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News Update
Shortage of sub-specialist posts increases healthcare risks
The shortage of registrar and sub-specialist posts may save Health Departments millions in the short term, but experts warn it costs billions long-term in...
Weight-loss drug Wegovy debuts in SA
Novo Nordisk introduced its weight-loss drug Wegovy in South Africa last Thursday, marking its debut in Africa and stepping up competition with Eli Lilly’s Mounjaro, which...
NHLS targets dented by 2024 cyber attack
The National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS) is still suffering from the cyber attack last June that annihilated its ICT systems and infrastructure, and resulted in it...
AI helps detect rampant healthcare fraud and waste
While the financial haemorrhage linked to fraud, waste and abuse in the healthcare sector adds up to billions every year (between R22bn and R28bn),...
Plans on track for new Western Cape hospitals
The Western Cape Department of Health & Wellness (DHW) plans to complete three hospital projects by 2033, with the new Klipfontein and Belhar regional...
FDA green-lights chronic lung disease treatment
The US Food and Drug Administration has approved oral brensocatib (Brinsupri) as the first treatment for non-cystic fibrosis bronchiectasis in adults and children 12...
SA pharmacies support flavoured vape ban
Regulation of e-cigarettes in this country is long overdue, with flavoured vapes, especially, being described by the Independent Community Pharmacy Association (ICPA) as “bait”,...
HRT shortage leaves women struggling
A worldwide shortage of hormone replacement therapy medication is affecting women around the globe, leaving them unable to find relief from menopausal symptoms that...
Vet council reports Minister for ‘overstepping’ his mandate
The SA Veterinary Council (SAVC) has accused Agriculture Minister John Steenhuisen of seeking to de-legitimise its free and fair elections and has written to...
Experts oppose Kennedy’s hepatitis B jab theories
Scathing American public health experts are pushing back against doubts and criticisms about the hepatitis B vaccine spread by Health Secretary Robert F Kennedy...
Scientists call for stronger action in DRC mpox crisis
Mpox is spreading faster, showing new modes of transmission and affecting different populations, with scientists warning that the disease needs to be brought under...
Tainted fentanyl kills 96 patients in Argentina, more deaths suspected
A massive investigation has been launched in Argentina after at least 96 people, and possibly more, are thought to have died after being treated...
Eastern Cape pupils hospitalised after school lunch
The Eastern Cape Department of Health said 131 children from Gobisizwe Agricultural School in Ngqeleni were admitted to hospital last week with suspected food...
Innovative project sees Groote Schuur interns tackle GBV
Cape Town’s Groote Schuur Hospital has provided 50 medical interns with specialised training on how to sensitively screen for intimate partner violence (IPV) and...
FDA grants priority review for oral gonorrhoea antibiotic
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has accepted British pharmaceutical company GSK’s application for priority review of gepotidacin as an oral option for...
Naked US doctor has licence revoked
A doctor in Arkansas suspected of having a sexual compulsive disorder has had his licence revoked a year after video footage captured him walking...
Calls for probe into cystic fibrosis drugmaker to be reopened
Health lobbyists are demanding that the Competition Commission reopen its investigation into the manufacturers of Trikafta, for the treatment of cystic fibrosis, which is expected to...
Arrests as anti-migrant thugs ratchet up their campaign
Police have made several arrests of militant anti-migrant group members recently, but seemingly with little effect as the organisations continue to terrorise foreigners seeking...
Life-changing surgery for KZN boy with rare tumours
A KZN boy has had his life transformed by a specialist medical team from the University of KwaZulu-Natal, which recently performed complex surgery to...
Healthcare staff under siege from crime
Public healthcare workers are living in fear as criminals wage a war of robbery and assault on them, with attacks escalating – and even...
Safety alert for faulty defibrillation leads tied to injuries, deaths
Boston Scientific has issued a letter to customers warning that certain ENDOTAK RELIANCE defibrillation leads with expanded polytetrafluoroethylene (ePTFE) coated coils may impact shock...
US health experts unite to clamour for Kennedy's removal
A report detailing major health challenges in the United States – and calling for the removal of Robert F Kennedy Jr from the Department...
Patients say clinic nurses force them to have HIV tests
Residents in at least three provinces say they have been coerced into undergoing HIV testing at various government health facilities, and that in some...
Watchdog orders J&J to drop ‘number 1’ nasal spray claim
The Advertising Regulatory Board (ARB) has ordered Johnson & Johnson to remove or amend claims from its commercial that its Sinutab product are the...
Doctor crowdfunds R2m after cancer diagnosis
A doctor from the Eastern Cape – who was diagnosed with not just a brain tumour but also skin cancer – raised an extraordinary...
Mthatha EMS crew forced to sleep in Khayelitsha shack
Two Eastern Cape EMS drivers recently transporting a child from Mthatha had to spend two nights in an informal settlement in Khayelitsha, Cape Town,...
Woman awakens from coma moments before organ donation surgery
The scarcity of available organs for transplant in the United States – and the increasing need for more – is putting a growing number...
Experts push for harm reduction policies
Harm reduction – in multiple forms, from safer smoking alternatives to sunscreens to wearing seatbelts – was high on the agenda at a recent...
Donated generators ‘lying idle’ at Durban Hospital
Hundreds of low-voltage diesel generators donated by China are apparently being stored unused at Wentworth Hospital in KwaZulu-Natal, pending distribution to provinces – but...
Fire-damaged Free State hospital wards back in service
The National District Hospital in the Free State re-opened wards and sections of the Bloemfontein facility that had been gutted by a fire in...
Mpox testing project launched in Africa as cases rise
With mpox infections continuing to rise on the continent, the Africa CDC and the European Commission have launched the Partnership to Accelerate Mpox Testing and...
Rwanda rethinks malaria jabs amid surge in cases
Rwanda is confronting an unexpected resurgence in malaria infections and signs of treatment resistance that have forced alarmed officials to revisit vaccine intervention the...
State can be sued for failing foreign nationals, lawyers group says
Lawyers for Human Rights (LHR) has warned that the government can be taken to court if it fails to intervene in the public health...
Gauteng medical student accused of preying on boys
A 25-year-old medical student and maths tutor – charged with raping and sexually assaulting six boys – was denied bail after his appearance in the...
Stellenbosch University confirms student’s meningitis death
Stellenbosch University has confirmed that Chris Scheffers (19), a second-year theology student whose body was discovered in his residence on the weekend, died from...
IDT boss suspended over R836m tender debacle
The Department of Health is to re-tender the controversial oxygen plant contract – this after the suspension last week of Independent Development Trust (IDT)...
SA pharmacists help send medicines to Gaza, war-torn countries
South African pharmacists have joined an international humanitarian effort to deliver life-saving medicines to Gaza and parts of Africa affected by crisis and displacement,...
Gauteng targets 4m children for measles jabs
The Gauteng Department of Health is stepping up efforts to fight the ongoing measles outbreak with the launch this week of a Measles-Rubella (MR)...
Nurses plead for their mental health, wellness support
Burnout, fatigue and lack of support have become silent threats to South Africa’s nursing workforce within hospitals, clinics and military facilities, with healthcare leaders...
Health taxes under-utilised in Africa – UCT report
Taxes on tobacco, alcohol, sugary drinks and ultra-processed food offer a way to raise finances while reducing consumption, and yet are not being used...