News Articles
Three measles cases at Melbourne school
Date of Posting: 20-08-2014
Three Melbourne students have been confirmed to have measles and two other cases are suspected. Three students at a Melbourne primary school have measles.[subscribe] Another two pupils at Essendon North Primary School may also have the infectio Read More...
Why exempt pensioners from copayment asks PM
Last Updated: 20-08-2014
Tony Abbott has questioned why pensioners would be exempt from the $7 GP co-payment when they already pay a charge for subsidised medicines. Tony Abbott has given a strong signal his government won't exempt pensioners from its planned $7 GP co Read More...
Last Updated: 20-08-2014
Looking for a Highly Skilled, Rewarding And Well Paid Career? Then How About Becoming A Radiographer? If you're looking for a career which offers plenty of exciting job prospects, then you might like to consider a career in radiography. Radiog Read More...
Cholesterol drug curbs heart disease
Last Updated: 19-08-2014
A cholesterol-lowering drug cuts heart and stroke risks by 30 per cent in diabetic women, according to a new study. A cholesterol-lowering drug significantly reduces the risk of heart disease in women with type-2 diabetes, a new study shows.[subsc Read More...
Liberia desperately searches for patients
Date of Posting: 19-08-2014
Liberian officials are continuing to search for 17 Ebola patients who fled an attack on a quarantine centre in the capital Monrovia. Liberian officials are continuing to search for 17 Ebola patients who fled an attack on a quarantine centre in the Read More...
Vic elective surgery list slashed
Date of Posting: 18-08-2014
Victoria's elective surgery waiting list has been cut to a four-year low. The Victorian government says the Department of Health's preliminary figures show the number of people waiting for elective surgery has dropped by 11,000 despite a r Read More...
Diet pill effective, but hard to tolerate
Date of Posting: 18-08-2014
A combination diet pill to help obese people lose weight has been found to be effective but hard to tolerate, researchers say. A combination diet pill, which may soon become available in Australia, helps obese people shed the kilos and maintain th Read More...
Chikungunya test vaccine shows promise
Date of Posting: 15-08-2014
A test vaccine for the joint disease chikungunya shows promise, its makers say, after its first human trials yielded positive results. A candidate vaccine against the joint disease chikungunya, endemic to Africa and South Asia but moving north and Read More...
Overhaul blood pressure treatment: experts
Last Updated: 15-08-2014
Overhauling blood pressure treatment could potentially save many lives and reduce the burden of chronic disease on the health system, experts say. A group of international researchers - including those from the George Institute in Sydney - analyse Read More...
Immune cell find brings cancer cure closer
Date of Posting: 14-08-2014
Researchers have identified a protein that is vital for boosting the body's natural killers cells, which are the first line of defense against cancer. [subscribe] An immune cell discovery by Melbourne researchers has brought scientists one st Read More...
Date of Posting: 14-08-2014
Implementing the federal government's $7 GP co-payment proposal would be disastrous for indigenous healthcare, the Australian Medical Association president says. Associate Professor Brian Owler has been touring the Northern Territory since Mon Read More...
200 living patients told they're dead
Date of Posting: 14-08-2014
A Melbourne hospital has mistakenly sent out death notices to the GPs of 200 living patients. A Melbourne hospital has erroneously sent out death notices for hundreds of its living patients.[subscribe] More than 200 patients were mistakenly kil Read More...
Bush dwellers' high risk of heart disease
Date of Posting: 14-08-2014
Australians living in rural and regional areas are more likely to experience cardiovascular disease than those in the city. Bush dwellers are 26 per cent more likely to suffer from cardiovascular disease than those living in major cities, research Read More...
Pensioners still "lose out" on safety net
Date of Posting: 14-08-2014
The government says pensioners and other concession card holders won't have to make more than 10 co-payments but figures say they only visit eight times. Pensioners and other concession card holders may not benefit from a capped number of GP c Read More...
Quiet nursing key to patient recovery
Date of Posting: 13-08-2014
Getting a good night’s sleep could soon be a part of the recovery process for patients at Canberra Hospital. Nurses will work to reduce their noise levels and provide tailored individual clinical care, instead of routine care such as vital s Read More...
Clotting drug may aid hip patients
Date of Posting: 13-08-2014
Giving hip or knee replacement patients a clotting drug may reduce the need for a blood transfusion during surgery, experts say. Patients undergoing hip or knee replacement surgery could benefit from taking a clotting drug before their operation, Read More...
Psychology leader develops app for headaches
Date of Posting: 13-08-2014
A team of Australian researchers are developing a unique app that could assist in the treatment of headaches. Australian psychology expert Professor Paul Martin, an international authority on the treatment of headache pain, is leading the research Read More...
Salt injection 'kills cancer cells'
Date of Posting: 13-08-2014
Scientists have created a molecule that can cause cancer cells to die by carrying sodium and chloride ions into the cells. Scientists have created a technique which can cause cancer cells to self-destruct by injecting them with salt.[subscribe] Read More...
Pharmacist survey aims to shape profession
Date of Posting: 12-08-2014
Pharmacists are being asked to participate in a major survey designed to shape the future of the pharmacy profession. The Pharmaceutical Society of Australia (PSA) has launched the survey to gauge pharmacists’ opinions as it works to position Read More...
Support for Noarlunga Hospital nurses
Last Updated: 12-08-2014
Nurses working at an Adelaide hospital have been offered counselling and support after a patient was charged with the murder of another patient. South Australia Police have arrested and charged a 23-year-old Woodcroft man with murder after the dea Read More...
