Most people are not aware that according to the Health Professions Council of South Africa’s rules, private hospitals cannot employ doctors.
While no single provision prevents a private hospital from employing a healthcare practitioner, various health legislation and guidelines read together do.
Under the National Health Act, 2003, a private health establishment is a
Chapter III of the Prescription Act, 1969 deals with the extinction of debts by prescription.
But how does this relate to personal injury cases?
Most claims for damages prescribe in three years, but prescription does not run against minors (people under the age of 18), those with severe mental and intellectual disabilities, or those
The Pretoria High Court upheld the South African Pharmacy Counsel’s decision to implement the Pharmacist-Initiated Management of Antiretroviral Treatment programme allowing suitably qualified pharmacists with the necessary permits in term of section 22A(15) of the Medicines and Related Substances Act, 1965, to prescribe Pre-Exposure and Post-Exposure Prophylaxes (more commonly known as PrEP and PEP)
The Supreme Court of Appeal confirmed that in circumstances where a claimant is mentally incapacitated, the completion of the period of the prescription of a claim would not occur for as long as the mental health impediment exists. Placing a claimant under curatorship is in itself an impediment. It does not bring about a cessation
Whether a doctor’s conduct is reasonable or negligent is tested by comparing it with what would be expected of a reasonable doctor in the circumstances. The test does not expect the doctor to have the highest level of skill and expertise but rather the general level of skill and diligence possessed and exercised at the
In this February 2023 judgment, the MEC for Health in the Eastern Cape successfully obtained an order by which the quantum of damages to be paid to a claimant in a medical negligence claim was reduced by the medical services and equipment which the Department of Health could provide to the claimant without charge.
The claimant, a mother of a child with haemophilia and autism, had, prior to her pregnancy, consulted with her GP to determine whether she carried the gene for haemophilia. The doctor negligently led her to believe that she did not carry this gene, and as a result, she was led to believe that she could
MD and Another v Medihelp Medical Scheme and Another [2022] ZAGPPHC 640
An urgent application was brought to the High Court by the mother of a three-year-old child (“Z”) who has been diagnosed with a rare genetic condition, Hunters Syndrome MPS II (“MPS II”). Z has been a member of the respondent medical scheme from
This blog was co-authored by Lisa Kriegler, Trainee Associate
The Supreme Court of Appeal dismissed an appeal by the Minister of Health and the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (SAHPRA) in favour of the South African Alliance of Natural Health Products. The Alliance brought an application to set aside the 25 August 2017 General
This blog was co-authored by: Felix Le Roux, candidate attorney and Donald Dinnie, director
Recently, plaintiffs in medical malpractice litigation involving cerebral palsy have sought to advance the theory that acute profound brain injuries may be preceded by an intermittent deprivation of oxygen to the brain in the hours leading up to delivery. This theory,