Weekly Roundup
Financial sector regulator rebukes insurers over 'essential services' nurses
Since life insurers operate within the financial sector, they are considered an essential service during the 21-day lockdown. This means South Africans can still apply for, and be given, life insurance, disability insurance and dread disease cover....Botswana declares state of emergency after COVID-19 cases confirmed
Botswana President Mokgweetsi Masisi declared a state of emergency from midnight on 2 April until further notice after the country reported its first three confirmed cases of novel coronavirus. Polity quotes Masisi as saying that the Botswana...Provinces hoping to give chronic patients 3-4 months' supply of medicines
Four provinces – Gauteng, the North West, the Western Cape and KwaZulu-Natal – have made positive moves to announce that patients on chronic medicines will be able to have their prescriptions filled for as long as three to four months in order...Health Dept's massive screening and mobile-clinic drive
Ten thousand field workers being deployed on a “huge scale” to screen people and families for COVID-19 symptoms will be accompanied by police and carry identification. “We are now entering a new phase in the fight against the COVID-19...Some private hospitals allowing elective surgery
While hospitals across the world have banned all non-urgent, elective surgeries in the face of the coronavirus crisis – two of South Africa’s largest private hospital groups, Netcare and Life Healthcare, are still allowing these operations....India: Doctors and frontline healthcare workers targeted as panic spreads
As the global coronavirus pandemic worsens by the day, fear is swelling in India – and frontline medical workers are bearing the brunt of public panic. CNN reports that India has reported 562 cases of the novel coronavirus so far, a relatively...67 heart deaths at UK hospital linked to 'significant shortcomings’ — report
The deaths of 67 heart-surgery patients in the UK have been linked to a hospital's “significant shortcomings”. The Daily Telegraph reports that the recently published Independent External Mortality Review documents historic care failings in the...Netcare CEO warns that three-week lockdown may not be enough
Private hospital group Netcare says the three-week lockdown initiated by President Cyril Ramaphosa might not be long enough to achieve the government’s aim of slowing the spread of COVID-19 to prevent the health system from being overwhelmed....Gauteng Health cancels all elective surgeries
All elective surgeries have been cancelled and separate areas for patients with flu-like symptoms are to be identified at Gauteng Health facilities. The Times reports that this was announced on Sunday as the provincial government strengthens its...Medical schemes and hospital groups outline their COVID-19 policies
As the number of confirmed coronavirus cases rises every day in South Africa, and the likelihood of more internal transmissions escalates, many people are starting to wonder whether they’ll get adequate medical attention should they be diagnosed,...EC Health destroying tonnes of expired medicines
Eastern Cape Health is destroying tonnes of expired medicines and other medical supplies piled up in clinics and depots after they were not distributed in time to staff and patients who needed them. According to a Daily Dispatch report, in a...Safety concerns hamper the UK's NHS recruitment drive to deal with COVID-19
A massive UK National Health Service recruitment drive to help contain the COVID-19 pandemic risks being undermined by the prospect of doctors quitting over fears of inadequate protective equipment, groups representing frontline staff say. The...Wits launches SA COVID-19 Dashboard
The University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) has launched a website that presents the latest statistics on the effect of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) on the population of South Africa. Mining Weekly reports that the site serves as a tool...Financial impact of COVID-19 will be felt by SA's private hospital groups in 6 months
South Africa's private hospital groups have had to act fast to deal with the coronavirus outbreak and its impact will likely show up on their balance sheets in six months. Business Day reports that along with public hospitals, the country's...Denosa threatens to go to CCMA over state's failure to increase nursing salaries
The Democratic Nursing Organisation of SA (Denosa) has threatened to take the government to the Commission for Conciliation Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) if it fails to implement an agreement to increase salaries on 1 April, reports Business...