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Public Health
Millions set aside to fix dysfunctional hospital laundries
The Gauteng Department of Health has admitted to a “frequent breakdown of laundry machinery” but says R50m has been allocated to deal with the...
Durban sounds alarm over 7 000 teen pregnancies in a year
Health officials have expressed concern over the rising number of teenage pregnancies in eThekwini, revealing that 7 627 cases were recorded between April 2024...
Inquiry after baby lands on floor during birth
A Limpopo mother from whose pleas for help were dismissed when she went into labour, and whose baby was born and fell to the...
Well-being and health of world’s teens in peril – Lancet global experts
A Lancet report into adolescent health has identified unique threats to young people around the world, highlighting poor mental health, rising obesity, and exposure...
HIV testing drops after aid cuts, but Minister denies system collapse
The government has defended its progress in dealing with the US funding cuts and their crucial impact on HIV and Aids programmes in South...
Cancer treatment stalls as Eastern Cape Health fails to pay chemo bills
The South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) has launched an investigation into the halting of treatment for cancer patients in Eastern Cape hospitals, after...
Call for action after 155 children die of malnutrition this year
More accountability and urgent action have been called for after Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi admitted that so far this year, 155 children under five...
Warning for seniors after mosquito vaccine's adverse events, deaths
US health authorities have issued a warning to older travellers after two deaths were reported following vaccination against a mosquito-borne disease.
The preventative jab against...
Despite lofty plans, 90% of mentally ill South Africans still without care
Around 30.3% of South Africans experience a mental disorder in their lifetime – and about 16% of them in any given year – but...
Intern doctor's death sparks outcry over public health working conditions
The death of a young intern doctor at a state hospital has brought into focus the physical and mental toll on junior medical staff...
EU regulator adds suicide warning for hair loss, prostate treatments
The European Union’s drug regulator has warned that a medication to treat men’s hair loss has a rare risk of suicidal thoughts, and although...
Gauteng underspends budget but owes suppliers R367m
The Gauteng Department of Health still owes service providers R367m, having paid just 21% of its invoices between January and March because of “significant...
Call for action on booming fake drugs trade in SA
Counterfeit pharmaceutical product sales from online platforms and vendors are skyrocketing in South Africa, according to a newly-released independent report, which has called for...
NIH grant funds first comprehensive syphilis test
With global syphilis cases on the rise, the news of a $2.7m research grant towards the development of a one-stop diagnostic test has been...
Human health already under climate change pressure
We all need to urgently recognise that climate change is not merely a distant socioeconomic issue – that it is a current, unfolding health...
Overtime non-payment for doctors sparks outrage in Gauteng
Health Department blunders left Gauteng doctors without overtime pay in the past month, sparking an outcry and adding to uncertainty and growing concern over...
SA’s health burden rises as ageing HIV+ population doubles
Experts are raising the alarm yet again – and more so in the wake of the US funding cuts – regarding the alarming numbers...
Durban clinic denies sex worker ARVs
A Durban sex worker was refused ARVs by a clinic at Addington Hospital and told to “go and work” so that she could buy...
Patient’s Groote Schuur ordeal prompts departmental probe
Western Cape Health has launched an inquiry into Groote Schuur Hospital (GSH) after accusations of negligence and emotional abuse by a patient transferred there...
Daily plastic exposure linked to heart disease deaths – US study
A recent analysis of population surveys shows that daily exposure to certain chemicals used to make common plastic household items could be linked to...
Deadly effects of marijuana on the foetus – US meta-analysis
Using marijuana during pregnancy has been linked to poor foetal development, low infant birth weight, dangerously early deliveries and even death, according to a...
Patients suffer as hospitals battle bed shortages, power and water cuts
Dire conditions at several state hospitals came under the spotlight this week with reports of heavily pregnant women being made to sleep on the...
Hospital staff under fire for outdoor cooking during outage
KZN Health MEC Nomagugu Simelane has called for disciplinary action against staff at Pietermaritzburg’s Northdale Hospital after a video of them cooking over a...
Measles adds to Ugandan mpox crisis as death toll passes 5 400
The cumulative number of confirmed mpox cases in Uganda has hit 5 431, with 40 deaths reported since the outbreak was declared nine months...
Limpopo doctor accused of attempted rape of patient
The Limpopo Health Department is investigating – in tandem with a police inquiry – after a doctor allegedly attempted to rape a patient at George...
Europe failing in fight against HIV, TB and STIs
Regional health authorities have warned that many countries in Europe will miss a target to combat HIV, TB, hepatitis, and sexually transmitted infections (STIs)...
Antibiotic resistance risking SA’s newborns’ lives
Experts say bacterial infections are responsible for more infant deaths than is generally recognised, and that things may get worse as more of the...
SAMRC study finds HIV death stats worse than thought
It is widely acknowledged among health and demographic experts that relying solely on what is written on death certificates is not always an accurate...
Possible arson to be probed in Tembisa hospital fires
The Gauteng Government and national MPs have not ruled out arson as a possible reason for the fires at Tembisa Provincial Tertiary Hospital, which...
With twice-yearly PrEP jab, is an HIV vaccine still vital?
The discovery of a highly efficacious option for HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) that requires only twice-yearly administration has led to the question of whether...
Hospital sued for refusing liver transplant for Zimbabwean child
An urgent High Court application due to be heard in Johannesburg soon may be too late to save the life of desperately ill Vanessa...
Two fires in three days at Tembisa Hospital
Fire disrupted services at Tembisa Provincial Tertiary Hospital on Wednesday after flames engulfed the Outpatient Department (OPD) – next to the Accident and Emergency...
Moderna gets $176m to develop pandemic flu jab
The US has announced it will pay Moderna $176m to accelerate development of a pandemic influenza vaccine that could treat bird flu in people,...
CT scan cancer risk warning – US study
A group of American physicians has warned that CT scans commonly taken to help detect injury and disease may be accompanied by an alarming...
New diabetes form recognised after decades of debate
A new type of diabetes that’s linked not to obesity but to malnutrition has been officially recognised, decades after first being observed in developing...
Another 150 000 HIV infections possible by 2028 from aid cuts
A modelling study commissioned by the National Department of Health into the impact of the Pepfar funding cuts has revealed that this could result...
Health Department plans six new academic hospitals for SA
Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi says the public health sector will be boosted, in anticipation of the NHI roll-out, with new clinics and half a...
Drug-resistant infections killed 3m children worldwide
A landmark study presented this week at the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ESCMID) in Vienna has revealed that more than...
Groote Schuur emergency trauma project kicks off for Easter weekend
The Groote Schuur Hospital Emergency Funds for Emergency Surgeries project – which has raised more than half a million rands, and which was launched...
Exorbitant security costs for Gauteng Health flagged
The DA in Gauteng has called for a review of ballooning hospital security costs, with MPL Jack Bloom saying the exorbitant amounts could rather...