April 28th, 2021MPS has fielded many questions on POPIA, South Africa's data privacy legislation which comes into force shortly, and is providing a range of guidance and advice to help healthcare professionals comply with the new rules, writes Dr Tony Behrman,...
February 17th, 2021Despite the glimmer of light and hope at the end of the COVID-19 tunnel, the situation remains serious, and both clinicians and healthcare systems appear to be stretched to capacity, writes Dr Volker Hitzeroth, medico-legal consultant at Medical...
January 20th, 2021At the time of publication, South Africa is scheduled to receive the first doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine from the Serum Institute of India (SII). The Medical Protection Society discusses best practice, consent and practical...
December 16th, 2020The past year has been full of challenges and changes for South Africa’s medical profession. A single article could not do justice to the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on the everyday lives – both professional and personal – of healthcare...
October 28th, 2020Averaged out over the last 10 years Medical Protection has supported members with roughly one new case per month in South Africa that is criminal in nature and related to the practice of medicine, writes Dr Graham Howarth, head of Medical Services...
September 23rd, 2020The tragic death of Dr Abdulhay Munshi's death has brought into sharp focus how the law around culpable homicide is being applied to healthcare professionals, writes Dr Graham Howarth, Medical Protection Society head of Medical Services –...
August 5th, 2020The Constitutional Court ruling setting aside the criminal conviction of obstetrician/gynaecologist Dr Danie van der Walt sets an uncomfortable precedent for the medical profession, writes Dr Graham Howarth, MPS Head of Medical Services –...
July 15th, 2020The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed some hard truths particularly with respect, but not limited to, resources, writes Dr Graham Howarth of MPS. Another area that has been exposed is the distinction between the medical ethics related to resourcing...
June 24th, 2020The “overwhelming feedback” from South African healthcare professionals is that they remain concerned about criminal and regulatory charges over COVID-19 treatment decisions, writes Dr Graham Howarth.
Dr Howarth, head of Medical Services,...
June 10th, 2020The Medical Protection Society (MPS) is calling for the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) to urgently clarify what guidelines healthcare professionals should follow when making decisions about the withholding and withdrawing of...
May 27th, 2020
It is important to understand that ethics and law are not automatically synonymous, writes Dr Graham Howarth, head of medical services – Africa, MPS. For doctors to have certainty, clearly articulated national guidelines must be developed,...
April 22nd, 2020
This pandemic has raised an opportunity for doctors and their patients to start the worst-case conversation to ensure patients are empowered to make good decisions for themselves, writes Dr Julia Ambler, palliative care specialist, Risk Prevention...
April 8th, 2020
The Medical Protection Society welcomes the Health Professions Council of SA’s updated guidelines on telemedicine, confirming MPS’s position that telemedicine should be supported to help combat the spread of COVID-19. Graham Howarth, head of...
March 25th, 2020
COVID-19 has thrown up a challenging array of medico-legal dilemmas for SA's healthcare professionals as they try to safe and effective care, writes Dr Graham Howarth, head of medical services, Africa, at the Medical Protection.
Howarth...
February 19th, 2020
An MPS survey of South African doctors has found that the overwhelming majority have not undertaken specific training in record keeping and want more guidance, writes Diane Baylis, clinical risk educator, Risk Prevention, Medical Protection...
January 22nd, 2020
Graham Howarth and Tony Behrman - Photo credits - MPS
Medical Protection's Graham Howarth, head of medical services (SA) and Tony Behrman, business consultant write:
The recent arrest of colleagues on charges of culpable homicide have...
