Health

 

Medical deans call on government to urgently address health crisis

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The South African Committee of Medical Deans (SACoMD) has called on the government to take drastic steps to address the ongoing health crisis in the country.

In a statement‚ the committee said that despite multiple interventions on the part of the minister of health and the National Department of Health‚ it was of the view that the health system in South Africa remained in crisis.

“The Cabinet’s recent decision to place the North West Health Department under administration of the national government in the wake of the health worker protests and the appointment of the Intervention Task Team in the Gauteng Health Department to advise on a turn-around strategy are indicative of a limping and indeed failing health system‚” the committee said. “The Deans are calling on Government to take drastic steps to address the systemic failures in the provincial health departments as a matter of priority‚” it added.
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What to consider when deciding on a medical scheme

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Are your health insurance costs too high? Try decoding your medical aid terms and conditions and associated costs to make sure that it works for you.

“While health insurance is important, it comes at a cost that is rapidly rising. Unfortunately for the consumer, this affects medical scheme membership contribution rates, and the increases of which are sometimes significantly higher than general inflation.

As schemes try to contain their costs in the face of increasing claims, they make changes to their plans and benefits, which can come as a surprise to the consumer,” says Mark Payne, CEO of the Independent Community Pharmacy Association (ICPA).

Annual review of your plan

He recommends that an annual review of your plan is absolutely vital, and will affirm that it is serving your needs rather than the other way around.

The ICPA advises on several important things you should look at when considering a new medical scheme or reviewi
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Medical aid members still have to dig deep in their pockets

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Despite having medical aid, many members still have to fork out chunks of money out of their own pocket for healthcare products and services.

“In South Africa, healthcare services and products is provided by parallel running public and private healthcare systems. Even though private healthcare is only available to a very small section of the South African society (16,3%), it still accounts for a disproportionate 52% of the total expenditure on healthcare,” says Dr Jaco van Zyl, medical executive at Cipla SA.

In the private healthcare market the two main methods of financing is through medical schemes and direct out-of-pocket payments by the patients, paradoxically most of the latter are made by medical scheme members.

Medical schemes

Despite policy initiatives aimed at structuring affordable low cost healthcare funding products, medical schemes have remained unaffordable, and therefore inaccessible, to the majority of South Africans over the last couple
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TEMBISA Hospital in Ekurhuleni – patients often have to sleep on stretchers or mattresses on the floor

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TEMBISA Hospital in Ekurhuleni serves 2,5 million people and delivers 16 000 babies a year but only has 840 beds.

This was revealed yesterday by hospital CEO Dr Lekopane Mogaladi during an oversight inspection conducted by the DA.

Mogaladi said patients often have to sleep on stretchers or mattresses on the floor.

He said the hospital and a private partner had plans to open a prefab medical ward with 24 beds in August. The CEO said the hospital desperately needs 49 more nurses but the Gauteng Health Department has only given them permission to fill four posts.

Head of nursing Wilfred Mothwane said the hospital should have at least 623 more nurses.

“Some of the current nursing staff are going to retire soon. We deliver 42 babies daily with a limited number of midwives,” said Mothwane.

DA Gauteng shadow health MEC Jack Bloom said: “Tembisa would benefit if the health department expanded Edenvale Hospital and built a medical facility in Kempton Par
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Dr Aaron Motsoaledi calls for the arrest of violent hospital protesters

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Health Minister, Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, has condemned violence and disorder perpetrated by staff members at the Charlotte Maxeke Academic Hospital in Johannesburg, protesting against the non-payment of performance bonuses, saying the attack on the sick and vulnerable is unacceptable, and called for the arrest of perpetrators.

“Every decent human being knows who comes to hospitals. These are sick, very sick, vulnerable members of society. They are not part of these labour issues,” Motsoaledi said.

Looking for a affordable Medical Aid or Hospital Plan, just click here Medical Aid or just send your Name, surname, age and email address to 082 738 5586

According to some media reports, staff members were demanding payment of bonuses and increases dating back to 2016. During a protest, patients were forced out of the hospital, damaging equipment
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Are Medical Scheme Members aware of what they are paying for?

