Most South Africans are familiar with the pressures facing public healthcare. These issues are often discussed within the broader context of the Public Health System. Patients often spend hours in clinic waiting rooms. Families struggle to secure treatment for relatives. Hospitals face overcrowding, medicine shortages and administrative failures. These experiences create an understandable impression that the system is collapsing. Service…
Tag: public healthcare
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Hospital CEO Vacancies Raise Governance Concerns
More than 50 public hospitals across South Africa are operating without permanent chief executives. The issue of hospital CEO vacancies is raising concerns about leadership, accountability, and patient services in an already-strained health system. Provincial health departments have blamed budget pressures, austerity measures and controls on employee compensation. These constraints have delayed the appointment of permanent senior managers. Acting executives…
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AI Healthcare Tools Cut South African Doctors’ Admin
Many South African doctors and allied healthcare workers are turning to artificial intelligence to reduce administrative pressure. Healthcare providers are using AI tools to record consultations, create clinical notes, prepare referral letters, support coding, and assist with prescriptions. These platforms use speech-to-text technology to capture consultations in real time. Many of the tools are less than two years old. Yet…
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NHLS Debt Crisis Puts Public Healthcare At Risk
The NHLS Debt Crisis is raising serious concerns about the stability of South Africa’s public healthcare system. By March, provincial health departments owed the National Health Laboratory Service about R11bn for critical services already provided. The NHLS plays a central role in public healthcare. It provides diagnostic testing, disease monitoring, outbreak support, HIV and TB programme services, forensic pathology expertise…
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Certificate of Need Ruling Forces Health Licensing Rethink
South Africa’s Certificate of Need Ruling has reset the policy debate on where health professionals may practise. On Monday, 18 May 2026, the Constitutional Court confirmed that provisions allowing the state to control where doctors and nurses work are unconstitutional. The court ordered that the provisions be removed from the legislation. The legal challenge was brought by Solidarity, the Alliance…
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National Health Insurance: Minister Meets Medical Association
Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi has begun fresh engagement with one of his fiercest critics on the National Health Insurance (NHI). He met with the South African Medical Association (Sama) recently to discuss what he called “things we have in common”, despite Sama being among the organisations challenging the National Health Insurance Act in court. The NHI aims to establish a…
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Obesity as a Chronic Disease: SA Pushes for Treatment Access
South Africa’s healthcare sector is stepping up calls to treat obesity as a chronic disease rather than a cosmetic concern. Clinicians and industry leaders say the shift is urgent. Obesity is rising fast. It also drives long-term costs across the health system. Globally, more than 1 billion people live with obesity. That figure is forecast to reach 1.91 billion by…
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Non-Invasive Colon Cancer Test Could Speed Diagnosis
A new screening approach being developed by scientists in China and the UK could change how colorectal cancer is detected, especially in health systems with limited access to colonoscopy. The innovation is a Non-Invasive Colon Cancer Test that analyses volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the vapour trapped above bowel faeces. The aim is simple. Identify higher-risk patients quickly, then prioritise…
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Gauteng Patient Debt Recovery Targets Unpaid Fees
Gauteng’s public health system is tightening its grip on unpaid patient fees as outstanding debt climbs to about R4.6 billion. The Gauteng department of health says the recovery drive is now a priority, as the province faces sustained financial pressure and rising demand for services. The department confirmed that it is intensifying revenue collection as part of a broader financial…
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Conjoined Twins Separation Marks Historic Limpopo Breakthrough
A major surgical milestone has been recorded in Limpopo after conjoined identical twin boys were successfully separated at Mankweng Tertiary Hospital outside Polokwane. Professor Nyaweleni Tshifularo, the lead surgeon, confirmed the operation was a success. The twins were born on 28 January 2026. They were conjoined and shared a liver, intestines and blood vessels. The separation surgery took place on…
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Doctor Job Crisis Hits Post-Community Service Cohort
South Africa’s doctor employment bottleneck is back in the spotlight. The South African Medical Association Trade Union (Samatu) says 1,260 doctors who have completed community service remain unemployed. It also indicates approximately 1,100 vacant medical officer posts nationwide. Samatu’s junior doctors’ leadership says some clinicians have been without work for months. In some cases, the period extends for years. The…
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Government pushes for more family physicians in key roles
The Department of Health has announced plans to increase the number of family physicians serving as clinical managers in district hospitals. This move follows years of lobbying by the South African Academy of Family Physicians (SAAFP) for greater recognition of the role of family physicians in the country’s public health system. The push to appoint family physicians, described as “super…