Category: Features

Two Generations, One Battle: Global Fund’s Role in Zimbabwe’s ARV Success

Michael Gwarisa

By Michael Gwarisa When Otilia Tasikasni learned she was HIV positive in 1991, she believed her life was over. The diagnosis then was not just a medical statement; it was a countdown. Doctors told her she had only two or three years to live, and every day felt like borrowed time. “At one point, all I would think of was dying,” recalls the 59-year-old, her voice steady but her eyes betraying memories of that period. “Even though I was not sick then or showing any signs of illness, I was…

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More Than Baby Blues: Zimbabwean Women Speak Out on Postnatal Depression

Healthtimes

By Rukudzo Gota Motherhood is often described as a national duty, with mothers expected to give birth to future leaders, scientists, economists, doctors, and more. The birth of a first child marks a woman’s initiation into motherhood, a journey that demands emotional strength and resilience. For 28-year-old Sekai Mhurudzwa (not real name), her first experience of childbirth was blissful and free of complications. One might assume that having gone through one childbirth, a mother is prepared for what comes next. But each pregnancy and postpartum period presents its own set…

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Saving Lives on the Move: SLL-Backed Mobile Vaccination Drives Reach Gokwe’s Hard-to-Reach Communities

Michael Gwarisa

By Michael Gwarisa in Gokwe From a distance, a thick cloud of dust rose above the Mopane-strewn horizon on the southern side of Muchohwe Primary School, deep in Chief Chireya’s territory in Gokwe North. Minutes later, a white twin-cab vehicle emerged, prompting cheers and ululation from the gathered community. The vehicle carried more than just people. It was stocked with lifesaving vaccines, essential medications, and other critical health supplies for a mobile outreach program. As it rolled to a stop, healthcare workers stepped out, greeted like heroes by a crowd…

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The Erosion of a Sacred Bond: Understanding Divorce in Zimbabwe from a Biblical Perspective

Healthtimes

By Pastor Simbarashe Chenjerai Marriage is a sacred and God-ordained institution — a profound symbol of the divine union between Christ and the Church. This holy covenant, formed between a man and a woman, is founded on love, trust, and mutual respect. Yet, in today’s world where spiritual warfare rages, this sacred bond is under siege. The devil, ever determined to dismantle God’s order, relentlessly attacks the family unit by eroding the institution of marriage. Divorce in Zimbabwe: A Growing Concern As a Pastor, Chaplain, and Marriage Therapist, I have…

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Avenues Clinic’s Five-Star Renovation Could Heal Even a Broken Heart

Michael Gwarisa

By Michael Gwarisa  There are hospitals, and then there are healing sanctuaries. The moment you walk into the newly refurbished wings of Avenues Clinic in Harare, a quiet calm settles over you. The space exudes class, care and compassion. The atmosphere is warm, the lighting gentle, and the décor feels less like a hospital and more like a high-end wellness retreat. Here, healing begins the moment you enter, long before any medicine is prescribed. The new look could quite literally heal even a broken heart. In a tour of the…

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Tablets and Tenacity: How Young HIV Peer Supporters Are Transforming Treatment Adherence in Rural Zimbabwe

Michael Gwarisa

By Michael Gwarisa in Gutu Every morning, 20-year-old Christin Madombi wakes up with a mission. From her modest home in Gutu’s Mutero area, she powers up her tablet and scans through a list of peers—young people just like her, living with HIV. She has 24 peers assigned to her under the Community Adolescent Treatment Supporter (CATS) program. With each missed alert comes a sense of urgency. The tablet, loaded with a digital tracking tool, shows her who needs a follow-up. Without hesitation, Christin sets out on foot, trekking through the…

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The Hidden Health Toll of Urban Heat: Africa’s Concrete Jungles and the Rise of Climate-Sensitive Diseases

Michael Gwarisa

By Michael Gwarisa Africa is battling a number of adverse climatic catastrophes, and over the past five years, climate change is no longer a distant threat across the continent. In African cities, it has become an everyday reality, intensifying urban heat and deepening public health risks. Rising temperatures, prolonged heatwaves, and shrinking green spaces are combining to create “concrete jungles,” densely built environments where heat becomes trapped and air pollution festers. According to experts, this urban heat effect, worsened by poor ventilation and limited vegetation, is now driving a rise…

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The hidden health crisis: how to recognize if you’re in burnout

Michael Gwarisa

We’ve recently started to talk more about burnout, yet it remains a hidden health problem. That’s because people experiencing burnout often feel ashamed to speak about it. I know this firsthand, as I felt that same shame, in my professional life before becoming a psychologist. I suffered from burnout while working as a media entrepreneur for over 10 years, and it burned me out. But few people knew about my burnout crises back then. At the time, I didn’t fully understand what was happening to me, mainly because no one…

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Africa’s Cholera Crisis Demands Continental Action

Michael Gwarisa

By Michael Gwarisa Africa is currently battling five major infectious disease outbreaks: Mpox, Measles, Dengue, Lassa Fever, and Cholera. Among these, Cholera has emerged as the deadliest, quietly eclipsing the rest in scale and lethality. Yet, despite its heavy toll, it remains under-prioritized. In 2024, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) declared Mpox a Public Health Emergency of Continental Security (PHECS), a bold step triggered by its rapid transmission across the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Sierra Leone, and Uganda. That response was swift and strategic,…

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Suspended HIV Services Resume in Masvingo as CAB-LA, Vaginal Ring Return for Key Populations

Michael Gwarisa

By Michael Gwarisa, recently in Masvingo For the past 12 months, Wellington*, a 41-year-old Masvingo man who has sex with men (MSM) and a male sex worker, has relied on oral Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) to reduce his risk of HIV infection. He has also used condoms and occasionally Post-Exposure Prophylaxis (PEP). At the start of 2025, Wellington hoped he would be initiated on the injectable form of PrEP, Cabotegravir Long-Acting (CAB-LA), to further protect himself. But like many other HIV prevention services, the injectable program had been suspended following the…

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