Posts tagged with 'Medical Aid News'

 

Bonitas:- Price hike and big changes for medical aid plans in 2019

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Medical aid scheme Bonitas is to increase prices across its various plans by a weighted average of 8.9% in 2019 – while also launching two new lower-cost plans.

The group said that the weighted average is on par with the industry corridor of 3% to 4% above CPI, and comes amid a tough economic climate, which included a hike in VAT to 15% in April 2018.

“The past 12 months have been extremely trying, with a number of uncertainties and changes anticipated,” said Bonitas principal officer, Gerhard Van Emmenis.

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“In addition, consumers have been heavily impacted by the increase in VAT and escalating prices which resulted from this.”

In July Bonitas reporte
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ATM pharmacy launches in Bloemfontein (Free State)

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Twin City Mall in Bloemfontein is the newest site for the innovative ATM pharmacy that gives patients with chronic illnesses repeat medication in under five minutes.

The Pharmacy Dispensing Unit (PDU) was unveiled on 25 September, during Pharmacy Month, at the central community shopping centre, which is on main transport routes and is open for extended hours including weekends and public holidays. The first such dispensing unit was launched in Alexandra in Gauteng in March this year.

The Pharmacy Dispensing Unit works like an ATM for medication, with Skype-like audio-visual interaction between patient and a remotely located tele-pharmacy contact centre. Patients are able to talk to pharmacists in a call centre 400km away in Centurion, Gauteng – showcasing the benefits of tele-pharmacy to patients in rural and outlying areas. This allows patients to access accurate medicine information and counselling from qualified pharmacy staff.

The dispensing data is hosted
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Why is alcohol withdrawal so hard on some people, the genes may hold the answer

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Some heavy drinkers suffer intense withdrawal symptoms when they try to stop drinking – some, less so. A new Yale-led international study of individuals with alcohol dependence has identified gene variants that may help explain why “detox” from alcohol is particularly difficult for some people.

The researchers reported their findings on 25 September in the journal Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research, the official journal of the Research Society on Alcoholism.

“Alcohol takes more lives in the United States and South Africa every year than opioids, but there are few effective treatments to help people who have an alcohol use disorder,” said Andrew H. Smith, lead author of the study and a research affiliate in the laboratory of senior author Joel Gelernter, Foundations Fund Professor of Psychiatry and Professor of Genetics and of Neuroscience. “For people who experience intense withdrawal symptoms, that’s one more barrier they have to face while
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Smart hospitals in Africa set to achieve more high performance facilities

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The next generation of healthcare buildings will be very different from the hospitals, clinics and general practitioner (GP) surgeries we are familiar with today.

A revolution in building design is already underway, which has largely been prompted by an acceleration of technological innovation, changing population demographics, shifts in expectations of how healthcare should be provided and environmental considerations.

In the pursuit of a prosperous future of inclusive and sustainable growth, where all African people have a high standard of living, quality of life, sound health and well-being, learning from global trends and adapting these to suit African conditions may be the key to building successful networks of healthcare infrastructure and medical facilities across the continent.

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A Gauteng hospital to be rebuilt for R1.3 billion

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Civil society organisations say that the cash-strapped province should rather save money and renovate the abandoned Kempton Park hospital.

Not only will the Gauteng Department of Infrastructure Development spend R127-milion to demolish the derelict Kempton Park Hospital, formerly known as Khayalami, they are planning to rebuild it for a whopping R1.3-billion.

This decision has been criticised by civil society organisations, who say the cash-strapped province should rather renovate the abandoned hospital and not waste money. The DA has promised to “closely monitor” the process.

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Costs ‘closely matched’

Defending their decision on why they could not renovate the Ekur
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Looking at some South Africa hospital horrors

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South Africa´s recent spate of hospital horror stories and the sharp rise in cases of medical negligence are disturbing with medical negligence claims against provincial the country´s Health Departments increasing by around 25 per cent per year between 2011 and 2016.

This is according to Kirstie Haslam, partner at DSC Attorneys who says that the Gauteng Department of Health, (South Africa´s wealthiest province) receives a particularly staggering number of negligence claims each year. Since January 2015, it has been forced to pay out more than R1.017 billion ($US74 million) to settle 185 medical negligence claims.

“Deteriorating conditions in state hospitals, as well as incompetence and gross negligence on the part of staff members, are at the root of these claims – the vast majority of which were ruled in favour of the plaintiffs,” Haslam explains.

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It’s now 90 years ago that Penicillin was discovered – and despite resistance, the future looks good for antibiotics

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When the NHS turned 70 this year, I was reminded of another anniversary which has had an enormous impact on healthcare over many years. Penicillin is 90 this year.

