Committee for Health in Southern Africa

The Committee for Health in Southern Africa (CHISA) was a not-for-profit North American human rights organization consisting of volunteers--most of them health professionals--who recognized the urgent need for better health care, education, facilities, and medical training in the nations of Southern Africa. Founded in 1984 as South Africa approached a state of emergency, the group was especially concerned about the disparity between medical care for white and black patients in that country, and about the direct effects of apartheid on health and mental health. CHISA served as the U.S. liaison with the National Medical and Dental Association (NAMDA), an anti-apartheid professional group in South Africa, and worked closely with a number of other organizations, most of which merged to become the South African Health and Social Service Organization (SAHSSO) in 1992.

CHISA met its goal of improving health care for all people in Southern Africa by conducting research, educating and assisting health care workers, and raising awareness among the international medical community. Much of the group's initial work centered on resisting apartheid, and members presented the results of apartheid health studies at conferences and in medical journals such as "Lancet" and "American Journal of Public Health". Beginning in 1987, CHISA gave programs on health in Southern Africa at the annual meetings of the American Public Health Association, drawing large audiences and increasing public awareness of issues such as the HIV/AIDS epidemic. In 1989, CHISA organized a delegation on health and human rights which visited South Africa to study health issues, and published its findings in a monograph. CHISA members also acted as technical and professional consultants, lending expertise to many projects, including the creation of a School of Public Health at the University of the Western Cape.

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