News Articles
Inequitable abortion access in Australia 'by design'
Date of Posting: 29-04-2023
Migrant women and international students are facing poorer reproductive health outcomes as advocates push for better access to care for all who need it. A parliamentary committee examining reproductive health services in Australia has held its fin Read More...
Pharmacists to give more vaccine jabs in SA
Date of Posting: 29-04-2023
South Australian pharmacists will administer 10 more vaccines including those for chickenpox, measles, meningococcal, and shingles, in what will be the most comprehensive program in Australia. The state government says the changes will further eas Read More...
5 Reasons Why You Should Only See A Medically Qualified Aesthetics Practitioner
Last Updated: 27-04-2023
In today’s world, there are a variety of ways to achieve the look you desire. But when it comes to aesthetic treatments, such as botox and fillers, choosing a medically qualified practitioner can make all the difference in the outcome. In this Read More...
Call for nursing patience as NSW lift staffing ratios
Date of Posting: 27-04-2023
It will take time to improve nurse-to-patient ratios in NSW hospitals, the government concedes, as it sets up an advisory panel of health leaders to deliver a key election promise. The rule of one nurse for every three patients will be first enfor Read More...
World moving out of COVID-19 emergency phase
Date of Posting: 27-04-2023
The virus causing COVID-19 is here to stay but the world is beginning to transition out of the emergency phase of the pandemic, the World Health Organisation's chief says. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a briefing that the United Nations agen Read More...
WA health budget boost to clear emergency departments
Date of Posting: 27-04-2023
The Western Australian government will spend an additional $75 million in a bid to reduce ambulance ramping and increase available hospital beds. The funding, to be included in the 2023-24 state budget in May, is part of a broad ongoing push over Read More...
Funding to scale-up mRNA vaccine production in SA
Date of Posting: 26-04-2023
New technology will be used to develop and produce mRNA therapeutic drugs and vaccines in Adelaide, helping to address Australia's supply issues highlighted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Thanks to $10 million from the SA and federal governments, t Read More...
Coroner sounds alarm on Victorian youth suicides
Date of Posting: 26-04-2023
Thirteen young Victorians have suicided in the first three months of 2023, with the state's coroner saying the community needs to do more to intervene. In figures released by the Coroners Court on Wednesday, nine of the 13 deaths were males an Read More...
Older Australians 'risking untreated osteoporosis'
Date of Posting: 26-04-2023
Older Australians are putting themselves at risk of potentially life-threatening untreated osteoporosis by foregoing bone density scans. More than 40 per cent of Australians aged 70 and over have never had a bone density scan, also known as a DEXA Read More...
How a COVID-like test could predict dengue death risk
Date of Posting: 20-04-2023
People infected with dengue fever could be able to take a test to determine if they are at high risk of death after scientists discovered a way to assess patients' likelihood of progressing to life-threatening disease. There are up to 400 mill Read More...
Diabetics could switch to pain-free insulin in a pill
Date of Posting: 20-04-2023
Diabetics could one day take a pain-free insulin pill and need fewer injections, new research suggests. Pre-clinical testing shows a newly designed type of oral capsule allows slow-acting insulin to be absorbed at a rate 50 per cent better than wh Read More...
'Time has come': NSW COVID-19 test clinics to close
Date of Posting: 20-04-2023
A once-vital destination during the COVID-19 pandemic is set to be consigned to history, with the last pop-up testing clinics in NSW to close. "The time has come to close down those temporary PCR testing facilities," Premier Chris Minns Read More...
Push for therapy assistants to be on-site in early childhood centres
Last Updated: 19-04-2023
With access to allied health professionals by early childhood centres essential for early intervention, an increasing number of centres are adopting therapy assistants, allowing ongoing allied health support, under the guidance of fully trained profe Read More...
Minister orders inquiry into mental health commission
Date of Posting: 18-04-2023
An investigation has been launched into claims of dysfunction and bullying at the National Mental Health Commission. A report published in The Saturday Paper set out a series of allegations relating to the commission, which was set up just over a Read More...
Injecting rooms cut crime, overdoses, abscesses
Date of Posting: 18-04-2023
Drug users who use medically supervised injecting rooms are far less likely than other addicts to commit a crime, inject in public, overdose, share needles or have abscesses, a study shows. The results were garnered through the first control study Read More...
More schools implementing sensory rooms
Date of Posting: 17-04-2023
An increasing number of schools are implementing sensory rooms into their strategic plans, or repurposing existing rooms into dedicated calming rooms. “Calming sensory rooms are increasingly becoming popular, particularly due to their univer Read More...
Rate of long COVID-19 symptoms mirrored by flu patients
Date of Posting: 17-04-2023
A comparison between the long-term recovery of COVID-19 and influenza patients suggests persistent symptoms are not unique to a specific virus. The study by Queensland Health surveyed more than 2000 people diagnosed with the Omicron variant of COV Read More...
Couple add gift of life to wedding day celebrations
Date of Posting: 17-04-2023
As the needle slid into his arm at the Shire Blood Donor Centre in Miranda in Sydney's south several years ago, Heath Tollis hardly noticed the sting. He was smitten with the woman sitting next to him, a blonde named Sarah, who was also donati Read More...
Health groups hit out at millions in flagged cuts
Date of Posting: 16-04-2023
Community health groups have hit out at a flagged decision to cut millions from preventative health programs in Victoria, saying it will increase pressure on hospitals and lead to job losses. But the Andrews government says it is only acting to re Read More...
Telehealth will help keep kids out of ED in NSW
Date of Posting: 16-04-2023
Families across NSW will be able to access an innovative virtual care program designed to reduce children taking unnecessary trips to hospital. The virtualKIDS Urgent Care Service will be rolled out statewide by the end of the year, the government Read More...
