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Ramaphosa's 'wake-up' to R22bn in health corruption
President Cyril Ramaphosa said he got a “wake-up call” during the recent election campaigning when he discovered how many of the billions of rands...
Competition Commission targets private healthcare monopoly
The Competition Commission has recommended stronger regulation to overturn the monopoly of a few players in the private healthcare sector and reduce the financial...
Controversial review finds that cutting back on red and processed meat has little health impact
A major international set of systematic reviews has concluded that cutting back on red and processed meat has little impact on health, contrary...
New prostate cancer test is highly-accurate and avoids biopsies
A new and simple blood test that detects circulating tumour cells, used in combination with the current prostate specific antigen test (PSA), non-invasively predicted...
Big data, lab science suggests drug may slow Parkinson's progression in people
A drug used to treat enlarged prostate may also be able to slow the progression of Parkinson's disease. The surprising finding is the result...
Fumigation neurotoxin may be cause of Cuban 'sonic attacks'
Fumigation against mosquitoes in Cuba and not “sonic attacks” may have caused some 40 US and Canadian diplomats and family members in Havana to...
NHI Bill set to worsen SA’s medico-legal nightmare — experts
As provincial health departments try to claw back a R98bn national medico-legal bill, and amid doctor alarm over warnings that they could be held...
Marriage significantly lowers dementia risk — meta-analysis
Marriage may lower the risk of developing dementia, concludes a 15-study meta-analysis involving 800,000 participants. Lifelong singletons and widowers are at 42% higher risk...
Graca Machel's bid before HPCSA to silence Mandela's former doctor
Nelson Mandela’s widow Graça Machel is trying to prevent his former doctor from revealing sensitive information about the icon’s final years, reports the Weekend Argus....
Human trial finds first hint that body's ‘biological age’ can be reversed
In a small human trial, drugs seemed to rejuvenate the body’s ‘epigenetic clock’, which tracks a person’s biological age, writes Alison Abbott for Nature....
Large study over decades links optimism and prolonged life
A large US study, following women for 10 years and men for 30 years, found that individuals with greater optimism are more likely to...
State healthcare workers may be targeted to pay back negligence claims
Gauteng Health has warned employees it may recover some of the billions in damages claims it is facing from those responsible for the medical negligence,...
Mkhize says a 'hard fight' ahead to improve SA's 'low quality ‘ healthcare
Parliament has called for public submissions on the “constitutionally aligned” National Health Insurance (NHI) Bill, writes Legalbrief Policy Watch. Conceding that government “will need...
Western Cape Health reversal over ‘theft’ of broken chairs
In the face of widespread public disbelief and criticism, a Western Cape Health internal review has hastily reversed the findings of a disciplinary panel...
Autism so over-diagnosed that term is becoming meaningless — study
Autism is now so over-diagnosed, following the progressively lowering over 50 years of the diagnostic bar, that by 2029 there will be no objective...
Suspension of public consultation 'fake news', says Health committee
The National Assembly's Health Committee has denied the public consultation process on the National Health Insurance (NHI) Bill has been suspended pending the outcome...
Doctors' careers destroyed for 'stealing' broken chairs
Western Cape Health, despite an acute and growing short of anaesthetists, has jeopardised the careers of three doctors with pristine academic and work records,...
SCA displeasure over 'pervasively substandard' care in state hospitals
Despite a split decision dismissing an appeal regarding damages for a baby who suffered brain damage during birth, in an unusual move, five judges of the...
NHI Bill continues to spark furious debate
The battle lines are drawn between the naysayers and supporters of National Health Insurance after the Bill was introduced to Parliament over a week...
Uncertainty over many aspects of NHI but govt 'ready' for corruption
Health Minister Dr Zweli Mkhize says the authorities are ready to tackle the threat of large-scale corruption to the National Health Insurance scheme, writes...
Emotional Support Animals pose legal, ethical and professional challenges
The booming popularity of an increasingly exotic array of emotional support animals (ESAs) has created legal, ethical and professional challenges for the therapists who...
