Powers and Faden's Theory of Social Justice Applied to the Problem of Foetal Alcohol Syndrome in South Africa

Abstract

South Africa has the highest rate of foetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) in the world. The problem of alcohol abuse inpregnancy has very deep historical roots that are intertwined with the injustices of both apartheid andpre-apartheid colonialism. Much of the research that is being done in these communities is focused on iden-tifying the epidemiological variables associated with these patterns of alcohol abuse. The underlying reasons asto why these patterns continue seem to remain largely obscured from view. In this article, I apply the theoryproposedbyPowersandFadenofsocialjusticeasa‘moralfoundationforpublichealthandhealthpolicy’ totheproblem of FAS in South Africa. The objective of this application is two-fold: first, to critically explore theadditional insights and alternative perspectives to the problem of FAS that this approach may provide andsecond,toassesstheutilityofthetheorywhenapplieddirectlytoaspecificpublichealthproblem.Iconcludebynotingthatalthoughthisapproachcouldresultinthekindof‘publichealthscopecreep’thathasbeencriticizedby various authors, it does provide fresh insights to the problem of FAS in South Africa.