Category Archives: Health

Australia news live: Linda Reynolds tells defamation trial she felt like a ‘punching clown on the fairground’ after social media posts by Higgins and Sharaz

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Follow the day’s news live

Wong endorses call from Blinken for de-escalation in Middle East

The foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, said she endorsed Antony Blinken’s call for de-escalation in the Middle East.

We continue to add our voice to the support for the ceasefire outlined by President Biden and endorsed by the security council.

Thank you for an incredibly productive day.

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‘We’re all scared’: NHS doctor reveals impact of far-right riots on staff

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Hospital worker from Egypt expresses safety fears, doubts about staying in UK and sense of being unappreciated

As far-right riots broke out across parts of the UK this week, the chief executive of NHS England, Amanda Pritchard, warned in an email to NHS leaders that “for many NHS workers, seeing this flare-up of racism will leave them feeling afraid and unwelcome”.

The Guardian spoke to Samir, 32, an NHS hospital doctor in south-west England, who shared his views.

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Ditching two-child benefit cap would cut deaths and A&E admissions, study says

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England research shows huge benefits with resulting savings for NHS and councils

Curbing child poverty by scrapping the two-child benefit cap would save hundreds of lives a year and avoid thousands of admissions to hospital, the largest study of its kind suggests.

Keir Starmer has faced repeated demands from within Labour ranks and opposition leaders to abolish the policy, which was announced in 2015 by George Osborne, then chancellor. Almost half of all children in some towns and cities now live below the breadline.

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Labor’s attempts to tie gambling harm advocates into ‘ridiculous’ secret agreements rejected

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The government has invited anti-gambling groups to a briefing on proposed reforms to the sector on Friday – but there’s a special condition if they want to attend

A leading anti-gambling advocate has refused to sign a contentious non-disclosure agreement in order to attend a briefing with the government about gambling advertising reforms.

After the government was roundly criticised for consulting with betting companies ahead of gambling harm advocates about the reforms, the Alliance for Gambling Reform was among several organisations that on Monday evening received an invitation to a government briefing.

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Unions welcome scrapping of Tories’ ‘spiteful’ minimum service law

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Senior figures praise repeal of law but privately some want full workers’ rights overhaul implemented without delay

Unions have welcomed the government’s move to formally scrap a “draconian” anti-strike law that would have ensured a minimum level of service during industrial action as the legislation had restricted workers’ rights.

The deputy prime minister, Angela Rayner, and the business secretary, Jonathan Reynolds, have written to government departments with sectors that were most affected by the strikes to give a “clear message” the measures will be repealed and have urged all metro mayors to start engaging with local employers on the change.

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Australia news live: Wong ‘deeply concerned’ about escalation in Middle East; RBA interest rate decision due today

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Reserve bank’s two-day August meeting likely to leave key interest rate unchanged for a sixth straight gathering. Follow the day’s news live

Australia will join the US Global Entry program in 2025, creating an easier pathway for the hundreds of thousands of Australians who visit the country each year.

Eligible Australians who sign up for the program would benefit from streamlined and expedited immigration and customs clearance channels on arrival into the US, a statement from the foreign minister, Penny Wong, says.

Joining the Global Entry program is a mark of the closeness and the strength of the relationship between our two countries.

The foundation of the friendship between Australia and United States is the friendship between our people. This program will deepen these links and make it easier to foster greater commercial ties.

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NHS ‘soup and shake’ diet puts almost a third of type 2 diabetes cases in remission

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Programme may soon be expanded in England after study finds ‘life-changing benefits’ of meal replacement scheme

Tens of thousands more people in England living with type 2 diabetes could be offered an 800-calorie-a-day “soup and shake” diet after research found almost one in three on the groundbreaking NHS scheme permanently wiped out their disease.

Patients are given low-calorie meal replacement products such as soups, milkshakes and snack bars for three months, triggering rapid weight loss, before getting support to reintroduce normal food into their diet.

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Portsmouth hospital reopens A&E after restoring power

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Queen Alexandra hospital had closed ward to new admissions and declared major incident after outage

A hospital has reopened its emergency department after closing it to new admissions and declaring a major incident after a power cut.

The outage on Monday morning at the Queen Alexandra hospital in Portsmouth, Hampshire, also affected phone lines. A small number of procedures had to be cancelled.

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Pharmacies in England cutting services amid financial pressures, research finds

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Poll reveals emergency contraception, free prescription deliveries and extended opening hours among services hit

Pharmacies across England are unable to provide critical NHS and public health services owing to the overwhelming financial and operational pressures they are facing, according to research.

A poll of pharmacy owners representing more than 2,100 pharmacies found that more than 96% of respondents said they had stopped providing locally commissioned services over the past 12 months.

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Melbourne surgeon failed to tell patient he invented ‘experimental’ device used to replace jaw joints, court documents claim

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Dr George Dimitroulis, who is being sued in a Victorian court by a former patient, denies any injuries were caused by negligence or the prosthesis

A Melbourne surgeon failed to tell a patient undergoing major jaw surgery that the device she was being implanted was an “experimental” one that he invented, and that he also created the classification system used to diagnose her condition as severe enough to warrant removing her jaw joints, according to documents filed in a Victorian court case accusing him of negligence.

