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Healthcare

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Why you shouldn’t ask ChatGPT for medical advice
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AI

Why you shouldn’t ask ChatGPT for medical advice

The more information you give a GP, the more likely you are to get a diagnosis. Not so for ChatGPT.

  • by Angus Thomson

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Sick and span: The household germ killers nurturing drug-resistant superbugs
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Healthcare

Sick and span: The household germ killers nurturing drug-resistant superbugs

Researchers investigated hundreds of antibacterial products sold in Australian supermarkets and chemists, and found that almost one in three contain potentially harmful ingredients.

  • by Henrietta Cook
Plastic surgeons lose legal challenge in cosmetic industry crackdown

Plastic surgeons lose legal challenge in cosmetic industry crackdown

Doctors had argued new guidelines went beyond the powers of the Medical Board of Australia. But a judge said the board had taken public safety into account.

  • by Angus Thomson and Megan Gorrey
This factory contaminated the whole world. And you helped pay for it
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Pollution

This factory contaminated the whole world. And you helped pay for it

Most Australians can expect to find forever chemicals – also known as per- and polyfluoroalkyl chemicals (PFAS) – in their blood.

  • by Carrie Fellner
Change in advice for cow’s milk over formula in what’s best for baby
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Healthcare

Change in advice for cow’s milk over formula in what’s best for baby

The World Health Organisation now says cow’s milk is a safe alternative to breast milk or formula for six-month-old babies. But the change in advice has been criticised by Australian health authorities.

  • by Henrietta Cook
It’s not just you: ‘flu season’ is starting earlier

It’s not just you: ‘flu season’ is starting earlier

There are above-average cases of flu and RSV, as well as the nation’s first surge in whooping cough since the COVID-19 lockdowns. 

  • by Mary Ward
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‘I landed on my head on the concrete’: the new clinic treating patients with concussion

‘I landed on my head on the concrete’: the new clinic treating patients with concussion

Victoria’s first public concussion clinic has been set up to help those dealing with serious knocks to the heads. Steve Kemp, who landed on his head during a soccer match, is among the first patients to be treated. The injury has impacted his eyesight and sense of smell.

  • by Henrietta Cook
Jen was in the grip of a heart attack. A nurse dismissed it as stress

Jen was in the grip of a heart attack. A nurse dismissed it as stress

The mother of two says gender bias in the health system delayed her treatment. A new national research centre in Sydney hopes to redress the balance.

  • by Megan Gorrey
‘Confusing and problematic’: Podiatric surgeons urged to change their name
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Healthcare

‘Confusing and problematic’: Podiatric surgeons urged to change their name

An independent review found there was widespread confusion among patients about the qualifications of podiatric surgeons, who are not medical doctors.

  • by Charlotte Grieve
Inside the new $1.5 billion Footscray Hospital

Inside the new $1.5 billion Footscray Hospital

Victoria’s biggest ever hospital will transform Melbourne’s western suburbs when it opens in Footscray next year.

  • by Najma Sambul
Triple-zero service stopped displaying waiting calls to ‘distressed’ staff, inquest told

Triple-zero service stopped displaying waiting calls to ‘distressed’ staff, inquest told

A coroner has been told that Victoria’s triple-zero service missed key opportunities to prepare for a pandemic demand surge, including rejecting an offer to borrow call-takers.

  • by Aisha Dow