The mechanics of setting up a COVID-19 response: Experiences of the COVID-19 epidemic from Groote Schuur Hospital, Cape Town, South Africa

The COVID-19 pandemic has challenged the provision of healthcare in ways that are unprecedented in our lifetime. Planning for the sheer numbers expected during the surge has required public hospitals to de-escalate all non-essential clinical services to focus on COVID-19. Western Cape Province was the initial epicentre of the COVID-19 epidemic in South Africa (SA), and the Cape Town metro was its hardest-hit geographical region. We describe how we constructed our COVID-19 hospital-wide clinical service at Groote Schuur Hospital, the University of Cape Town's tertiary-level teaching hospital. By describing the barriers and enablers, we hope to provide guidance rather than a blueprint for hospitals elsewhere in SA and in low-resource countries that face similar challenges now or during subsequent waves

Primary HIV Infection as an Unusual Cause of Neutropenia in Crohn’s Disease: A Case Report.

Although primary human immune deficiency virus (HIV) infection is a well described entity, it is frequently misdiagnosed or underdiagnosed. This has been attributed to the non-specific clinical features at presentation, inadequate history taking and a low index of suspicion by practicing clinicians. Haematological abnormalities are a recognised feature of HIV infection and may present in the form of pancytopenia or isolated cytopenias. One of the cardinal features of HIV seroconversion is leucopenia, however primary HIV infection as a cause of neutropenia and lymphopaenia in Crohn’s disease, has to our knowledge, not been described in the medical literature. We present a case of profound neutropenia in Crohn’s disease secondary to acute HIV sero-conversion illness.