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Public Health
Amsterdam's famous tolerance delivers health benefits
Amsterdam’s tolerance of sex work and recreational drugs has translated into better health outcomes for its citizens. But, asks an Health-e News report, can...
Gauteng's hospitals of harm
More than 20‚000 patients have been harmed at state hospitals in Gauteng in the space of two-and-a-half years, according to official statistics. Chris Hani Baragwanath is...
Tougher anti-smoking laws in the pipeline for SA
When South Africa introduced designated smoking areas in restaurants and bars there was vehement opposition from sections of the hospitality industry. But, writes Savera Kalideen,...
Study shows extent of PTSD problem among SA's sex workers
A University of the Witwatersrand study of sex workers in Soweto shows two-thirds of suffer depression, 6% showed symptoms for post-traumatic distress disorder (PTSD),...
Motsoaledi: 'No caring state should leave such inequality unattended'
Critics of the National Health Insurance plan are "hardliners, driven by their desire to defend and perpetuate their own positions of huge benefit and...
Health Market Inquiry: ‘Nothing we don't already know', says Health Minister
The four-year long Competition Commission Health Market Inquiry's finding reveal what Health Minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi says he already knew – that South Africa's private healthcare...
Not true that large chunks of healthcare spending go to futile end-of-life care
Around 25% of Medicare spending in the US occurs in the last year of people's lives. This is sometimes discussed as a questionable use...
NHI Bill 'won't be a silver bullet' in saving public healthcare in SA
There can be no dispute that SA’s health care system needs major reforms, writes Professor Laetitia Rispel of the University of the Witwatersrand in...
Older cannabis users reporting more health concerns
Researchers at the University of York have shown that there has been a 118% rise in those aged over 40 presenting to specialist drug...
Brickbats and bouquets for NHI and Medical Schemes Bills
A medical brain drain could be a consequence of the Medical Schemes Amendment Bill and the National Health Insurance Bill gazetted last week, says...
Motsoaledi says resignation calls are 'orchestrated' by medical schemes
A group of 99 doctors and academics has sharply criticised public health management and 'unresearched' plans for the introduction of National Health Insurance,reports The...
Admitting SA's health crisis the first step to fixing it
A Business Day editorial says that Health Minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi's selective use of statistics is a classic case of a politician under fire...
SA healthcare: It's not collapsed, merely distressed — Motsoaledi
While Health Minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi this week claimed that government health services were just 'distressed', a Office of Health Standards Compliance (OHSC) report...
E-cigarettes pose a danger to the health of children — FIRS
The Forum of International Respiratory Societies, a coalition of respiratory doctors and scientists, warns that there is mounting evidence to justify calling for a...
Motsoaledi slams 'murderers' but Nehawu is defiant
The National Education, Health and Allied Workers Union’s (Nehawu’s) is under fire over last week's violent protests in Gauteng hospitals, with Health Minister Dr...
Cancer services take strain as radiation oncologists leave SA state sector
SA has just 38 state-employed radiation oncologists, of which 16 are in the Western Cape, according to the annual survey conducted by the...
Funding 'still the biggest stumbling block' to NHI
The successful implementation of South Africa's National Health Insurance (NHI) programme hinges on its funding model, according to a legal expert. Partner at law...
Lancet Commission: Access to legal abortions still a problem in SA
Despite SA’s liberal abortion laws, the government has failed to turn policy into a reality, with only 270 of 8,000 health facilities offering termination,...
Violent hospital blockades continue despite Parliament's 'concern'
While a parliamentary committee has decried the blockading of hospitals by strikers, demands by North West doctors that the SA Department of Health guarantee...
Five healthy habits may increase life expectancy by at least 12 years
Maintaining five healthy habits – eating a healthy diet, exercising regularly, keeping a healthy body weight, not drinking too much alcohol, and not smoking...
Most restaurant owners support SA's new stricter anti-smoking measures
South Africa's Cabinet has approved the Control of Tobacco Products and Electronic Delivery Systems Bill, which provides for a ban on smoking at outdoor...
SA should give the NHI a chance
Natasha Salant, a law graduate from the University of Cape Town, currently interning at the Rural Health Advocacy Project writes in a Bhekisisa report.
“About...
Misconceptions rife over the causes of cancer
Mistaken belief in mythical causes of cancer is rife, according to research from the University College London (UCL) and the University of Leeds. The...
Doctors plead for resolution of North West Health crisis
Doctors in North West Province have broken their silence over the ongoing health crisis in the province, calling for urgent intervention to resolve the...
London summit pledges $4.1bn to eradicate malaria
The worldwide resurgence of malaria, which kills half a million people a year, has sparked philanthropists, business leaders and ministers from donor and malaria-affected...
Drinking alcohol above daily recommended limit shortens life
Drinking alcohol will shorten your life. Research in the United Kingdom suggests that every glass of wine or pint of beer over the daily recommended...
Research explores lifestyle effects – preconception – on future children
Couples who are obese, as well as those who smoke and drink alcohol, could be risking the health of their future children, reports The Guardian....
NICD refutes DA claims on listeriosis source; death toll still rising
The National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) expressed 'major concern' over Democratic Alliance claims that the primary source of the outbreak was still unknown and that the Minister...
Respiratory virus contagion risk while flying
A US study of transcontinental flights found that Passengers seated within one row and within two seats laterally of a passenger with flu had...
Sugar Tax is just the beginning, says Motsoaledi
South Africa is less than two weeks away from implementing the hard-won tax on sugary drinks. Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi said now that “we’ve...
Time in the sea increases a variety of ailments — systematic review
People who swim, bathe or take part in water sports in the sea are substantially more likely to experience stomach bugs, ear aches and...
Listeriosis outbreak 'highlights SA's food safety shortcomings'
The devastating listeriosis outbreak is a reflection of the weaknesses in the SA food system, says Professor Lise Korsten, co-director at the Centre of...
Source of listeriosis outbreak traced and blame game begins
Anger and blame has erupted over the dismal handling of the listeriosis outbreak after the outbreak was at long last traced to a Tiger...
Antibiotic usage link to surgery infection in low-income countries
The increased likelihood of people having surgery in low-income countries developing an infection than those in wealthier nations, may be linked to drug-resistant bacteria,...
Increase in fatal traffic crashes on annual US cannabis celebration
Drivers in the US are more likely to be in a fatal traffic crash during the annual 20 April cannabis celebration, according to research...
WHO sends expertise as SA listeriosis deaths keep rising
The SA death toll from listeriosis has risen to 164, with nearly 900 documented cases in laboratories and half the fatalities being infants under...
Far-UVC light kills airborne flu viruses without human harm
Continuous low doses of far ultraviolet C (far-UVC) light can kill airborne flu viruses without harming human tissues, according to a study at the...
Eastern Cape’s 'deadly' incompetence and lack of capacity
With an annual healthcare budget of R21bn, the Eastern Cape faces R17bn in negligence litigation and is faltering under ‘deadly’ levels of incompetence and...
Many vape-flavouring chemicals trigger inflammation
Exposure to e-cigarette flavouring chemicals and liquids can cause significant inflammation to monocytes, a type of white blood cell – and many flavouring compounds...
Moderate alcohol use can be good for the heart if rich, fatal if poor
Moderately frequent alcohol users have a lower risk of dying from cardiovascular disease (CVD) than infrequent drinkers and this is more pronounced among those...