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News Update
Taxman seeks R2bn from alleged Tembisa Hospital tender kingpin
The SA Revenue Services wants R1.9bn from alleged Tembisa Hospital kingpin Hangwani Morgan Maumela, who has still not been formally charged in the looting...
Mpox surges in SA and 11 African countries
South Africa is seeing a surge in mpox infections, with at least 18 new cases reported – mostly in the Western Cape – while...
Fate of CPUT dental programme hangs in the balance
The South African Dental Technicians Council (SADTC) is expected to consider Cape Peninsula University of Technology’s (CPUT) representations before deciding whether to forge ahead...
Ten-year delay in R2.8bn hospital build drags on with more hiccups
Community unrest and the liquidation of a contractor have been blamed for further delays to the decade-long construction of the (new) Mapulaneng Regional Hospital...
Call for probe into woman’s death outside Cape clinic
A seven-page memorandum demanding urgent intervention over poor service delivery, excessive waiting times, and patient safety concerns at the Bishop Lavis Community Day Centre...
FDA approves first drug for rare, life-threatening disease
Sufferers of a very rare, progressive neurological disorder will, for the first time, have access to an FDA-approved medication, reports MassLive News.
The Food and Drug...
Warning after peptide user’s oesophagus tears from fake product
A patient whose oesophagus was torn after taking a counterfeit version of experimental weight loss drug retatrutide has prompted Australia’s medicines regulator to warn...
FDA warns of serious misuse risks of double-chin fat dissolver
An FDA labelling update has cautioned that unapproved use of deoxycholic acid injection (Kybella) outside the submental fat region may carry a risk of...
Greek baby born from embryo frozen for more than 22 years
A couple in Athens welcomed a baby daughter last week after using one of the mother’s decades-old embryos – and simultaneously, beating a government...
Jehovah’s Witnesses revise blood donor ban for followers
Jehovah’s Witnesses have partly eased their long-standing prohibition on the medical use of donated blood, allowing members to receive products derived from blood but...
Court allows use of hospital records in Matlala trial
The Gauteng High Court (Johannesburg) ruled this week that the state can use hospital records to rest the credibility of murder accused Musa Kekana...
Cape clinic staff fed up with safety issues
Traumatised staff at the Kalbaskraal Satellite Clinic, outside Malmesbury in the Western Cape, were safely evacuated last week after a group of men barged...
Leaked report shows hundreds of NHS orthopaedic paediatric patients harmed
Hundreds of orthopaedic patients – mostly children – suffered “harm” at an NHS hospital in England, which is currently reviewing cases dealt with by...
DRC kicks off Ebola vaccine rollout for health and frontline workers
The Ebola vaccine was rolled out this weekend in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, with the priority being on healthcare staff in Bunia,...
New film flags cancer treatment inequalities in SA’s health systems
Only one of the 13 public hospitals treating childhood cancer in South Africa has a blood bank on site, and just three have transplant...
Asbestos-linked death finally triggers action from Limpopo Health
Residents of Mafefe village in Limpopo are being screened for asbestos-related illnesses as government moves to address contamination from abandoned mines that closed more...
Judge dismisses compounding pharmacy's appeal
A High Court application by compounding pharmacy iDexis for leave to appeal against an interim order prohibiting it from making medicines containing semaglutide has...
New TB vaccines could prevent 7.3m deaths worldwide by 2050 – Gavi
The new TB vaccines expected to become available from 2029 could save more than 7m lives over a decade, Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, said...
Stats SA defends data after scepticism over unvaccinated babies
Stats SA has defended its population data, which the National Department of Health said last week may have skewed its estimates of childhood vaccination...
Jobless doctors 'spiralling into depression'
The continuing situation faced by unemployed doctors is reaching crisis point, with some saying the government is “holding them hostage”, and others, who are...
Down Syndrome man’s liver transplant inspires donor campaign
When Jan-Herman Els, a young athlete and swimmer with Down Syndrome, underwent a successful liver transplant, it raised important questions for healthcare professionals, families...
Pro-bono surgery marathon to slash Frere Hospital backlog
Life Beacon Bay Hospital, one of the biggest private healthcare facilities in KuGompo (East London), is collaborating with Frere Hospital – which provides the...
Mpumalanga clamps down on stolen abortion pill sales
Illegal providers of abortion pills in Mpumalanga are under scrutiny as health authorities launch measures at state facilities to stem the theft of medicines,...
Union vows to fight Adcock Ingram layoffs
The General Industries Workers Union of South Africa (Giwusa) plans to oppose Adcock Ingram’s proposed retrenchments and closure at its Clayville, Johannesburg plant, despite...
Global commission calls for youth-focused drug policy reform
The Global Commission on Drug Policy is urging countries to replace criminal penalties with accessible health services, social support and health services, saying that...
COHSASA awards accreditation to six healthcare facilities
Half a dozen top notch healthcare facilities in South Africa, Nigeria, Botswana and Uganda have just received accreditation awards from COHSASA, marking measurable progress...
Theranos fraudster Elizabeth Holmes plotting biotech comeback
Silicon Valley swindler Elizabeth Holmes – founder of Theranos – is already plotting a comeback from her Texas prison camp, despite being only three...
US doctor sued 700 patients for debts – 81 arrested
Hundreds of US patients were sued by obstetrician-gynaecologist Dr Roger Marshall of Kansas – now a senator – for outstanding bills, and routinely charged...
Kenya’s nurses sign deal to end strike
A 43-day nurses’ strike in Kenya that paralysed public hospitals has ended after the government and the nurses’ union signed a return-to-work agreement, reports...
British influencer dies after Bangkok penis enlargement
Thai authorities have launched an investigation into the death of a British man who died after receiving a penis enlargement injection at a Bangkok...
Arizona joins lawsuits against L’Oreal SA over hair relaxer cancer link
The US state of Arizona has taken legal aim at L’Oreal South Africa and its US subsidiary, alleging the cosmetics company hid evidence that...
Court overturns HPCSA ruling on Israel social media post
A ruling by the Health Professions Council of SA of unprofessional conduct against former UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Health Dr Tlaleng...
Exploited, exhausted 'ghost doctors' trapped in 'new apartheid'
For years, hospitals have relied on the unpaid, unprotected labour of trainee-specialists to fill their rosters, but these doctors are reaching a breaking point,...
New HoD job for official linked to Tembisa corruption
A provincial government official linked to the massive fraud scandal at Tembisa Hospital has been appointed head of department for Johannesburg’s Public Safety portfolio,...
Dodgy childhood vaccination data prompts department review
Recently published childhood vaccination figures by the National Department of Health – showing an alarming drop – may have been skewed by inaccurate population numbers...
Study links Sasol pollution to 1 000 deaths annually
A Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air report has revealed that pollution from Sasol’s Secunda plant can be linked to around 1...
Health funders punt mandatory medical aid
The exorbitant cost of medical scheme membership could be reduced by as much as 30% if everyone earning above the tax threshold were required...
Aspen dumps LEN production interest
In a blow to the country’s plans to escalate local production of Gilead’s revolutionary lenacapavir HIV prevention shot, South Africa’s biggest pharmaceutical manufacturer, Aspen...
Cuban training for new batch of SA medical students
A new cohort of 18 young people from disadvantaged communities in Gauteng has been selected to study medicine in Cuba through the controversial Nelson...
Probe into Germiston ‘money-for-post-mortem’ claims
The Gauteng Health Department is investigating claims of extortion and corruption at the Germiston Forensic Pathology Service facility, where officials have been accused of...