Greater Tzaneen Research Articles

The Impact of Load-Shedding on Scheduled Water Delivery Services for Mohlaba-Cross Village, Greater Tzaneen, South Africa

The Impact of Load-Shedding on Scheduled Water Delivery Services for Mohlaba-Cross Village, Greater Tzaneen, South Africa

Evaluating the Impact of Service Delivery Protests in Relation to Socio-Economic Development: A Case of Greater Tzaneen Local Municipality, South Africa John Mamokhere

Evaluating the Impact of Service Delivery Protests in Relation to Socio-Economic Development: A Case of Greater Tzaneen Local Municipality, South Africa John Mamokhere

The unfurling juvenile delinquency in South African rural areas : the case of Abel Village in Greater Tzaneen Municipality, Limpopo Province

The unfurling juvenile delinquency in South African rural areas : the case of Abel Village in Greater Tzaneen Municipality, Limpopo Province

Women in polygynous marriages and African Initiated Churches: Selected narratives in Greater Tzaneen, South Africa

abstractPolygynous marriage is practised in some African Initiated Churches (AICs). The article reflects on the stories of women in polygynous marriages within selected AICs in Greater Tzaneen in the Limpopo province. Conversations were held with 25 purposely selected married female believers. The women’s perceptions and status in the church and at their respective family homes are discussed and analysed. The presentation of these conversations is an attempt to fill a gap in research on AICs and gender. The research conducted sought to explore how faith traditions and religious identities determine social constructs of sexuality and gender in the context of women’s rights and gender equality. Oral research methods were used in this qualitative research study. Twenty five anecdotes relayed by women who had been married in polygynous marriages for the past 20 years were studied. The data was analysed through the Creswell method of analysing qualitative data. The research found that the women the authors engaged with have strong opinions about their status within the church and family. They realised that the church and their family life situations favour their husbands. What was evident was the resilience that was required of the respondents in the face of the insecurities that they face in polygynous marriage.

Evaluation of voluntary counselling and testing services in a health district, South Africa: Service providers’ perspectives

The aim of this study was to evaluate the Voluntary Counselling and HIV testing (VCT) services for counsellor effectiveness, availability and accessibility, and the barriers towards implementation of the programme. The sample included 60 VCT counsellors working at hospitals and clinics situated within the Greater Tzaneen sub-district geographical area systematically sampled from the total number of trained VCT counsellors in this sub-district (±200). Results indicate that almost all were confident or very confident (96.6%) and felt comfortable or very comfortable (96.6%) in providing VCT services. Not all (8.3%) had a private counselling room available and 35% lacked information, education and counselling materials. More than half of the respondents reported shortage of counsellors as the main obstacle in rendering VCT (58.3%), followed by lack of counsellor support at 13.3%. The majority of respondents have never attended a debriefing or mentoring session (65%), while only a third of the respondents have attended a debriefing or mentoring session (35%). Almost two-thirds (58.3%) indicated that had not attended an update or refresher course on VCT.

Patients' thoughts on patient-retained medical records

Background: Patient-retained cards and, later, patient-retained booklets were introduced in an effort to improve continuity of care in a primary care setting at Tzaneen Clinic in the Greater Tzaneen Municipality of Limpopo Province, South Africa. Previously, the only continuity was maintained through a clinic-retained patient register, referral letters or information the patients provided themselves. The Patient-Retained Booklet of Lesotho provided motivation for this project. Methods: A qualitative study was conducted using focus group discussions to explore the patients’ thoughts on retaining their own records. In the transcribed interviews, themes were identified through the cut-and-paste method and the results where interpreted and compared with currently available literature. Results: The participants thought patient-retained records were helpful. They felt that the records function as ‘medical identification’ and could be used in the case of an emergency, that they provide important background information about the patient, and that they enable continuation of care at other facilities. Retaining the documents was also thought to motivate the patients to act on the advice given, and the records also served as a reminder to take their medication and about the dates of follow-up visits. It also was thought to personify the clinician-patient relationship. Conclusion:The process of exploring patients’ perceptions can be empowering. The patient-retained records gave the patients an opportunity to participate in their own health. It is a simple tool to improve quality in primary care by improving continuity of care and providing a helpful tool for future behavioural change. The recommendations that arose from this study are that the use of the patient-retained medical health record booklet should be continued and its use should be encouraged throughout the district; staff should be motivated to use it and to standardise the information that is recorded; and health planners should be motivated to implement a standardised patient-retained record booklet.