The government’s plan to ditch medical aid tax credits will have a disastrous effect on already cash-strapped South Africans and force nearly 2 million people onto the over-stretched state health system. If the tax credit is removed, 22% of medical aid users will not be able to afford cover, Stellenbosch economics consultancy Econex warned in..
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Nearly 2 million will lose private healthcare if tax reform happens
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Tygerberg Hospital performs its first deep brain stimulation
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A man with tardive dystonia became the first adult to undergo deep brain stimulation (DBS) at a Western Cape state hospital. His condition drastically improved following the procedure at Tygerberg. Until now it had only been performed on a few children at the Red Cross Children’s Hospital. The dystonia was a side effect of an..
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Edenvale hospitaal erg gevandaliseer deur ontevrede pasiënte
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Sekere dele van die Sizwe hospitaal in Edenvale is erg beskadig deur ‘n brand wat deur ontevrede pasiënte aangerig is. Die aanleiding daartoe was dat ‘n verpleegster dwelms en drank gekonfiskeer het wat pasiënte ingesmokkel het. Dit het hulle woedend gemaak. Hulle het daarop deur die hospitaal beweeg en enigiets wat breekbaar was, gebreek. Die..
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Robot-aided surgery now available in Eastern Cape Province
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The first robot-assisted surgeries to treat prostate cancer in the Eastern Cape were performed by Netcare Greenacres urologists Dr Hannes Brummer and Dr Johan Coetzee this week following the installation of the Da Vinci Si robotic surgical system at the hospital. Similar robotic systems have been installed at Netcare hospitals in Cape Town, Johannesburg and..
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Medical software crippled by recent cyber attack
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Many doctors still can’t use a transcription service made by Nuance Communications Inc. three weeks after the company was hit by a powerful, debilitating computer attack. Hospital systems including Beth Israel Deaconess in Boston and the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center said eScription, a Nuance staple product that allows physicians to dictate notes from a..
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No Bone Scanner for Cancer patients at Livingstone Hospital due to tax glitch
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A tender given to a company which had a tax glitch has resulted in hundreds of state cancer patients waiting months for bone scans, with some so desperately in need they were put on buses to the Western Cape. The standoff due to the tax issue has brought the construction of a special bunker for..
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Kind in Wes-Kaap dood aan witseerkeel
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’n 10-jarige meisie van die Nomzamo-township naby die Strand is dood en drie familielede is besmet met die hoogs aansteeklike bakteriële siekte witseerkeel, het die Wes-Kaapse gesondheidsdepartement Maandag bevestig. Die meisie het op 3 Augustus positief getoets vir die siekte en is die volgende dag dood “weens die erns van die siekte”, sê Mark van..
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Could you have hepatitis and not know it?
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According to the World Health Organisation, Africa has one of the highest hepatitis infection rates in the world. Sadly, many people are unaware they have it. Hepatitis affects 60 million people in Africa. Worldwide, an estimated 325 million people are living with chronic hepatitis-B virus (HBV) or hepatitis-C virus (HCV) infections. What makes this particularly concerning..
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New gene editing technique could treat ALS and Huntington’s.
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A team of researchers from the University of California San Diego School of Medicine have developed a new RNA-oriented gene editing technique which could treat hereditary diseases such as ALS and Huntington’s. The team used a method called RNA-targeting CAS9 (RCas9) to track RNA in live cells and correct “molecular mistakes” which lead to diseases…
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Attack on doctors at public hospitals in South Africa sparks security concerns
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The South African Medical Association (Sama), and its Eastern Cape branch, has condemned the lack of proper security at public hospitals in the province after a doctor was assaulted by a patient. Dr Archie Solombela sustained a fracture to his right arm and a general worker was also hurt during the attack by a psyciatric..
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