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The medical scheme industry is full of jargon and benefit structures that often leave the man on the street confused and frustrated when it comes to understanding and accessing their benefits.

Medical schemes have in recent times attempted to simplify terminology to make it more understandable, but are they doing enough to ensure members know what they are paying for?

A recent survey among Resolution Health Medical Scheme (Resolution Health) members revealed that 87% of respondents felt that they generally understood the benefits they were entitled to on their specific benefit option, while 13% said that they found their benefits more than a little confusing.

This is a worrying statistic says Mark Arnold, Principal Officer of Resolution Health, as it means that a large number of members are not receiving advice from a healthcare broker when it comes to choosing their healthcare option, and may lead to members not having the level of cover they need.

The sur
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Why medical aids are so expensive.

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Healthcare is complex. Our bodies are the most complex machines we know of, and our brains and minds work in ways we do not yet fully comprehend. Despite rapid advances in medicine it remains an imperfect and growing science. This article unpacks just some of the mysteries of the healthcare system.

When health problems arise – whether medical emergencies or the development of a chronic condition – treatment costs can be extremely expensive and often too much for a typical household’s income. The solution to this is the pooling of funds earmarked for healthcare expenses so that subsidies exist between the healthy and the sick and between people at different income levels.

This happens in different ways in different environments. In South Africa, healthcare expenditure for the majority of the population is funded through a portion of general taxes collected.

For those who prefer treatment from so-called private providers, and can afford the premiums (either
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The benefits on low blood pressure

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If you were born with blood pressure on the low side, that’s good news – but there are still a few things worth knowing about this condition.

Having low blood pressure in your genetic make-up means you don’t face the risk of developing heart problems or having a stroke as a result of high blood pressure. However, a sudden drop in blood pressure can indicate something more serious.

What is considered low blood pressure?

Low blood pressure, or hypotension, is a blood pressure measurement of 90/60mm Hg* or below. A normal or ideal blood pressure reading is between 120/80 and 90/60mm Hg. Blood pressure can vary considerably over short periods, depending on:

    • body position
    • stress levels
    • physical conditions
    • medication
    • diet
    • time of day – usually lowest while someone sleeps.

Most people with chronically low blood pressure aren’t even aware of it, and if you have
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Catastrophic antibiotic threat from food

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KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – The greatly excessive use of antibiotics in food production in recent decades has made many bacteria more resistant to antibiotics. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has estimated that antibiotic use in animal husbandry, poultry farming and aquaculture in the US is over four times USDA recommended levels. Meanwhile, the US Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) has estimated that 80 percent of all antibiotics sold in the USA are used on animals.

Cheap antibiotics prone to abuse

Antibiotics are used to ensure better health and survival of animals bred for food, but they are also believed by many farmers to promote growth. As prices of antibiotics remain attractively low, they offer the prospect of higher earnings from greater output at low cost. Hence, there is little or no market incentive to reduce excessive, if not indiscriminate use, and hence the abuse of antibiotics. Thus, such efforts to increase farmer incomes and pro
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Therapy For Breast Cancer Is No Longer Cut And Dried

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High-profile media campaigns have made most South African women aware that breast cancer poses a very real risk. But the message that really needs to be conveyed is that the disease can affect anyone and that most women who get breast cancer do not have risk factors.

In addition, more and more young women are presenting with breast cancer. “The implication for South African women is important: we should be taking proactive steps for women to be ‘breast aware’ from a young age. The earlier it is detected and treated, the better the prognosis,” says specialist surgeon and breast disease specialist, Professor Carol Ann Benn, who established the Netcare Milpark Breast Care Centre of Excellence.

International accreditation

The facility, which was the first breast care centre of excellence to be established in the private sector in South Africa some 16 years ago, has been granted a three-year, full accreditation by the National Accreditation Programme f
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R127-million allocated to demolish Kempton Park Hospital

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The DA said it was shocked to learn that over R6-million has been spent on security at Kempton Park Hospital since its shut down in 1997.

