News Articles
No quick ramping fix amid WA health spend
Date of Posting: 03-05-2022
Western Australia's government will pour a further $252 million into emergency departments amid warnings there is no quick fix to near-record ambulance ramping. The package, to be funded in next week's budget, ensures there will be registe Read More...
Housing designed for people with disabilities reduces the help needed
Date of Posting: 03-05-2022
The federal government has been warning that the rising cost of the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) is unsustainable. More than a third of NDIS funding is spent on in-house support provided to 5% of NDIS participants with the highest n Read More...
Lockdowns doubled your risk of mental health symptoms
Date of Posting: 03-05-2022
During the almost two years of on-again off-again COVID lockdowns, we heard lots of concern from many different corners about the mental health effects of forcing people to stay home and keep away from friends and family. Many research proje Read More...
More job support needed for people with a disability
Date of Posting: 03-05-2022
Employment can bring positive outcomes for people with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), but new analysis says more long-term support is needed to help individuals reach their full potential. Researchers from Flinders University’s Colle Read More...
Beijing tightens COVID-19 restrictions
Date of Posting: 02-05-2022
China's capital Beijing has tightened COVID restrictions as it battles an outbreak, while Shanghai let some of its 25 million residents venture out for light and air after reporting a second day of zero infections outside of quarantine areas. Read More...
Australia reports 15 more virus deaths
Date of Posting: 02-05-2022
Australia has recorded a further 15 COVID-related deaths and more than 32,000 new virus cases. NSW reported 9303 infections and five fatalities on Sunday, while there were 7654 new cases and seven deaths in Victoria, two deaths in South Australia Read More...
Omicron sub-lineages dodge immunity
Date of Posting: 02-05-2022
Two new sub-lineages of the Omicron coronavirus variant can dodge antibodies from earlier infection well enough to trigger a new wave, but are far less able to thrive in the blood of people vaccinated against COVID-19, South African scientists have f Read More...
New PBS listings to save patients millions
Date of Posting: 01-05-2022
Australians now have cheaper access to treatments for breast cancer, spinal muscular atrophy and the painful inflammatory condition EoE. Eosinophilic oesophagitis causes difficulty swallowing and chest discomfort, affecting an estimated 2000 peopl Read More...
Australians urged to check blood pressure
Date of Posting: 01-05-2022
More than one in five Australians are living with uncontrolled high blood pressure and many don't even realise it. But with hypertension often leading to potentially fatal stroke, the nation is being urged to undertake more regular checks.[sub Read More...
Queensland boosts flu shot coverage
Date of Posting: 01-05-2022
An extra 70 pharmacies in Queensland's regions will help administer flu shots as part of a pilot scheme linked to the National Immunisation Program this winter. The measure follows free vaccination clinics in Sydney and Melbourne, while Tasman Read More...
Child hepatitis cases rise in UK
Date of Posting: 30-04-2022
The UK Health Security Agency has identified 34 confirmed hepatitis cases in children since Monday, bringing the total number to 145 amid a series of unexplained cases among children around the world. The agency says 10 children had received liver Read More...
Two thirds of Kids Helpline calls missed
Last Updated: 30-04-2022
Nearly two thirds of calls for help from young Victorians went unanswered as the demand for Kids Helpline spiked during the pandemic. Close to 123,000 Victorians tried to contact the service last year, a 20 per cent increase on 2019 levels, but co Read More...
US reports first human case of H5 bird flu
Date of Posting: 30-04-2022
The first known human case of H5 bird flu in the United States has appeared in a person in Colorado, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says. The person tested positive for avian influenza A(H5) virus and was involved in the cull Read More...
UK kids unfit, overweight after pandemic
Date of Posting: 29-04-2022
Nearly half of British children are overweight because of a lack of fitness exacerbated by lockdowns induced by the pandemic. A study done in partnership with researchers from the University of South Australia and Western Australia's Murdoch U Read More...
Seven hours of sleep ideal, says new study
Date of Posting: 29-04-2022
Seven hours of sleep per night is the ideal amount in middle to older age, a study suggests. Both too much and too little sleep are associated with poorer cognitive performance and mental health, according to researchers from Cambridge University Read More...
Rural cancer patients missing out
Date of Posting: 29-04-2022
Cancer patients in rural Australia are missing out on critical information about recovery and disease recurrence, potentially affecting their chances of survival, a study has found. A survey of 201 cancer patients from rural Queensland found 65 pe Read More...
Future health planning gaps between GPs, nurses and the public exposed
Date of Posting: 28-04-2022
As Australia’s population ages, nurses recommend people start actioning Advance Care Planning in their early 40s, 15 years ahead of what GPs suggest and what the public believe is necessary according to a new study from QUT. The findings, wh Read More...
Poor health symptoms have emerged in 53% of Aussies during the pandemic
Date of Posting: 28-04-2022
A telehealth doctor is urging the public to seek medical advice if they experience emerging health symptoms, after a survey found that surprising health issues have appeared in more than half the population (53 per cent) since the pandemic began. Read More...
Aussie parents 'hoodwinked' on baby foods
Date of Posting: 28-04-2022
Half of Australian parents are swallowing a dubious notion that ready-made baby and toddler foods are at least as healthy as home-made options, a new poll shows. The Royal Children's Hospital latest national survey, which polled 1023 parents w Read More...
Mushroom alert after child hospitalised
Date of Posting: 28-04-2022
A young child has been hospitalised in the ACT after eating a dangerous wild mushroom. The incident has sparked a public health alert from the territory's chief health officer Kerryn Coleman, warning Canberrans not to pick or eat wild mushroom Read More...