No evidence COVID came from animals
Date of Posting: 16-04-2023
There is no evidence that the COVID-causing virus came from animals, the former head of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says. George Gao, who was speaking at a London summit on preparing for pandemics, was the head of t Read More...
Liver cancer breakthrough paves way for early detection
Date of Posting: 15-04-2023
A breakthrough in liver cancer research could pave the way for early detection for the almost 3000 Australians who are diagnosed with the deadly disease each year. Researchers at Curtin University can now determine the risk of developing liver can Read More...
Remote dialysis to end long treks for outback patients
Date of Posting: 15-04-2023
Kidney failure may not be fatal, but for people in remote communities it can feel that way when they are forced to travel thousands of kilometres for treatment. Yanyuwa woman Carol Charlie has spent the last six years in Darwin, nearly 1000km from Read More...
Study backs health benefits of four-day working week
Date of Posting: 15-04-2023
A four-day working week can help people exercise more and sleep better, leading to improvements in cognitive functioning and helping prevent serious illness, a new study has found. The University of South Australia investigation showed holidays ar Read More...
Push for tetanus vaccination after recent death
Date of Posting: 13-04-2023
NSW Health is urging people to get vaccinated for tetanus after three recent cases in NSW, including one death that was the first in 30 years. Director of Communicable Diseases Christine Selvey said older Australians in particular should ensure th Read More...
Chemicals in 'new car smell' could pose health risk
Date of Posting: 13-04-2023
That new car smell owners gush about can be loaded with cancer-linked chemicals, and scientists fear the risk to drivers could be high. A new international study has measured chemical emissions inside the cabin of a new car that was parked outside Read More...
Poisonous mushrooms warning following Easter rain
Date of Posting: 13-04-2023
Victorians are being warned to stay away from wild mushrooms, with Easter downpours creating ideal conditions for poisonous fungi to flourish. Mushrooms are sprouting up earlier and in much larger numbers than in previous years after a damp summer Read More...
Struggle for Qld maternity staff detailed in FOI docs
Date of Posting: 12-04-2023
Maternity services at two Queensland regional hospitals were under threat last year as the Health Department struggled to find staff amid a COVID-19 wave, freedom of information documents reveal. Email correspondence obtained by the state oppositi Read More...
Flu, COVID-19 jabs encouraged before 'triple pandemic'
Date of Posting: 12-04-2023
Young children, older Australians and other vulnerable people are being urged to get vaccinated for COVID-19 and influenza amid fears a range of viruses could create a perfect winter storm. Forecasting ahead of the colder months is tricky but heal Read More...
Treasurer warns vaping is hurting health and the budget
Date of Posting: 12-04-2023
The treasurer warns the explosion in vaping is weighing on the budget as well as the health of Australians. The switch to vaping and black-market tobacco products is costing the government about $5 billion in lost taxes, according to numbers crunc Read More...
US ends COVID-19 national emergency after three years
Date of Posting: 11-04-2023
The US national emergency to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic has ended as President Joe Biden signed a bipartisan congressional resolution to bring it to a close after three years. The national emergency allowed the government to take sweeping st Read More...
Time to find out your 'real age', researchers say
Date of Posting: 11-04-2023
Australians could be older than they think. Researchers say they can measure the biological age of a person's brain and organs, challenging the belief that age is determined by your date of birth.[subscribe] And it's good news for those Read More...
Call to put patients before profits in budget measures
Date of Posting: 11-04-2023
Patients must be put before profits, warns a peak body representing doctors as pressure mounts for the federal budget to address rising medical costs. Treasurer Jim Chalmers is due to hand down the budget in four weeks as the cost of living increa Read More...
Lockdowns made us feel worse, but only slightly
Date of Posting: 10-04-2023
Melbourne's lengthy COVID-19 lockdowns may not have been as devastating to the mental health of its residents as first thought. The city was subject to six lockdowns of a cumulative 260-plus days in 2020 and 2021, giving the Victorian capital Read More...
Combining physio and fun with Disco Physio
Date of Posting: 10-04-2023
Combining the benefits of structured physiotherapy and the fun of the silent disco, Disco Physio is the hidden gem for those who want to move their bodies and nurture their minds. “Disco Physio is a fun and energising fitness class run Read More...
China health officials lash out at WHO over virus data
Date of Posting: 09-04-2023
Chinese health officials have defended their search for the source of the COVID-19 virus and lashed out at the World Health Organisation after its leader urged Beijing to share genetic information. The WHO comments were "offensive and disresp Read More...
New lifesaving drugs free for rare inherited diseases
Last Updated: 09-04-2023
Two breakthrough medicines will be available free for Australians with extremely rare and life-threatening inherited diseases. The drugs will help save the lives of newborn babies and offer an easy oral alternative to treatments delivered by in-ho Read More...
China has the key to understanding COVID origins
Date of Posting: 08-04-2023
The World Health Organisation chief has pressed China to share its information about the origins of COVID-19, saying all hypotheses remain on the table more than three years after the virus first emerged. "Without full access to the informati Read More...
Prostate cancer patients trapped in treatment gap
Date of Posting: 08-04-2023
Prostate cancer is Australia's most diagnosed disease and the costliest to treat yet major public and private sector differences mean access to preferred care for many men is too expensive. Private patient costs for a robotic prostatectomy, a Read More...
Ambulance ramping spikes at SA hospitals
Date of Posting: 08-04-2023
Ambulance ramping outside Adelaide's major public hospitals jumped last month with the state government looking to improve patient flows through emergency departments to help ease the crisis. The latest figures showed almost 4000 hours were lo Read More...
