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Paracetamol pack sizes reduced in Australia
In new harm-reduction measures from next month, packs of paracetamol sold in Australia will contain fewer tablets, both in pharmacies and other outlets.
The Therapeutic...
World health at a crossroads as Trump dumps WHO
Public health experts have warned of major repercussions following the withdrawal of the United States from the World Health Organisation, undermining the nation’s standing...
Union medical aid axes Melomed hospitals
The SA Municipal Workers Union Medical Scheme (Samwumed) has dumped the Melomed Group from its list of approved hospitals, causing an outcry among members...
North West Health seeks help with teen pregnancies
The North West provincial Health & Social Development Portfolio Committee has called for urgent action in response to teen pregnancies, and after recent revelations...
Obesity measure must go beyond BMI, suggest global experts
A group of global experts is proposing a new way to define and diagnose obesity, reducing the emphasis on the controversial body mass index...
State lab must beef up cyber security, say doctors
After last year’s catastrophic ransomware attack on the National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS), a pair of Western Cape doctors has called for an urgent...
World’s largest protein study to revolutionise cancer, dementia tests
The world’s largest study of proteins circulating the human body will launch in the UK this month, with tens of millions of pounds in...
Loneliness tied to cardiac, stroke and infection risk – China-UK study
Interactions with friends and family may keep us healthy because they boost our immune system and reduce our risk of diseases like heart disease,...
ANC compromise on NHI not on the cards, says Motsoaledi
Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi says reports that the ANC was prepared to compromise on NHI and medical aid schemes were without basis, denying that...
Fluoride debate heats up as new analysis suggests IQ link
Water fluoridation is widely seen as one of the great public health achievements of the 20th century, credited with substantially reducing tooth decay. But...
Antibiotic crisis ‘could claim 40m lives’, warns UK expert
As superbugs spread across the globe, death rates from antimicrobial resistance are likely to double over the next 25 years, with senior citizens especially...
US teen sues world’s top food companies over processed foods
An American teenager has just taken on 10 of the world’s biggest food companies, including Coca-Cola, Nestlé and Kraft Heinz, suing them for deliberately...
First bird flu death reported in the US
A Louisiana man who had the first severe human case of bird flu in the US has died, local health officials reported this week...
Surgeon-General wants cancer warnings for alcohol
The US' top doctor has called for risk warnings on alcohol – similar to the labels on cigarettes – after new research flagging links...
EPA warns of common chemical’s link to cancer
A recent investigation has found that formaldehyde causes more cancer than any other toxic air pollutant, exposing everyone to elevated risks of developing cancer no...
South Africa shoulders high health burden of sugary drinks
A global analysis has placed South Africa among the countries worst hit by the health burden of high consumption of sugary drinks which, together...
More than 900m people globally have incurable STI – Qatar analysis
Research led by a team in Doha has confirmed genital herpes is the most common sexually transmitted infection (STI) in the world that does...
Unspent R250m cancer treatment funds returned to Treasury
Gauteng Health has attempted to justify its failure to spend R250m that was allocated for cancer treatment saying the situation is “not as urgent”...
Medical students tackle rural healthcare gaps in Western Cape
Ukwanda, the isiXhosa word for ‘grow’, encapsulates the mission of Stellenbosch University’s Ukwanda Centre for Rural Health: nurturing healthcare in rural communities. At the...
Sharp climb in children's death from malnutrition
In the past two years alone, more than 1 000 children under five have died from hunger, with deaths in this age group generally...
Leadership issues at Gauteng Health raise concern
Criticism of leadership and governance at Gauteng Health is increasing as the department repeatedly makes headlines for questionable appointments. This unfolds alongside a damning...
Surgery backlogs balloon as billions slashed from budget
Surgical backlogs continue to rise countrywide, as reduced budgets and staffing shortages eat away at public healthcare capacity, and institutions and medical professionals feel...
Gauteng Health denies blowing oncology millions
Activist organisations this week challenged the Gauteng Department of Health in court over the R784m budget intended to tackle an oncology backlog, accusing it...
Climate change will worsen health burden, warns SA expert at COP29
Climate change is accelerating the spread of disease, according to SA scientist Professor Tulio de Oliveira, who warns that pathogens are spreading across borders...
Time to end compulsory community service for doctors?
Community service placements for young doctors have been beset by poor planning, uncertainty and financial insecurity, leading to a group of experts questioning whether...
African activists fear Trump will cut birth control funds
There is growing anxiety across Africa – and other countries – that US President elect Donald Trump might end the donor funding for services...
Alarming finds from AMR study of hospital surfaces in six countries
Antimicrobial resistance – when bacteria and other microbes that can cause infections gain the ability to resist treatment by antibiotics or other antimicrobial medicines...
Randburg Clinic crisis of one doctor for 400 patients
Johannesburg’s Randburg Clinic is sagging beneath the weight of limited resources and growing patient numbers, resulting in long waits in overcrowded conditions and regular...
Action plan launched to combat food poisonings in SA
Children from a primary school in Limpopo were checked for suspected food poisoning last Thursday after 75 of them complained of stomach ache –...
Global Fund to probe fishy oxygen tender
Health Minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi said last week that the Geneva-based Global Fund is sending its own investigators to SA to probe allegations that...
Critical healthcare deal in Gauteng teeters on the brink
An extended impasse over a vital agreement for training and improved hospital management between the Gauteng Department of Health and Wits University remains derailed,...
Critical linen shortage at Bara after laundry failure
Gauteng’s Health Department has had to step in after linen supplies at Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital ground to a halt when the washing...
SA facing diabetes ‘pandemic’ as cases soar among young people
A critical shortage of specialists to treat diabetics is contributing to the treatment challenges for patients in South Africa where the disease is now...
US analysis links 22 pesticides to prostate cancers
Researchers have found that nearly two dozen pesticides are associated with an increased risk of prostate cancer in the United States, four of them also being...
Suppliers owed R743m by Gauteng Health
The Gauteng Health Department has owed 69 suppliers R743m for more than a year, with some companies now refusing to do any more business...
Broken X-ray machine and no water for five years at Limpopo hospital
Limpopo’s historic Elim Hospital, which is more than a century old, does not have a functioning X-ray machine, and has not had a reliable...
Registration practice rules for sangomas from 2025
When they need healthcare, writes Sipokazi Fokazi for Bhekisisa, about 70% of South Africans, mostly in rural areas, visit sangomas first before they go to...
Nineteen-day wait for emergency op in KwaZulu-Natal hospital
The plight of a Northern KwaZulu-Natal man who fell through a roof and broke his femur echoes the stories of thousands of patients who...
Health Department eyes PIC trillions for hospital infrastructure
The Health Department and national Treasury are in talks to dig into South Africa’s R2.7trn savings pool held by the Public Investment Corporation for the...
MPs call for Health Department to recoup foreigner nationals' medical expenses
Parliament’s Health Committee wants the Department of Health to consider recouping money spent on treating foreign nationals at state facilities, saying, after reviewing the...