Doctors to kick 'opioid-first' habit
Date of Posting: 28-04-2022
Australian doctors will be encouraged to consider alternatives to prescribing opiates to protect patients from becoming addicted or overdosing on the medication. New standards of care released on Wednesday by the Australian Commission on Safety an Read More...
China finds first human H3N8 bird flu case
Date of Posting: 27-04-2022
China has recorded the first human infection with the H3N8 strain of bird flu, according to the country's health authority which says the risk of it spreading among people is low. A four-year-old boy from central Henan province was found to ha Read More...
Second Ebola patient dies in DR Congo
Date of Posting: 27-04-2022
A second Ebola patient has died in northwestern Democratic Republic of Congo, the World Health Organisation has announced, days after a fresh outbreak of the deadly disease emerged. Genetic testing showed an infection confirmed last week was a new Read More...
Patient ramping edged up in southeast Qld
Date of Posting: 27-04-2022
Almost half of all patients waited more than 30 minutes in an ambulance before being admitted to hospital in southeast Queensland in December. Queensland Ambulance Service figures show ramping rose two per cent to more than 46 per cent of patients Read More...
COVID-19 cases aboard cruise ship in WA
Date of Posting: 26-04-2022
A dozen people have contracted COVID-19 on one of the first cruise ships allowed back into Western Australia since the pandemic began. Ten passengers and two crew have tested positive aboard the Coral Discoverer, which arrived in Broome early on M Read More...
Anzac Day patrons urged to be COVID-safe
Date of Posting: 26-04-2022
With many jurisdictions preparing for the return of full-scale Anzac Day services after two COVID-disrupted years, Victoria’s health department has shared risk-mitigation tips. It recommends patrons wear a mask when unable to physically dist Read More...
Aged care pay rise case set to begin
Date of Posting: 26-04-2022
A push to increase aged care worker wages will move into the spotlight when hearings begin in the Fair Work Commission. The case by the Health Services Union, which begins on Tuesday, will seek to lift wages for workers in the sector by 25 per cen Read More...
The SHPA Australian Injectable Drugs Handbook essential for nurses during the pandemic
Last Updated: 26-04-2022
As the COVID-19 pandemic has evolved, the Australian Injectable Drugs Handbook (AIDH), which is developed by expert hospital pharmacists, has remained an essential companion for Australia’s nurses. In May 2020 amid the first wave of c Read More...
Veterans shouldn't suffer in silence
Date of Posting: 25-04-2022
Uncle Harry Allie spent more than three decades in the Royal Australian Air Force but was left struggling to hear when someone spoke - lip reading and straining his ear to follow conversations. And driving his wife to distraction with the TV volum Read More...
Stroke study probes gender disparity
Date of Posting: 25-04-2022
Stroke is Australia's third most common cause of death, with 55,000 people likely to suffer one each year. While the risk between the ages of 45 and 85 is one in four for men and one in five for women, the latter experience worse post-stroke d Read More...
Medicines implicated in anaphylaxis study
Date of Posting: 25-04-2022
Medications rather than insect bites, pollen or food triggers are a factor in more than one in eight presentations of potentially fatal anaphylaxis, researchers say. More than 11,500 Australians present to emergency departments after anaphylactic Read More...
New Ebola case confirmed in Congo
Date of Posting: 25-04-2022
A new case of Ebola has been confirmed in northwestern Democratic Republic of Congo, the National Institute of Biomedical Research says, four months after the end of the country's last outbreak. The case was detected in the city of Mbandaka, c Read More...
NSW finalises COVID school return plans
Date of Posting: 25-04-2022
Teachers and students will still be able to attend school if someone they live with contracts COVID-19 as NSW announces its plans for the return of school for the second term of the year. The changes to isolation requirements are in line with thos Read More...
Brits eye best and brightest Aussie ambos
Date of Posting: 25-04-2022
Already decimated by COVID-19 and under growing pressure to replenish a worn out front line, Australian ambulance services are about to lose some of their best and brightest replacements. Hundreds of desperately needed fresh troops are being targe Read More...
Cost of medicines a key election issue
Date of Posting: 23-04-2022
Health and community pharmacy peak bodies have formed a coalition urging parties to recognise medicine affordability as a key election issue. The Pharmacy Guild of Australia, the Australian Patients Association, Chronic Pain Australia and Musculos Read More...
Sydney surgeon struck off after two deaths
Date of Posting: 23-04-2022
A prominent Sydney surgeon who rushed operations on two patients who died has been deregistered for one year. Dr William Mooney also was found to have had a relationship with a third patient and lied about his failure to attend a drug test.[subscr Read More...
Dementia Australia launches new workforce training app
Date of Posting: 22-04-2022
Dementia Australia has launched a new app, called Ask Annie, which offers short, self-paced learning modules to help care workers refresh their skills and learn tips and tools to provide better care to people living with dementia. Ask Annie is now Read More...
The pain triggered by working from home
Date of Posting: 22-04-2022
It has been more than two years since Australians were told to pack up their desks and work from home, yet according to Osteopathy Australia, two-thirds of those who work remotely still do not have a dedicated, ergonomic home office space. Despite Read More...
Emotional welfare must be a focus of nurse education
Date of Posting: 22-04-2022
Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the topics of burnout and compassion fatigue have been in the spotlight. And one emergency nurse has welcomed the attention these issues have received, adding that there needs to be even more focus on educati Read More...
Major funding boost for detecting diabetes in pregnancy in rural communities
Date of Posting: 22-04-2022
A ground-breaking project set up to protect the health of Aboriginal mothers and their families in rural communities by optimising the screening and management of hyperglycaemia in pregnancy has received a $3.2 million funding boost from the Medical Read More...