This was revealed by the Gauteng MEC for Infrastructure Development, Jacob Mamabolo, in a written reply to the DA’s Kempton Park constituency head, Refiloe Nt’sekhe.

“According to MEC Mamabolo, R6 932 541.35-m has been spent by the department on guarding this defunct hospital,” Nt’sekhe said on Monday.

In addition, the MEC confirmed that the hospital would be demolished and the process will begin in September at an estimated cost of R127-m.

This hospital should never have been shut down in the first place, Nt’sekhe added.

“By having kept this hospital open, there would not have been as much pressure on Tembisa Hospital, which is clearly not coping with the influx of patients. Residents in this area are forced to make use of only Tembisa Hospital.

“R127-m is a lot of money to be allocated to the demol
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8 Symptoms of Endometriosis Many Doctors Don’t Recognize

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Endometriosis is one of the least understood female conditions.

Despite the fact that roughly 1 in 10 women of reproductive age suffers from endometriosis (equivalent to 5 million women in the United States and 176 million women worldwide) very little is known about the condition (1,2).

Worse yet, about three-quarters of these women experience pelvic pain and/or painful periods as typical symptoms of endometriosis.

What is Endometriosis?

According to WebMD: “Endometriosis occurs when tissue that should line the inside of your uterus, the endometrium, grows outside of it instead. Even though the tissue is outside of your uterus, it still acts like it should during your menstrual cycles. That means at the end of your period, this tissue will break apart and bleed.”

“However, the blood from this tissue has no place to go. Surrounding areas may become inflamed or swollen, and scar tissue and lesions can develop. The most common site fo
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Disastrous antibiotic hazard from food

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The greatly excessive use of antibiotics in food production in recent decades has made many bacteria more resistant to antibiotics. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has estimated that antibiotic use in animal husbandry, poultry farming and aquaculture in the US is over four times USDA recommended levels. Meanwhile, the US Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) has estimated that 80 percent of all antibiotics sold in the USA are used on animals.

Cheap antibiotics prone to abuse

Antibiotics are used to ensure better health and survival of animals bred for food, but they are also believed by many farmers to promote growth. As prices of antibiotics remain attractively low, they offer the prospect of higher earnings from greater output at low cost. Hence, there is little or no market incentive to reduce excessive, if not indiscriminate use, and hence the abuse of antibiotics. Thus, such efforts to increase farmer incomes and profitabili
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Demarcation regulations: In whose best interests?

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Are the demarcation regulations a means for the department of health to erode the private healthcare system in preparation for NHI, or is opposition to its implementation merely an attempt by insurance companies to protect their bottom line?

The Free Market Foundation (FMF) supports the theory of the former, using the argument that come 1 April, when the regulations kick in, 2m poor people will lose the only healthcare cover they can afford, namely primary healthcare insurance products.

“The final demarcation regulations show a blatant disregard for ordinary people’s right to access healthcare and are based on the unsubstantiated claim that health insurance products are harmful to the medical schemes industry,” it says in a statement.

Drawing a line in the sand between medical insurance products and medical schemes the regulations come into force on 1 April 2017 and eliminate existing policies from 1 January 2018.

Limited gap cover and hospital cash
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Why healthcare is so expensive in SA

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Some of the most significant contributors to soaring healthcare costs are fraud, waste and abuse. These are difficult to detect, monitor and prevent because the perpetrators are at every level of the delivery chain from healthcare providers at the top to policy holders at the bottom with many abusive acts playing out under the radar, for months, even years.

“It is estimated that healthcare fraud costs the sector between 5% and 15% of total pay-outs,” says Lynette Swanepoel, healthcare and insurance forensic specialist at the SA Fraud Prevention Services (SAFPS).

“Fraud is definitely a serious element, but on top of that the healthcare industry also has to contend with waste and abuse of benefits,” she says. One example of healthcare fraud is collusion between the policy holders and healthcare service providers such as doctors and pharmacists, where some doctors or pharmacists will supply non-covered items such as toiletries and baby products, falsely clai
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