Headlines on health

Headlines on health

Follow the latest news about health and wellness, with this collection of reports and interviews from the SBS News team. Hear the story behind the headline.

Episodes

Decision to allow registered nurses to prescribe medicines solves many health service problems

September 30, 2025 • 2 mins
Tens of thousands of registered nurses across the country will be able to up-skill to prescribe medications usually authorised by a doctor. It's a reform that could change the medical landscape in Australia... and the lives of many patients.
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New guidelines developed for helping people with dementia

September 30, 2025 • 7 mins
A framework has been developed to track and improve the treatment options for dementia patients in aged care. The proposal come after the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare named dementia as the leading cause of death in Australia.
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I feel like privacy is dead: IVF data breach triggers interest in class action lawsuit

September 19, 2025 • 7 mins
After years of trying to conceive, Isabel Lewis thought the hard part was over — until cybercriminals targeted her fertility clinic. The data breach at Genea Fertility included patient's medical histories, diagnoses and treatments, medications and prescriptions, as well as pathology and diagnostic test results. Now, hundreds of Australians have shown interest in a class action lawsuit over the breach, which could be the first test ...
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Loo scrolling: Study investigates link between this bathroom habit and a painful health condition

September 13, 2025 • 7 mins
Using your phone while on the toilet could be linked to an increased chance of haemorrhoids, according to a study from the United States. So if you're a loo scroller, the extra time spent on the toilet could be doing you more harm than good.
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Australian women are living longer but it's not all good news

September 6, 2025 • 9 mins
The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare has produced a snap shot of Women’s health across the life course. While rates of cancer have gone down for women over the last 25 years, younger women continue to experience higher rates of depression and other mental health conditions.
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Radiotherapy could save your life: dispelling the misconceptions

September 6, 2025 • 10 mins
Despite being a proven life-saving treatment, 1 in 5 Australians who need radiotherapy never receive it. This year, on September 7, the first-ever World Radiotherapy Awareness Day will be launched, and experts say it's an opportunity to dispel fears of the treatment.
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20,000 more aged care packages more quickly after Labor agrees to Coalition deal

September 3, 2025 • 6 mins
20,000 more home care packages are to be available to vulnerable older Australians after the federal government was forced to make a deal with the Coalition. It was the first major test faced by Labor since it was re-elected, which was cornered in the senate to make changes to its aged care reform policy.
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Australia - allergy capital of the world

August 26, 2025 • 6 mins
The number of Australians living with allergy has doubled in nearly 20 years, according to a new report, which examines the financial and personal costs of the chronic condition. Demand for services is unprecedented, and experts warn allergy does not just impact health - it can reshape sufferers’ lives.
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Autism stakeholders welcome new government commitment - but are perplexed they weren't consulted

August 22, 2025 • 7 mins
The number of children being diagnosed with autism is rising, putting a heavy strain on the National Disability Insurance Scheme. The government has responded, announcing a plan to divert children away from the NDIS to a new scheme called Thriving Kids. Parents and autism advocates say they were unaware of the strategy until it was made public.
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Would you seek contraceptive advice from TikTok?

August 12, 2025 • 6 mins
Public health experts have raised concerns about the beliefs and behaviours of individuals of reproductive age on social media. In a recent study, La Trobe University researchers looked into the rise of contraceptive misinformation on TikTok.
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Chikungunya: a new mosquito-borne virus to contend with

August 11, 2025 • 3 mins
A chikungunya outbreak in China has infected more than 7,000 people. Chikungunya causes fever and joint pain, but in some cases can be fatal. There is no vaccine or real treatment. Epidemiologist Jason Rasgon, from Penn State University, explains how the disease is transmitted, and why it seems to be spreading to new areas. The chikungunya virus is not currently endemic in Australia. There have been no locally acquired cases, thoug...
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Global fertility rates are dropping: it could spell disaster in the future

August 8, 2025 • 5 mins
Around the world, fertility rates are dropping. The rate for each generation to replace itself is an average of 2.1 births per woman - and many countries are well below that figure. Does it matter? Surely reducing the population will make the Earth's resources go further? In this edition of Weekend One on One we hear from Associate Professor Michael Giarrusso from the University of Texas, who says unless this trend is reversed, the...
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INTERVIEW: High hopes for new HIV vaccine

August 1, 2025 • 5 mins
Researchers from the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center in Seattle have tested a new HIV vaccine using mRNA, the technology behind many COVID-19 vaccines. Scientists say results from the early-stage clinical trial offer hope for significant progress in the global effort to develop a safe and effective HIV vaccine. For this episode of Weekend One on One, Angelica Waite has been speaking with Associate Professor Seth Cheetham, Deputy Dire...
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Are you delaying the dentist because of cost? Your children shouldn't be.

July 31, 2025 • 7 mins
The Australian Dental Association says around 1.5 million kids are missing out on free dental care every year. This Dental Health Week, dentists are urging parents to check if they're eligible for the free dental cover and to brush up on their understanding of good oral hygiene. Meanwhile, Aboriginal health organisations say awareness around the issue is not the only barrier facing First Nations and Culturally and Linguistically Di...
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Hepatitis warning: migrant communities disproportionately affected by the silent killer

July 26, 2025 • 3 mins
A new report has revealed just how disproportionately migrant communities are affected by hepatitis. Underdiagnosis of the infection, and connecting patients with care and treatment, remain the major challenges.
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Australian early intervention program for deaf children piloted in Japan

July 26, 2025 • 5 mins
An Australian early intervention program for deaf children is, for the first time, being piloted overseas. The therapy is for children whose family have chosen for them to be fitted with a hearing device such as a cochlear implant. The collaboration between not-for-profit The Shepherd Centre and health officials in Japan is a decade in the making.
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"We need the slip, slop, slap of brain health - now": Advocates call for new national approach to dementia

July 23, 2025 • 6 mins
A leading scientist has recommended that dementia be treated as an economic crisis as well as a health issue. Over 400,000 Australians live with dementia, and with an ageing population, this is expected to double by 2050. But dementia advocates say research funding in Australia lags behind other conditions, limiting access to life-changing dementia prevention and management programs.
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Report finds people with chronic pain continue to suffer from stigma

July 21, 2025 • 3 mins
Around four million Australians, or one in five, are living with chronic pain. Many report feeling overlooked and ignored within the healthcare system, prompting experts to call for greater national investment, including a more holistic approach to care.
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Second case of rare mpox strain discovered in traveller

July 20, 2025 • 3 mins
The second Australian case of a rare strain of mpox virus has been detected in south-east Queensland. Queensland Health says the patient - who is now being treated at a Brisbane hospital - acquired the virus in central Africa.
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The final farewell isn’t easy. This growing service helped Vibha and thousands like her

July 18, 2025 • 8 mins
Death confronts 180,000 people in Australia and their families every year. Yet few have prepared a will or left clear instructions about their end-of-life choices. To help ease the process, an expanding social enterprise offers support and guidance.
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