News Articles
Thousands of teens eligible for boosters
Date of Posting: 04-02-2022
An extra 380,000 people are now eligible for a COVID-19 booster after 16- and 17-year-olds were given the final green light to receive their third dose. The country's leading advisory group on immunisations gave the second and final approval f Read More...
Data shows growing Indigenous vaccine gap
Date of Posting: 04-02-2022
All states and territories have failed to vaccinate Indigenous Australians against COVID-19 at the same rate as the rest of the country, with new data exposing a worrying health gap. An update of Indigenous vaccination rates, shared by the federal Read More...
Cancer patients in self-imposed lockdown
Date of Posting: 04-02-2022
Breast cancer sufferer Claire Simpson has placed herself in a self-imposed lockdown due to ongoing COVID-19 infection rates. However, her concern isn't only about getting sick.[subscribe] "It's more that if I were to catch it, it w Read More...
Lack of support for women who have early miscarriages
Date of Posting: 04-02-2022
Women are not being offered the mental health support they need after experiencing a miscarriage in the first trimester of pregnancy, despite healthcare workers recognising it as a significant loss, researchers from the University of Otago, Wellingto Read More...
Australian College of Nursing calls for urgent tax-free COVID payment to NSW nurses
Date of Posting: 04-02-2022
In line with today’s call from the Perrottet Government requesting JobSaver-style support from the Commonwealth, the Australian College of Nursing wants some of this funding to go urgently to nurses in NSW. “Nurses are the largest regi Read More...
Qld records 16 deaths, including child
Date of Posting: 03-02-2022
Another 16 people have died with COVID-19 in Queensland including a child under the age of 10 amid calls for more kids to get vaccinated before school returns. Queensland recorded 9630 new cases after 22,437 tests in the past 24 hours.[subscribe] Read More...
New research sheds light on kids' coughs
Date of Posting: 03-02-2022
Children who experience a nasty and persistent wet cough may be affected by an antibiotic-resistant slime, new research suggests. Some kids with stubborn coughs had a newly-discovered "bacterial slime - called a biofilm - in their lungs," Read More...
NSW regions face hit to workplace safety
Date of Posting: 03-02-2022
The number of complaints to the NSW agency in charge of workplace health and safety from regional areas was on track for a record high last year, while the number of inspections carried out tracked towards an all-time low. Despite the surge in com Read More...
Critical care nursing shortage exacerbated by pandemic
Last Updated: 03-02-2022
By Professor Margaret Fry A shortage of nurses is predicted for most specialities across Australia, including critical care, and the Covid-19 pandemic has significantly exacerbated the shortage.[subscribe] The forecast shortfall of about 85,000 Read More...
Aged care concern, 10 virus deaths in Qld
Date of Posting: 02-02-2022
Another 10 people have died with COVID-19 in Queensland as the state raises concerns about the percentage of aged care residents who have received a booster. Eight of the ten deaths reported on Tuesday were aged care residents, none of whom had re Read More...
Omicron subvariant BA.2 'more infectious'
Last Updated: 02-02-2022
The BA.2 subvariant of the Omicron coronavirus variant, which has quickly taken over in Denmark, is more transmissible than the more common BA.1 and more able to infect vaccinated people, a Danish study has concluded. The study, which analysed cor Read More...
Schools resume, elective surgery to return
Date of Posting: 02-02-2022
Tens of thousands of NSW school students have started the school year after undergoing the first of many rapid antigen tests in a bid to keep a lid on an anticipated spike in COVID-19 cases as classes resume. NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet says the Read More...
Virus sub-variant 'not cause for concern'
Last Updated: 01-02-2022
A new COVID sub-variant circulating in Australia is not yet causing concern among health experts, says the deputy chief medical officer. Professor Michael Kidd says although the Omicron sub-variant - known as BA.2 - appears to have a higher " Read More...
Workers isolate as Omicron hits WA mines
Date of Posting: 01-02-2022
A growing Omicron outbreak threatens to plunge Western Australia's lucrative mining sector into chaos amid renewed calls for the state to reopen its borders. Twelve new local cases emerged on Monday, including seven linked to a Perth nightclub Read More...
Rapid test concern as schools return
Date of Posting: 01-02-2022
As experts predict a spike in COVID-19 cases following students returning to classrooms, a new survey has forecast large numbers of infections could go undetected. The survey found nearly one in three parents in NSW and Victoria don't plan to Read More...
Aid for NSW business as virus deaths rise
Date of Posting: 31-01-2022
The NSW government has announced a $1 billion support package for businesses hit hard by the Omicron outbreak as the state records its deadliest day of the pandemic so far. There were 52 deaths and 13,524 new positive COVID-19 tests reported in th Read More...
Anxiety high ahead of return to school
Date of Posting: 31-01-2022
Bella Greco is nervous about starting Year 12 as COVID-19 cases soar across Australia. The 17-year-old isn't anxious about contracting the virus, she's more concerned about missing the important coming-of-age milestones if sickness takes h Read More...
Women ignored in heart attack stereotyping
Date of Posting: 31-01-2022
Women are more likely to ignore or have heart disease symptoms misdiagnosed because they are not seen as likely candidates for heart attacks, researchers say. It is no surprise heart disease kills more men but it is still one of the leading causes Read More...
Australia posts near record virus toll
Date of Posting: 31-01-2022
After a pandemic-high 98 fatalities were reported on Friday, a further 97 were announced on Saturday, 49 of them in NSW, which constituted its deadliest day to date. Victoria registered 31 deaths, Queensland 12 and South Australia five.[subscribe] Read More...
Spain, Canada say Omicron has peaked
Date of Posting: 31-01-2022
Health authorities in Spain and Canada say all indications point to the worst of the Omicron variant of coronavirus having passed while officials in Iceland prepare to relax pandemic restrictions. There are optimistic signs that Spain has passed t Read More...
