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First successful SA pregnancy using new procedure
A Durban woman is the first South African to successfully conceive using a new reproductive procedure, using a platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injection to rejuvenate her...
Frustrated doctor raises seeks alternative to CMSA exams
A Free State doctor frustrated at twice failing Colleges of Medicine of SA exams is now looking for a foreign qualification alternative but cannot get...
EC fake doctors facilitated issue of public driving permits
The Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC) says it has cracked down on fake doctors who fraudulently issue medical certificates to motorists needing them to...
Netcare under pressure from prescriptive medical schemes
Private hospital operator Netcare says it is under pressure from increasingly prescriptive medical scheme management and the growth of competing private hospital networks.
Netcare said it...
'Grossly sub-optimal' SA wins a reprieve from US on HIV/Aids funding
South African Health Department officials have won a reprieve from the US government after it threatened to slash its funding for South Africa's HIV/Aids...
Stellenbosch authors retract 'colonial knowledge' research
The controversial study by Stellenbosch University researchers, which suggests Coloured women have an increased risk for low cognitive function, has been retracted, The Times reports.
The...
SA regulators derail international clinical trials with permit delays
SA Health Department delays issuing export permits for human tissue is having severe consequences for international medical research trials, with some believing the delays are...
SA lab service fires suspended CEO and CFO
The National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS) has fired suspended CEO Joyce Mogale and CFO Sikhumbuzo Zulu, following "procurement irregularities" worth R200m. News24 reports that...
Stellenbosch backs down over study into cognitive function in Coloured women
In the face of sustained criticism, Stellenbosch University has apologised for the ‘pain and anger’ caused by a study assessing cognitive function of a small...
NGOs claim victory over US funding cut to SA's HIV programmes
A plan to cut US funding to South Africa for HIV programmes is likely to be reversed – as long as the quality of...
Call for HRC and Health Ombud intervention at Gauteng hospital
The Public Servants Association of SA said it was appalled by the inhumane conditions faced by mental-health patients at the Dr George Mukhari Academic...
Health workers frustrated by stockouts of DT vaccine
South Africa has been experiencing a protracted shortage of the DT (diphtheria and tetanus) vaccine, starting in late 2018, reports IoL.
Frustrated with being given...
SA medicines regulator losing battle against illegal cannabis-products
South Africa’s medicines regulator is 'working closely' with the police to clamp down on illegal sales of unregistered cannabis-containing products claiming medical benefits, but...
Tired of waiting for NHI and CMS, employers go for primary healthcare plans
Many employers are not waiting for the elusive National Health Insurance (NHI) scheme to improve the health of their workers, absenteeism levels and productivity,...
Mediclinic reports falling margins and expects further declines
Private clinic and hospital group Mediclinic International says margins in Southern Africa and Switzerland fell in the year to end-March and will probably decline...
Battle over SANDF soldiers who 'mutinied' over Cuban medical training
The SA military has defended its decision to fire 35 soldiers for "mutiny", after they refused to report to a Cuban medical training facility...
Critical shortage of nursing staff in SA with qualified staff down 40%
Nursing as a profession is in danger in South Africa, with the delivery of qualified nursing staff in all nursing categories down by almost 40%...
SIU awaits go-ahead to investigate HPCSA over 'cash for qualifications'
The Special Investigating Unit (SIU) is awaiting the president’s go-ahead to investigate allegations that Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) employees took bribes...
CMS 'irritated and disappointed' over Bill that strips it of its functions
South Africa’s medical schemes regulator has slammed the Treasury for not consulting it on the draft Conduct of Financial Institutions Bill, saying it will...
SA will send team to Washington to lobby PEPFAR funding cut
Health Minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi says the government will send a team to the US following an announcement that the US plans to cut...
SAHPRA grants first cannabis cultivation licences
The SA medicines' regulator has awarded its first batch of licences for cultivating cannabis for medical purposes to local companies, reports Business Day. This...
SAHRC says adverse report on Gauteng Health would be 'a waste of time'
The SA Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) has announced that it would not issue an "adverse" report on Gauteng Health after a probe into baby...
CMS looking at umbrella fund to help small, restricted schemes
The Council for Medical Schemes (CMS) is considering introducing an umbrella fund to help small restricted schemes pool resources to try to make membership...
SAHRC orders adequate housing for mental health patients
The South Africa Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) has ordered the Department of Human Settlements to finalise its special national housing programme for people with...
NHI can now be referred to as 'Ramaphosa-care’ — Motsoaledi
Health minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi says the National Health Insurance may now be referred to as "Ramaphosa-care", as the president is now in charge of...
SA's 'suboptimal' fight against Aids costs it R5bn in US funding
The US plans to cut its funding for HIV treatment in South Africa by more than R5bn, saying the country’s fight against Aids is...
Motsoaledi counsels caution over 'decapitated' baby birth
Following a media furore over a Boksburg baby "born in three separate parts", Health Minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi has urged the public to wait...
Medical schemes haemorrhaging money in 'risk transfer’ agreements
Some of South Africa’s best-known medical schemes are losing money hand over fist in opaque “risk transfer” arrangements, in which they pay service providers...
SA ranked as the unhealthiest nation on earth in new index
A new global health index has identified, on 10 key measures, the world's healthiest (Canada) and most unhealthy (South Africa) countries in 2019, reports...
Samwumed to be back in control of trustees tied to troubled union
The medical schemes regulator is backing the curator of Samwumed as he prepares to put the scheme back in control of elected trustees by...
Ramaphosa orders corruption probe into National Health Laboratory Services
President Cyril Ramaphosa has authorised the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) to probe the National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS) for corruption, reports Business Day. The...
Tuks team's pioneering ear surgery at Steve Biko Academic Hospital
Professor Mashudu Tshifularo and his team from the University of Pretoria have developed a pioneering surgical procedure using 3D-printed middle ear bones, for conductive...
Discovery recovers R55m of medical aid fraud in 201
Discovery Health said that its efforts to curb fraud and waste resulted in R555m being recovered on behalf of client schemes during 2018, by...
SA's 'sobering' HIV drug-resistance figures
One in six people not on treatment in a large South African household survey already had drug-resistant HIV and more than half of those...
Life Healthcare diversifying to counter global regulatory pressures
Private hospital group Life Healthcare is pressing ahead with its strategy of diversifying out of its traditional hospital base, in a bid to counter...
Doctors and medical schemes clash over blame for fraud
Doctors and medical schemes clashed in discussions during the Council of Medical Schemes’ inaugural Fraud, Waste and Abuse Summit, which was boycotted by the Hospital Association...
Health Department disowns instruction on turning away foreigners
South Africa's national Health Department has withdrawn its instruction to provinces to charge foreign patients the maximum rate, saying the directive should never have...
Fresh fraud allegations against suspended CMS investigations head
The suspended head of investigations at the Council for Medical Schemes (CMS) is facing new allegations that he facilitated the curatorship of a municipal...
R300m for Life Esidimeni families
A sum of R300m has been set aside for families affected by the Life Esidimeni tragedy who pass a verification process by the Master...
SA's ARV deal delivers cutting-edge Tx at a fraction of world price
South Africa’s recently awarded antiretroviral (ARV) tender, worth around R14bn over three years, is probably the biggest change since the single once daily tablet...