The surgeon, Dr George Dimitroulis, is being sued by a former patient, Bianca*, who alleged in a statement of claim filed to Victoria’s supreme court that he did not fully advise her of the risks before the operation.

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Challenges to deprivation of liberty orders in England soar by a third

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Campaigners say vulnerable people receiving care are being deprived of their freedom in order to save money

Growing numbers of vulnerable people receiving care are challenging deprivation of liberty (Dol) orders that can mean they are locked up or kept under restrictive supervision.

Dol orders are meant as a last resort but campaigners say the increase shows that too often people’s freedoms are restricted as a cheaper option.

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Second person dies after being diagnosed with legionnaires’ disease amid Melbourne outbreak

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Man in his 60s died on Thursday, following the death of a woman in her 90s who had presented to hospital on Tuesday

A second person has died after being diagnosed with legionnaires’ disease during an outbreak in Melbourne’s west and north-west.

The man in his 60s became unwell over a week ago and was admitted to hospital, before dying on Thursday.

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Flu vaccine will curb bird flu risk for US farm workers, CDC deputy director says

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US launches major vaccination campaign in a bid to prevent healthcare strain and potential mutations of H5N1 virus

In the face of serious concerns over the spreading bird flu virus in US agriculture, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is pushing a major flu vaccination campaign among farm workers in a bid to prevent healthcare strain and combat potential mutations from the highly pathogenic bird virus.

Part of the campaign will seek to combat disinformation about vaccines, which has hampered previous efforts.

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English hospitals brace for ‘alarming’ disruption as GPs go on strike

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Exclusive: A&Es and mental health services face ‘dangerous’ surge that could continue into 2025, say bosses

The NHS faces “alarming” and “dangerous” disruption until Christmas and potentially into 2025, health chiefs have said, after GPs began their first industrial action in 60 years amid a major row over funding.

Hospitals, A&E units and mental health services are already under huge pressure. They are now braced for a surge in demand from thousands of patients turning to them for help after family doctors in England launched work-to-rule action on Thursday.

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Victoria records 71 legionnaires’ disease cases and outbreak’s first death as search for source narrows

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Chief health officer Clare Looker says woman in her 90s died after becoming ill on Tuesday as others in intensive care battle severe pneumonia

Victoria has recorded 71 confirmed cases of legionnaires’ disease and one person has died from the disease in an outbreak that authorities say they have narrowed down to two suburbs in Melbourne’s west.

Victoria’s chief health officer, Dr Clare Looker, on Friday confirmed the death of a woman aged in her 90s. She said the woman became ill on Tuesday evening and presented to hospital, where she died shortly after.

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Cannabis vapes in Australia containing opioids spark calls for better access to anti-overdose drugs

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Vaping synthetic opioids can cause overdose or unconsciousness within minutes and from just six puffs, Victorian medical expert says

A teenager died and a young man was left struggling to breathe after vaping synthetic opioids, as doctors warn the potentially deadly drugs are contaminating a growing range of recreational substances.

The patients overdosed after vaping THC, the psychoactive component of cannabis, mixed with protonitazene, a synthetic opioid 100 times more potent than heroin.

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Australian researchers are feeding peanut powder to babies with allergies. Why?

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Nationwide Adapt program will see babies aged under 12 months given a daily dose of powder to try to achieve allergy remission

Australia has the highest rates of childhood food allergies in the world, with peanut allergies alone affecting about three in every 100 children by one year of age.

It can create anxiety for the child and caregivers, as the risk of a life-threatening allergic reaction (known as anaphylaxis) makes it critical to avoid the allergen or ensure quick treatment.

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Long Covid health issues persist in those hospitalised early in pandemic, study finds

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Substantial proportion have cognitive and mental health problems years after infection, with some symptoms worsening

Health problems and brain fog can persist for years in people hospitalised by Covid early in the pandemic, with some patients developing more severe and even new symptoms after 12 months, researchers say.

They found that while many people with long Covid improved over time, a substantial proportion still had cognitive problems two to three years later and saw symptoms of depression, anxiety and fatigue worsen rather than subside.

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‘Deeply troubling’ trends found in first Closing the Gap report since voice referendum defeat

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Malarndirri McCarthy suggests bipartisan approach needed for ‘positive change’ as report shows key Indigenous measures sliding backwards

The number of Indigenous Australians imprisoned, taking their own life and losing children to out-of-home care have all increased in the first Closing the Gap report since the voice referendum was defeated.

Not only were key measures to close the gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians sliding backwards, prompting concern from leaders, but parties to the national agreement for closing the gap still cannot agree on an approach to measure priority areas.

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One in five Australians improvised period products due to cost barriers, survey finds

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Report finds period poverty is spread across income brackets but affects more Indigenous people and people with disability

About three in five people with periods have struggled to afford menstrual products and one in four have worn a tampon or pad for more than four hours in the past year due to cost, an Australian survey of more than 153,000 people has found.

In its second triennial report on period poverty, charity Share the Dignity found that periods were still having a substantial impact on the ability of women, girls and gender-diverse people who menstruate to study, work and play sport without interruption, due to cost, pain and stigma.

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