NSW posts deadliest virus day, 49 deaths
Date of Posting: 31-01-2022
The toll also follows Friday’s announcement of an additional 35 fatalities in the state’s aged care facilities that were slow to inform local health authorities over the past month. More than 250 NSW deaths have been reported in the pa Read More...
UK to start rolling out Pfizer virus pill
Date of Posting: 29-01-2022
The United Kingdom will start rolling out Pfizer's COVID-19 pill to vulnerable people next month, the health ministry says, targeting the treatment at people with compromised immune systems for whom the vaccine can be less effective. The healt Read More...
No change to full vaccination definition
Date of Posting: 29-01-2022
The Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (ATAGI) is still considering whether to change its advice about the definition of full vaccination. If it does, it’s up to states and territories to amend their respective public health Read More...
Cancer lawsuit over Fukushima disaster
Date of Posting: 29-01-2022
Six people who were living in Fukushima at the time of the 2011 nuclear disaster and have since developed thyroid cancer have filed a lawsuit demanding compensation for their illnesses. The people, now aged 17-27 and living in and outside of Fukus Read More...
World's weekly COVID cases hits record
Date of Posting: 27-01-2022
The World Health Organisation says there were 21 million new coronavirus cases reported globally last week, the highest weekly number of COVID-19 cases recorded since the pandemic began. The number of deaths was largely unchanged, at more than 50, Read More...
New S.Korea testing scheme as virus surges
Date of Posting: 27-01-2022
South Korea's daily new coronavirus cases have exceeded 13,000 for the first time, driven by the spread of the Omicron variant, as the government launches a new pilot testing scheme to meet skyrocketing demand. The record 13,012 cases for the Read More...
Vic doctor banned for fake vaxx exemptions
Date of Posting: 27-01-2022
A doctor who handed out 149 fake vaccination exemptions over two years and altered a letter from Victoria's deputy chief health officer has been banned from practising. John Piesse was this week reprimanded under national law, following action Read More...
Concern for mental health in virus wave
Date of Posting: 26-01-2022
Concerns are growing that people needing mental health support are not reaching out for help amid the COVID-19 Omicron wave, as hospital presentation rates fall. A similar effect was observed at the start of the pandemic two years ago, NSW chief p Read More...
AUSMAT heads to remote NT community
Date of Posting: 26-01-2022
The Northern Territory has reported 286 new COVID-19 cases as an Australian Medical Assistance Team and the military step in to help combat a remote Aboriginal community outbreak. The cluster in Galiwin'ku on Elcho Island, 515km east of Darwin Read More...
Disability staff with COVID still working
Date of Posting: 26-01-2022
Two COVID-19 positive disability support workers at a residential facility in regional Victoria have been granted an exemption by the state's health department to continue working. The Health and Community Services Union has confirmed to AAP t Read More...
Families of children with cancer say the pandemic has helped them feel seen
Last Updated: 25-01-2022
For billions of people across the world, life as we knew it stopped in 2020. Families and friends were separated. Masks mandated. Hand washing essential. Every trip outside became risky. As news of deaths, variants and long-term Read More...
Researchers find new way to treat listeria
Date of Posting: 25-01-2022
Researchers have found another way to fight listeria infections that can cause severe illness in pregnant women and people with immune deficiencies. The team from the University of Queensland discovered a new method of blocking the bacteria from m Read More...
Vitamin D won't increase life expectancy
Date of Posting: 25-01-2022
Monthly vitamin D supplements won't increase life expectancy for older Australians, a study has found. However, results from the QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute's landmark trial indicates large monthly vitamin D doses may slightl Read More...
Women vulnerable under Tas health system
Date of Posting: 25-01-2022
Women are particularly vulnerable under Tasmania's "stressed" regional healthcare system, with long wait times, high turnover of locum doctors, and lack of childcare impeding access, a Senate inquiry has been told. Women's Health Read More...
Private patients to swell Qld virus cases
Date of Posting: 24-01-2022
Queensland's COVID-19 hospitalisations and deaths are getting harder to accurately record as authorities reveal that private hospital virus patients haven't been included in its figures. Another 10 people died and 11,947 new cases were rec Read More...
Eczema treatment subsidy to help thousands
Date of Posting: 24-01-2022
Relief is in sight for Australians faced with bills of almost $30,000 a year as a treatment for a severe type of eczema is listed on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme. Atopic dermatitis is a chronic skin condition that can have a significant impa Read More...
Pfizer CEO wants annual vax, not boosters
Date of Posting: 24-01-2022
Pfizer chief executive Albert Bourla says an annual COVID-19 vaccine is preferable to more frequent booster shots in fighting the coronavirus pandemic. Pfizer and BioNtech's COVID-19 vaccine is shown to be effective against severe disease and Read More...
What have we learnt from deaths in aged care?
Last Updated: 24-01-2022
Australia’s aged care homes are being devastated by the current wave of COVID infections, with more than 1,100 outbreaks affecting over 7,000 residents and staff. Fear of outbreaks has prompted other homes to lock down and their residen Read More...
A healthier heart can protect your brain too. 5 lifestyle changes to prevent dementia
Last Updated: 24-01-2022
When we think of dementia, we often fear a loss of control. But the reassuring news is up to 40% of dementias can be prevented or delayed if we change our health habits. Nearly half a million Australians are living with dementia. With Read More...
SA virus cases fall by almost a third
Date of Posting: 23-01-2022
South Australia has posted a major decline in COVID-19 cases, with 2193 new infections or almost a third fewer than on Friday. However the state has recorded a further three virus-related deaths.[subscribe] Health officials say the latest fatal Read More...
