Latest from Public Healthcare

GPs: Why we charge for under 6s
The Ministry of Health has released the names of the 11 clinics which had not opted into the "zero fees" scheme for under 6s.

Fighting Fat: Drain your stomach
In a new attempt to control New Zealand's obesity epidemic, severely overweight patients will have a stomach drain installed through which they pump out excess food.

Inquiry into teen's hospital death
Police have confirmed an investigation is underway into the death of teenager Matthew Gunter at Grey Base hospital.

Teen death: At fault doc continues work
The general manager of the hospital where the anaesthetist practises said he was not aware of her connection to the Greymouth case.

No free GP visits for all kids
The Government will not be paying for all primary aged children to attend the doctor for free, documents have revealed.

Anguish over son's death
A traumatised family have hit out at the health system over the "totally avoidable" death of their 15-year-old son.

Five medical mishaps reported this year
Here are four medical botch-ups that have been reported on so far in 2015.

Calls by top GP for 'no jab no pay'
Dr Lance O'Sullivan, who was named New Zealander of the Year 2014, said all parents - no matter their income - should be compelled to vaccinate.

Doc: Please forgive me
A 'devastated' doctor who was involved in a laboratory mix-up that led to one woman needlessly losing a breast has pleaded for forgiveness.

Hospital failed to devise care plan
An Auckland hospital for the elderly failed to make a written plan on how staff would prevent a high-risk resident from developing pressure sores.

'No jab, no pay' policy for Oz
Australian parents who refuse to vaccinate their kids won't get taxpayer-funded childcare or welfare benefits under the federal Government's "no jab, no pay" policy.

Dad's illness prompted son to improve health system
When Dan Collins' late father was hit by a rare medical condition a few years ago, Collins was surprised by what he saw of the health system.

Study aims to cut shock pain
Murray Jackson says he would rather die than suffer again the 19 violent jolts he received from a small defibrillator that had been implanted within his chest.

Battle on to douse smokes ban
A lawyer acting for a psychiatric patient will fight to overturn a smoking ban at mental health units in the Court of Appeal this month.

Herald on Sunday Editorial: Need a drink? No, not really, thanks
If we could see the way we look when we are drunk we might never get drunk again.

Preschool ID numbers concern
Pressure to broaden the use of identification numbers attached to preschoolers has concerned the Privacy Commissioner.

Should payments to doctors be public?
Medical suppliers' payments to doctors should be opened to public scrutiny, say a group of health and science experts.

Twelve Questions: Dr Sue Fleming
Dr Sue Fleming is director of women’s health at Auckland District Health Board. She has been a trailblazing leader in the traditionally male domain of obstetrics and gynaecology.

Mum can't afford medicine
An 8-year-old Manurewa boy is one of 11,000 disabled children to lose a welfare benefit, even though his asthma is so bad that he missed one in every four school days.

Patient information stored online
Details of people's prescriptions are being fed into an online repository from pharmacies across the country.

Faecal transplantation: helpful but odd
It must be one of the weirdest health care procedures on offer and it just keeps getting weirder. Its clinical name: faecal transplantation.

Little battler beats big cancer odds
In 2012, Liron Rosin was 8 when he was diagnosed with an inoperable liver cancer rare in children.

Medicinal cannabis use investigated
An investigation into the use of cannabis for medical purposes has been carried out by the Ministry of Health.

Pharmacist apologises after giving out wrong medication
A woman spent five days in hospital recovering from liver problems caused by being given the wrong medicine by a pharmacist.

Authority backs STI tracking
Sexually transmitted infections should be reclassified to enable better tracking and treatment as social media influences sexual behaviour and more drug-resistant strains emerge, a health authority....

Elderly man died after being prescribed high-dose opioid
The case of an 82-year-old who died after being prescribed a high-dose opioid has been given as an example of why better medical understanding is needed.

Babies miss out on vital health checks
One in four babies is not receiving all of its core health checks in the first year of its life, according to a new data.

Nurse may lose licence over sex incident
A forensic mental health nurse who had sex with a recent patient after giving her wine quit his district health board job as soon as he was outed.