Too few doctors in training

[Nivashni Nair and Mhlaba Memela] The shortage of doctors is ham-stringing the health services but medical schools are turning away thousands of aspirant medical practitioners each year. Read more >>

Deutsche Bank Urban Age Award closes soon

Entries for the R750 000 Deutsche Bank Urban Age Award (DBUAA), which is open to Cape Town-based projects that benefit communities and local residents by improving their surrounding urban environments, close at 4pm on Friday 24 February 2012. Read more >>

Preventing bacteria from falling in with the wrong crowd could help stop gum disease

Stripping some mouth bacteria of their access key to gangs of other pathogenic oral bacteria could help prevent gum disease and tooth loss. Read more >>

'Tax breaks for medical professionals needed'

[Janice Roberts] SA reportedly has only 27,000 doctors for a population of 48 million due to the fact that many medical professionals prefer to work overseas. Read more >>

'Huge problems' at Baragwanath Hospital

There are huge problems at the Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital in Soweto, the national health department said. Read more >>

Pensioners set to benefit from NHI

The introduction of the National Health Insurance (NHI) initiative has been examined as to the impact it will have on those who do not have any medical cover, yet one of the overlooked areas is the fact that it will also help to alleviate a major cost burden for those in retirement. Read more >>

Understanding how early breast tumors become deadly

OHIO, USA: Researchers have discovered a restricted pattern of molecules that differentiate early-stage breast tumors from invasive, life-threatening cancer. They also found a similar molecular signature that correlated with the aggressiveness of invasive tumors, and with the time to metastasis and overall survival. Read more >>

Shining a new light on ageing

You probably know by now how bad sunlight is for your skin. Too much of it over time makes you look older than your years. It causes photo-ageing - the medical term for damage to the skin from too much exposure to the sun's ultra violet (UV) radiation rays. Read more >>

New technique successfully dissolves blood clots in brain, lowers risk of brain damage after stroke

Johns Hopkins neurologists report success with a new means of getting rid of potentially lethal blood clots in the brain safely without cutting through easily damaged brain tissue or removing large pieces of skull. The minimally invasive treatment, they report, increased the number of patients with intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) who could function independently by 10 to 15% six months following the procedure. Read more >>

Finger food may help babies avoid obesity - study

Infants outgrowing a liquid diet who give themselves finger food rather than being spoon-fed puree are likelier to eat healthily and avoid getting fat during weaning, according to a study released this week. Read more >>

90% of Americans eat too much salt

WASHINGTON, USA: 90% of Americans eat too much salt every day, and the top food offenders include cheeseburgers, pizza, bread, deli meat and potato chips, US health officials said on Tuesday, 7 February. Read more >>

Famous Harrys join host of celebrities to support Help Harry Help Others

Famous Harrys have united to launch a fundraising campaign for Help Harry Help Others, the campaign started by the inspirational Harry Moseley who died of a brain tumour in October 2011, aged just 11. Read more >>

Confusion over SA, Swiss drugs deal

It was unclear if government had formed a R1.6bn deal with Swiss pharmaceutical giant Lonza to establish the manufacturing of critical drug components, as the company issued a statement saying that talks were still at an early stage. Read more >>

Smoke-free laws lead to less smoking at home

PARIS, FRANCE: Anti-tobacco laws in several European countries prompted many smokers to ban smoking at home and to cut their cigarette consumption, according to a study reported in the journal Tobacco Control on Tuesday, 14 February. Read more >>

Deadly bacterium hits Durban beaches

A deadly bacterium, Vibrio vulnificus, regarded as one of the most deadly pathogens that occur in the ocean has been found of Durban beach and IOL says that a Durban doctor who contracted the bacteria is lucky to be alive. Read more >>

Zuma details massive infrastructure spend

South Africa will spend billions of rands over the coming years on new infrastructure, with the government to focus on building rail, road, and economic links in five regions in the country and building new universities and refurbishing hospitals, President Jacob Zuma said in his State of the Nation Address last night. Read more >>

Ndebele talks tough on road safety

[Francis Hweshe] Transport Minister Sibusiso Ndebele has issued a stern warning to motorists who disregard traffic regulations and cause the death of innocent people. He said there would be no negotiating with those who drove drunk or without a licence, warning that they would be sent to jail. Read more >>

State urged to withdraw 'impractical' liquor bill

While liquor industry bodies acknowledged the impracticality of one of the provisions in Gauteng's draft liquor bill this week, a lawyer has urged the government to withdraw the bill. Read more >>