country, Mercy moved to Harare to live with her unemployed sister with the aim of raising fees for her final term as well as enroll for…

Here’s How Often You Should Wash Your Sheets in the Summer — and the Disgusting Reasons Why A dermatologist explains

September 11, 2020 Healthtimes

If changing your bed sheets is at the bottom of your household chore list (you know, right along with matching socks and scrubbing the shower’s grout), consider this: The skin cells that you shed in a day can feed 1 million dust mites. Let’s repeat that. One million dust mites can feast on the dead skin cells you produce in a mere day. Disgusted yet? The average person sheds a gram and a half of these keratinocytes (largely made up of the protein keratin) daily, says Cleveland Clinic dermatologist Alok…

Joshua case study on Nutrition in COVID-19 – Zimbabwe

September 10, 2020 Healthtimes

DORICA (37) is a mother of four, who lives in the drought-stricken district of Binga in Zimbabwe. She has a two-year-old Joshua, and also lives with her four-year-old granddaughter Dorcas. Juggling from one odd job to another has become a daily routine for Dorcas and her husband, as they struggle to provide meals for their family of seven, without a reliable source of income. By Sophie Hamandishe Despite these challenges, Dorica has remained resolute when it comes to matters of feeding her son Joshua and ensuring that he remains healthy.…