Healthy ways of coping with night work
Last Updated: 12-08-2014
Quiet surroundings and dark curtains are important in getting a good day's sleep for those who work night shifts, a psychologist says. Night workers who have trouble sleeping after their shifts shouldn't rely on sleeping pills, a German ps Read More...
Doctors urged to spot rheumatic fever
Date of Posting: 12-08-2014
Indigenous people are at increased risk of contracting acute rheumatic fever, which is preventable but leads to deadly heart disease if undetected. When Kenya McAdam's joints started hurting when she was 15, she thought it was due to a recent so Read More...
Swine flu cases rising in Australia
Last Updated: 12-08-2014
Nearly 21,000 cases of flu have been confirmed in Australia so far this year, double the number of cases at this time last year. There has been a sharp increase in the number of cases of flu this year.[subscribe] Nearly 21,000 cases of influenz Read More...
Cancer survivors face challenges
Last Updated: 12-08-2014
When GP Elysia Thornton-Benko suspected something wasn't quite right with her body she did everything she tells her patients not to - ignored the symptoms and carried on. "In typical doctor fashion I didn't take my own advice," s Read More...
First DNA based colon cancer test approved
Last Updated: 12-08-2014
The US health regulator has approved the first DNA-based test for colon cancer, which has proven to be more accurate than traditional tests. The US Food and Drug Administration has approved the first screening test for colon cancer that uses patie Read More...
Ebola vaccine may be ready for 2015: UN
Date of Posting: 11-08-2014
Clinical trials of a preventative vaccine for the Ebola virus made by British pharma company GlaxoSmithKline may begin next month and made available by 2015, the World Health Organization said on Saturday. "We are targeting September for the Read More...
Tasmanian nurses and midwives plan industrial action
Last Updated: 08-08-2014
Tasmania’s nurses and midwives will remove goodwill in their planned industrial action as the state government considers introducing a public sector wage freeze. The move comes after the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation’s (A Read More...
New gene tied to major breast cancer risk
Date of Posting: 07-08-2014
It's long been known that faulty BRCA genes greatly raise the risk of breast cancer. Now scientists say a more recently identified, less common gene can do the same. Mutations in the gene can make breast cancer up to nine times more likely to Read More...
New camera technology for Victorian ambulances
Date of Posting: 07-08-2014
Innovative reversing camera technology is being rolled out in new ambulances across Victoria. The technology, designed to provide paramedics driving ambulances with a clearer view of the rear cabin, is already installed in about 50 new ambulances Read More...
Proteins linked to oesophageal cancer
Date of Posting: 06-08-2014
A study has identified four proteins associated with the onset of oesophageal cancer, the precursor to developing a blood test for early detection and better treatment of a particularly lethal disease. The findings - by doctors at Allegheny Health Read More...
Some fats 'reduce diabetes risk'
Date of Posting: 06-08-2014
Not all saturated fats increase the chances of developing diabetes - and some actually protect against the disease, a study has shown. The kind of saturated fat found in dairy products such as yoghurt is likely to reduce type 2 diabetes risk, say Read More...
Stroke care centralisation hailed
Last Updated: 06-08-2014
Centralising stroke services can save the lives of patients and reduce the number of days people spend in hospital, a new study suggests. Having specialist centres in fewer hospitals means patients have access to stroke experts 24 hours a day, sev Read More...
Daily aspirin can ward off cancer
Date of Posting: 06-08-2014
Healthy people should be encouraged to take a daily dose of aspirin to ward off cancer, according to the leader of a new study highlighting the drug's benefits. The research shows that long-term use of aspirin significantly reduces the risk of Read More...
Date of Posting: 05-08-2014
LONDON, AFP - Drugs used to treat HIV could potentially be used to treat multiple sclerosis in the future, experts have said after new research showed that people with the virus have a lower risk of developing MS. Researchers led by Australia' Read More...
Suspected meningococcal death in Qld
Date of Posting: 04-08-2014
Health authorities say the death of a person from suspected meningococcal disease in Queensland's southeast isn't cause for widespread alarm. The disease is the suspected cause of death of a patient who was being treated at a hospital in W Read More...
Rethink for failed pancreatic cancer drug
Date of Posting: 04-08-2014
LONDON, PAA - A failed pancreatic cancer treatment could be resurrected as a personalised medicine aimed at one in five patients with the disease, research suggests. Previous trials showed that the drug rapamycin was ineffective as a general thera Read More...
Mapping DNA code for better treatments
Last Updated: 01-08-2014
LONDON, AFP - British scientists are to map 100,000 complete DNA code sequences in a project that will make the country a world leader in genetic research on cancer and rare diseases, the prime minister says. David Cameron announced STG300 million Read More...
US scientists move toward suicide test
Date of Posting: 01-08-2014
WASHINGTON, AFP - US scientists have identified a gene mutation that appears to be common in people who attempt or commit suicide, a finding that could lead to a blood test to predict risk. The discovery is based on a small study by researchers at Read More...
Last Updated: 24-07-2014
Female genital mutilation (FGM) is estimated to affect more than 125 million girls and women around the globe. A new website provides a platform for Australia’s nurses, midwives and other health professionals caring for those affected by FGM, w Read More...
Bullying app reaches out to remote health professionals
Last Updated: 24-07-2014
Bullying is not just limited to the school playground - it’s rife throughout workplaces, particularly in the health care sector. A new bullying app has been designed to help nurses and allied health care professionals regardless of where they w Read More...
