A
short general history of the MRC
Past
and future
A glance at the early
records of medical research shows that organisations throughout the world
frequently tended to overlook the relationship between research findings and
the implementation of health policies. In South Africa this may have been
partly attributable to the organisation having been a microcosm of the racialised
South African reality and thus serving as a creation of
racialised power. Apartheid's erosion of human rights inevitably extended
to every sphere of life.
"Suppression of data"
in the case of asbestos-related mortality has been prominently referred to
in several sources (these include Final Submission to the Truth and Reconciliation
Commission:
Health and Human Rights Project 1997; An Ambulance of the Wrong Colour, Baldwin-Ragaven,
de Gruchy & London, UCT Press, 1999). However, as the authors of the Final
Submission state (p. 106), "by its nature, suppressed information is
difficult of access". The response that information was withheld not
"at the request of the mining companies" but "in the best interests
of science" is at least on record.
There are still gross
inequities or disparities in health between the different population groups
as a result of apartheid. Cognisance has been taken of poor access to health
care, and of high levels of preventable disease and premature deaths, and
new strategies of intervention have been devised and implemented by the Department
of Health. The main change is the shift of focus from tertiary curative care
to primary preventive care, and the MRC continues to align its research to
produce the greatest support within the new framework.
Health research in South
Africa has been badly underfunded for many years and, even now, only
six per cent of the science vote is allocated to the MRC. This is equivalent
to 0,3% of the total
health cost in the public sector, and contrasts sadly with the World Health
Organisation and
World Bank recommended level of 2% in health research. Despite the deficiency,
the MRC has a
proud record of improving South Africa's health.
The MRC's strategic plan
for the years 1999 - 2002 acknowledges the severe but exciting
challenge of demonstrating its relevance to stakeholders and society at large.
South Africa is in a development phase with emphases on redistribution and
equity through economic growth. In a
word: transformation, which involves change in the organisation as a whole.
Transformation of the
MRC has been described as "an integral part of the national transformation
of our society". Although transformation incorporates affirmative action,
it will be directed in terms
of current legislation, most notably the Employment Equity and Labour Relations
Acts.
Transformation is seen as "the continuous change and adaptation of the
MRC's intrinsic values
and processes to its external environment".
The focus of all aspects
of research involves human beings, and research is thus informed and
guided by a culture of human rights, a vital component of the strategy of
transformation.
Simply expressed, these
have been described as the basic components of research, always
bearing in mind the needs of the greatest number of South Africans.
- Ask the question:
'How may we improve, or how eradicate?'
- Gather information
to determine whether the question is a relevant one and to discover
what is already known about the condition.
- Formulate a plan of
research to provide as many answers as can be obtained.
- Do the research.
- Analyse the results
and findings.
- Make the results useable
as soon as possible.
Dynamically led, aware
of both its importance and its accountability to the people of South Africa,
the MRC faces the future with confidence, and in the keen anticipation of
meeting and overcoming the challenges that will confront it.
Bibliography
- Annual reports of the
Medical Research Council 1969/70 - 1998/99.
- Brown AC, ed. A history
of Scientific Endeavour in South Africa, Royal Society of South Africa,
1977.
- Dictionary of SA Biography
(DSAB). Pretoria: Human Sciences Research Council, 1987.
- Final Submission to
the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, Health and Human Rights Project:
Professional Accountability in South Africa, 1997.
- Final Submission to
the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, Health and Human Rights Project:
Professional Accountability
in South Africa, Volume ll, 1997.
- Standard Encyclopaedia
of Southern Africa (SESA), NASOU, 1976.
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