The history of a trailblazing South African hospital in the HIV crisis

During the catastrophic HIV pandemic that escalated into a national crisis in South Africa, a single, remarkable hospital on a high ridge in the port city of Durban emerged as an internationally recognized community of care, treatment, and research. The story of McCord Hospital is one of faith, medical pioneers, community making, and knowledge production. Written by two historians and a medical doctor, the book takes its title—meaning “give us hope” or “we give hope” in isiZulu—from the name of McCord’s HIV clinic. The authors trace the arc of McCord Hospital from its humble roots in the early twentieth century through to its role as a global leader in the fight against HIV, bringing to life the tensions, triumphs, and challenges of this era. Sinikithemba is an illuminating history, dramatically told, situated at the complex and critically important intersection of medicine and society.