News Articles
Family violence a 'hidden cause' of youth suicide
Date of Posting: 30-03-2023
Australians are turning a blind eye to the impact of family violence on young people's suicide risk, prompting experts to call for an overhaul of the country's systems. Tash Anderson was a teenager when they lost their 18-year-old brother Read More...
Measles alert after baby diagnosed in western Sydney
Date of Posting: 29-03-2023
People in western Sydney are being urged to watch out for measles symptoms after a baby was diagnosed with the highly infectious respiratory illness. NSW Health says the baby spent time at Parramatta and Westmead on Monday while infectious.[subscr Read More...
WHO revises COVID-19 vaccine recommendations
Date of Posting: 29-03-2023
The World Health Organisation has tailored its COVID-19 vaccination recommendations for a new phase of the pandemic, suggesting that healthy children and adolescents may not necessarily need a shot but older, high-risk groups should get a booster bet Read More...
Regulator may put bite on weight-loss drugs sold online
Date of Posting: 29-03-2023
Websites advertising prescriptions for weight loss drugs via an online quiz could find themselves in hot water from Australia's medicine regulator. Australian-based websites such as Juniper and Mosh advertised their services through social med Read More...
'Millimetre' mistake may have cost patient
Date of Posting: 28-03-2023
High-profile neurosurgeon Charlie Teo says if he cut into the brain just a millimetre too far it could have been be enough for one of his patients never to wake up. Dr Teo appeared before a Health Care Complaints Commission inquiry in Sydney on Tu Read More...
NSW task force appointed to slash wait for surgery
Date of Posting: 28-03-2023
Labor has underlined its focus on health as new Premier Chris Minns announced a clinical-led task force to slash public hospital surgery wait lists. About 100,000 people, including 4000 children, are waiting for elective surgery in NSW, with one i Read More...
'Poo transplant' could help save blood cancer patients
Date of Posting: 28-03-2023
Healthy gut microbiomes are being used in an Australian-first "poo transplant" trial aimed at saving the lives of severely ill blood cancer patients. A faecal microbiota transplant (FMT) involves extracting trillions of gut microbes from Read More...
Charlie Teo says 'the truth' will clear his name
Date of Posting: 27-03-2023
Star neurosurgeon Charlie Teo has admitted making an error during surgery by going "too far" and leaving a patient damaged. The high-profile doctor is appearing at a medical disciplinary hearing to explain how two of his patients ended u Read More...
Longer scripts will make GP visits cheaper
Date of Posting: 27-03-2023
Medicines must be cheaper and easier to access so doctors have more time for their patients, the peak body for GPs says. The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners on Monday issued its call to the federal government, saying the May budg Read More...
South Australia records first measles case since 2019
Date of Posting: 25-03-2023
South Australia has recorded its first case of measles in a resident since 2019 after a three-year-old boy was infected. The boy, from regional South Australia, was infected while travelling overseas.[subscribe] SA Health warned anyone who wasn Read More...
Breaking down the taboo of baby loss with just a name
Date of Posting: 25-03-2023
It was the look on her doctor's face that alerted Danielle Thomas to the fact something was really wrong. Twenty-four weeks into her pregnancy, the 28-year-old and her husband of nearly two years had been planning excitedly for the arrival of Read More...
TB checks continue as calls grow for new vaccine
Date of Posting: 25-03-2023
Screening and checks to contain an outbreak of tuberculosis cases on South Australia's Indigenous lands are continuing amid new calls for extra funding to eliminate the disease by 2030. Earlier this month SA Health reported 10 confirmed TB cas Read More...
Best Recliners For Your Back For Health Professionals
Last Updated: 24-03-2023
Back pain is already a significant issue for the general population, with roughly one in six Australians suffering currently. But, for health professionals, especially nurses, the probability of chronic pain is even higher. The latest statistics show Read More...
Kids ingesting nicotine reason for vaping crackdown
Date of Posting: 23-03-2023
Dozens of children under the age of four ingesting nicotine has been cited by Health Minister Mark Butler as one of the reasons for a crackdown on vaping laws. Mark Butler said there was a need to get vaping "under control", saying the p Read More...
China approves its first mRNA COVID-19 vaccine
Date of Posting: 23-03-2023
China has approved its first domestically developed mRNA vaccine against COVID-19, CSPC Pharmaceutical Group Ltd says, a major achievement in a country that has declined to use foreign coronavirus shots to support domestic research. China, whose h Read More...
No to easing vape laws in bid to protect children
Date of Posting: 22-03-2023
A vape disguised as a highlighter in a child's pencil case is one of the many reasons the federal health minister is pushing for an e-cigarette crackdown. Mark Butler said vapes were being being "shamelessly marketed to kids".[subscr Read More...
Chinese COVID data from market clue to origins
Date of Posting: 22-03-2023
Data from the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic briefly uploaded to a global database by Chinese scientists gives crucial information on the outbreak's origins, researchers say. The virus was first identified in Wuhan in December 2019, with Read More...
Plastic chemicals doing untold human harm
Date of Posting: 22-03-2023
A global coalition of scientists and other experts say the human race is swimming in a toxic soup of chemicals used to make plastics, with potentially dire consequences for humanity. A landmark analysis has just been published by almost 50 interna Read More...
Nationals back vaping access despite health experts
Date of Posting: 21-03-2023
The Nationals are at odds with health experts over the regulation of vapes, arguing retailers should be allowed to sell the nicotine version. "We've got an epidemic out there," the party's federal leader David Littleproud told AB Read More...
Disability service provider 'put revenue over safety'
Date of Posting: 21-03-2023
A nationwide disability service provider has been chastised for prioritising revenue over the health and safety of people in its care. The Australian Foundation for Disability, also known as Afford, also failed to meaningfully engage with or apolo Read More...