Discovered in September 1928 by Alexander Fleming, it was first used as a cure when George Paine treated eye infections with it in 1930. A method for mass production was devised by Howard Florey and Ernst Chain in 1940, and it was first mass produced in 1942, with half of that total supply used for one patient being treated for streptococcal septicaemia.

In 1944, 2.3m doses were produced in time for the Normandy landings of World War II. And it was then that the miracle of penicillin became clear. Soldiers who had previously died from septicaemia were surviving.

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MEDICAL AID PREMIUMS SET TO INCREASE IN 2019

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Medical aid schemes have announced that the premiums paid by members are set to increase in 2019.

Talk Radio 702’s Xolani Gwala spoke to Paresh Prema, general manager of the benefits unit at Council for Medical Schemes, about what medical schemes consider reasons for increasing the premiums.

Prema says the responsibility of the council is to look at the suggestions put forward by the medical schemes and approve them before they can be implemented.

“So what you have seen, it is actually the submissions that they have made to us for the increases for next year.

“We look at the different elements that make up a contribution. The most important element is the claims and services that are paid for by medical schemes and how much it will be going up by in the next year.”

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CANCER:- Micorocoil localisation in treating early-stage lung cancer

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A breakthrough minimally invasive surgery technique, microcoil localisation, allows doctors to pinpoint and remove tiny nodules in early-stage lung cancer without damaging additional healthy tissue.

“Rather than cutting out an entire lobe, or potentially even an entire lung, we can just take out a small bit of tissue,” said Dr Jason Lempel, a thoracic radiologist at Cleveland Clinic in the United States. “We’re able to treat patients with early-stage lung cancers quickly and thus decrease the chance of the cancer spreading.”

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Cleveland Clinic is one of a handful of medical centre to offer the surgery. A review of the team’s first 20 cases has revealed a 100% success rate in retr
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Limpopo paramedic in hot water after allegedly transporting alcohol in vehicle

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A video of a Mokopane resident approaching a Limpopo EMS paramedic over the alleged abuse of a government vehicle for private use has gone viral on social media.

In the video, the resident asks the paramedic why she was using a Limpopo EMS Ambulance to allegedly deliver alcohol from the ambulance to a private vehicle.

The paramedic then replies saying: “This is my work car, there is no way I cannot use this car to do whatever I want.”

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After viewing the video, Polokwane Review contacted the spokesperson for the MEC of Health Thabiso Teffo for comment on the matter. Teffo confirmed that steps will be taken against the paramedic.

“We can confirm that disciplinary action will be ta
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Constitutional Court Ruling:- You can get high now in private

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In a unanimous judgement, the Constitutional Court on Tuesday ordered that the private consumption and cultivation of cannabis be decriminalised.

As judgement was being handed down, the court was filled with cheers of “Ganga” from public gallery.

It has been a long journey for Gareth Prince, one of the applicants in the matter, who began his fight against the criminalisation of cannabis over two decades ago, arguing that it was inconsistent with his constitutional freedom of religion as a Rastafarian.

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Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo handed down the judgement, which confirmed that sections 4(b) and 5(b) of the Drugs and Drugs Trafficking read in part with section 22(A)(9)(a)(i) of
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New drug approved:- Cipla’s new triple-combination antiretroviral drug approved

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The South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (SAHPRA) has approved Cipla’s latest first-line triple-combination antiretroviral (ARV) treatment for HIV.

The new combination medicine commonly referred to as TLD, is a combination of tenofovir (TDF), lamivudine (3TC) and dolutegravir (DTG).

In future, TLD will be manufactured at Cipla’s facilities in Durban and Uganda, reinforcing Cipla’s commitment to produce medicines in Africa for Africa and ensuring more affordable treatment for patients.

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Head of Manufacturing for Cipla South Africa, Ajay Kumar Pal, said the reason for the new formulation complexity related to the three different processes required for the three active pharm
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Faking an Illness:- This is how doctors can spot it!

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It’s one thing to cough and sniff in front of your parents or boss, but you need to realise that it’s a completely different matter to fake an illness to an actual doctor.

Most of us have faked a cough and sniffle to get out of going to school or work for a day. However, it usually does not involve lying to a doctor and faking symptoms to legitimize your sick leave.

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Medical Implants:- Germs can grow on them, but can they make you sick?

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Contrary to belief, implants are not completely sterile. When you insert a foreign body into the human body, you create a new habitat for bacteria.

Bacteria and fungi grow on medical implants, such as hip and knee replacements, pacemakers and screws used to fix broken bones, researchers report.

In a new study, Danish investigators examined 106 implants of different types and the surrounding tissue in patients. The findings showed that 70% of the implants had been colonised by bacteria, fungi or both.

However, none of the patients with bacteria or fungi on implants showed signs of infection, according to the team at the University of Copenhagen, Denmark.

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