CMS inquiry told medical schemes 'a law unto themselves'
Health Department deputy director-general Dr Anban Pillay told the Council for Medical Aid Schemes inquiry into allegations of racial profiling that there were “serious...
Use of generics rises to a new high in SA's private sector
The use of cheaper generic alternatives rose to an all-time high of 62% in the private sector in 2018, while the top five chronic...
Clinical trial reveals potential for treating larger strokes with thrombectomy
Building on research results showing patients with larger ischaemic strokes could benefit from endovascular thrombectomy, an international, multi-centre Phase III clinical trial will be...
NHCPA's 'racial profiling' action thrown out in 2018, bounces back into CMS's lap
The National Health Care Professionals Association's crusade against 'racial profiling' took a blow when its court application against 19 medical schemes was thrown out of...
SA-trained surgeon pioneers restoration of arm function in 13 tetraplegics
An Australia team has restored arm function in 13 completely paralysed patients, allowing them to feed themselves, use tools and handle electronic devices, in...
Discovery acts on technologist's 'illegal and unethical’ refusal to provide treatment
The death of a Northern KwaZulu-Natal woman after a "blackmailing" medical technologist refused to provide dialysis, citing suspended payments by Discovery Health, has drawn a strong...
Hospitals of fear: Police and guards 'run away' during attacks on patients
Highlighting again the unsafe conditions in SA's public hospitals, police and security guards allegedly fled while a gunshot-wound patient was being violently assaulted. Separately,...
GEMS appeals ruling placing it under Public Protector jurisdiction
GEMS (Government Employees Medical Scheme), is appealing a North Gauteng High Court ruling that granted the Public Protector jurisdiction over it, reports Business Day.
GEMS...
Memory changes may predate Alzheimer’s onset by 40 years
An international study suggests those at higher risk of developing Alzheimer's disease due to family history may demonstrate changes in memory performance as early...
Measles vaccine also delivers significant long-term health, cognition, and schooling benefits
Aside from the measles vaccine preventing an estimated 21.1m child deaths between 2000-2017 and reducing all-cause childhood mortality and infectious disease morbidity outcomes, a...
Working long hours linked with increased stroke risk
People who worked long hours had a higher risk of stroke, especially if they worked those hours for 10 years or more, according to...
Switch from red meat to cut mortality risk — 8-year Harvard study
Increased red meat intake, particularly processed red meat, is associated with a heightened risk of death, suggests a large, eight-year US study led by...
DNA-evidence shows link between gingivitis and Alzheimer's
DNA-evidence shows that gingivitis plays a substantial role in increasing Alzheimer's disease risk, found a small US study.
You don't only avoid holes in your...
Attacks on doctors highlight security dangers in state hospitals
Free State University has resumed training at a Bloemfontein hospital, briefly suspended over security concerns following an incident where a doctor prevented a rape...
In milestone trial, experimental drug markedly delays type 1 diabetes
Marking the culmination of a 33-year odyssey, scientists report a milestone in type 1 diabetes: the first time the disease has been markedly delayed...
Study tests the goal of 10,000 daily steps to reduce mortality risk
The goal of 10, 000 daily steps is widely believed to be necessary for health, but this number has limited scientific basis. A large, four-year...
Legal 'jumble' behind gynaecologist's 5-year jail sentence
The recent Gauteng High Court judgment upholding a 5-year jail sentence for gynaecologist Dr Danie van der Walt fails to make unambiguous SA's criminal law...
SA's new health minister is the 'master of survival'
Dr Aaron Motsoaledi leaves the national Health Department after 10 years, with the last few years marred by major failures in public health, while...
Two trials offer substantive hope for prostate cancer patients
The phase III ENZAMET trial found that 80% of men with metastatic hormone-sensitive prostate cancer who received the non-steroidal anti-androgen (NSAA) medicine enzalutamide (Xtandi)...