Four in five alcohol-related deaths are men
Date of Posting: 21-03-2023
Almost four in five alcohol-related deaths were males and hospitalisations dropped significantly during the first national COVID-19 lockdown in April 2020. Some 1950 Australians died from alcohol-related injuries and 30,000 were taken to hospital Read More...
Seasoned paramedic calls for shift in paramedicine focus
Last Updated: 20-03-2023
Edith Cowan University (ECU) lecturer and PhD candidate Alecka Miles has called for a shift in how paramedicine is seen and funded outside of emergency ambulance care, amid nationwide healthcare shortages. Ms Miles has been a paramedic for almost Read More...
Review ordered into cochlear implant issues for SA kids
Date of Posting: 20-03-2023
An independent review has been ordered into the incorrect programming of cochlear ear implants for as many as 30 children in South Australia which left them unable to hear all the sounds necessary for learning and speech. Health Minister Chris Pic Read More...
Doctor linked to baby deaths banned from practising
Date of Posting: 20-03-2023
The former director of a Victorian medical service where 11 babies died is unlikely to practice again after being banned for 10 years. Lee Gruner was a consultant director of medical services at Djerriwarrh Health at Bacchus Marsh from 2009 to 201 Read More...
New program offers dramatic outcomes for frontline workers and veterans' mental health
Date of Posting: 20-03-2023
First responders and veterans have historically required long term mental health care, primarily for PTSD and Chronic PTSD, but a new program is dramatically reducing the readmission rates for some of our most dedicated health professionals. St Jo Read More...
NSW paramedics to leave non-urgent patients at hospital
Date of Posting: 20-03-2023
Frustrated NSW paramedics are taking matters into their own hands - vowing to leave non-urgent patients at hospitals so they can get back on the road to attend emergencies. The Health Services Union says the decision is being taken to address ramp Read More...
Vaccine-derived poliovirus found in Burundi, DR Congo
Date of Posting: 19-03-2023
Health officials in Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo have detected cases of vaccine-derived poliovirus, the World Health Organisation and Global Polio Eradication Initiative say. The WHO said the Burundian government had declared the d Read More...
Link found between high cholesterol and dementia risks
Date of Posting: 19-03-2023
Scientists at the Heart Research Institute say they have made a major breakthough by finding the definitive relationship between dementia and high levels of cholesterol for the first time. The researchers say the findings are significant, because Read More...
Calls to boost overseas doctor numbers in Australia
Date of Posting: 19-03-2023
International medical graduates should have their applications to work in areas of need in Australia fast-tracked, according to the nation's peak body representing general practitioners. The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners ma Read More...
Calls for more sleep support for new paramedics
Date of Posting: 18-03-2023
New paramedics should be given more support and better sleep strategies to protect them from poor mental health, researchers say. Insomnia and depression increase within six months of recruits starting work, according to new research published in Read More...
Australians losing sleep over cost of living crisis
Date of Posting: 18-03-2023
Australians are losing sleep over the cost of living crisis, with one in three blaming financial pressure for their declining quality of rest. That's the finding from ResMed's global sleep survey, which has also revealed 42 per cent of Aus Read More...
Nurses to sue NSW government over staff shortages
Date of Posting: 16-03-2023
Nurses and midwives are launching legal action against the NSW government over staffing ratios they say are putting patients at risk. The NSW Nurses and Midwives' Association revealed plans on Wednesday to file the case in the Supreme Court wh Read More...
National spotlight shines on Indigenous health equality
Date of Posting: 16-03-2023
Indigenous people have experienced poor health outcomes for generations. Chronic disease, disability and mental health issues impact Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities across the country.[subscribe] First Nations people continue Read More...
Aussie women confirm benefits of Mediterranean diet
Date of Posting: 16-03-2023
Italian women are some of the world's longest-lived and new research has confirmed they owe their vitality to the food they eat. While the heart-healing benefits of the Mediterranean diet have been known for years, the impact on women specific Read More...
Indigenous sleep coach wants a score of 40 winks all
Date of Posting: 15-03-2023
Karen Chong is the world's first Indigenous sleep coach. "We are the people of the Dreamtime with the oldest continuing culture shaped by dreams, which is why I became a sleep coach and I want to train others," she said.[subscribe] Read More...
Top doctor's flu warning ahead of virus triple threat
Date of Posting: 15-03-2023
Dr Nick Coatsworth used to be the face of the COVID-19 vaccine rollout, but even he is guilty of putting off getting the flu jab. The infectious diseases physician came down with a nasty bout of influenza last year and wishes he was protected soon Read More...
Third Victorian dies from Murray Valley encephalitis
Date of Posting: 15-03-2023
A third Victorian has died from the mosquito-borne Murray Valley encephalitis virus. The man aged in his 70s died earlier this month after potentially being exposed to infectious mosquitoes in the northern Campaspe Shire, the health department con Read More...
NSW coalition vows support for women after miscarriage
Date of Posting: 14-03-2023
Grieving NSW women dealing with miscarriage or the heartbreak of stillbirth will be offered more support services, if the coalition government is returned. Some $2 million in funding has been promised ahead of the March 25 election for over-the-ph Read More...
Assaults against people with disabilities underreported
Date of Posting: 14-03-2023
People living with disabilities often face sexual abuse, assault and discrimination, which creates barriers to vital support access, a federal inquiry has been told. Thousands with lived experience, including First Nations people and migrants, hav Read More...
'Unlucky prick': Giving heart attack survivors new hope
Date of Posting: 14-03-2023
Only a fraction of heart attack sufferers in Australia are lucky enough to receive a transplant, driving the need for cheaper, quicker and more reliable treatments. Sean Richardson was just 55-years-old when he encountered a sudden immense pain in Read More...
