NEWS & MEDIA
Social Media Use and Ethical Billing: Two Modern Pressure Points in Practice
Social media and billing appear unrelated, but both expose the same weakness: professional judgement can be distorted when visibility, patient acquisition or revenue becomes more important than accuracy, dignity and informed choice. Approximate article length: 1,490...
Continuing Professional Development: Staying Compliant with Current HPCSA Requirements
CPD compliance is no longer safely managed by remembering a generic annual number from an old presentation. Practitioners must verify the current requirements of their own professional board, track both required components and keep evidence that can survive an audit....
Keeping Patient Health Records: Obligations and Best Practice
A patient record is simultaneously a clinical tool, a communication system, a legal document and evidence of the standard of care. Poor records do not merely weaken a defence after an adverse event; they create risk while care is still being delivered. Approximate...
Protecting Patient Confidentiality in Practice
Confidentiality is not simply a promise to keep quiet. It is a legal and professional system governing why patient information is collected, who may access it, when it may be shared and how it must be protected throughout its life cycle. Approximate article length:...
The Ethical Rules of Conduct: What Healthcare Practitioners Must Know
The HPCSA's Ethical Rules are enforceable professional standards, not optional guidance. The greatest compliance risk is often not ignorance of a single rule, but a practice model whose marketing, incentives, delegation or record systems make misconduct predictable....
Core Ethical Values and Standards: The Foundation of Good Healthcare Practice
Ethical practice is not a soft extra added to clinical competence. It is the framework that determines how professional knowledge is used, how competing interests are managed and whether patients can trust the healthcare system. Approximate article length: 1,478 words...
Locum Practitioners in South African Healthcare Practices
Legal, regulatory, labour and insurance considerations arising from B.Z.Y v Mduna and Mohun v Phillips. Prepared by Maud Letzler, Head of Legal – Genoa Underwriting Managers Introduction Locum practitioners are common in healthcare, but they create legal, regulatory,...
The Information Regulator is taking POPIA breaches seriously
Why healthcare practices should treat every data incident as a governance issue, not just an embarrassment. The message from enforcement The Information Regulator has made it increasingly clear that personal-information breaches will not be treated as trivial...
Consent is a continuing dialogue, not a once-off signature
Why consent should be revisited, refreshed and properly documented throughout the patient journey. The common misunderstanding A signed consent form is important, but it is not a magic shield. One signature obtained at one point in time does not automatically prove...
Informed consent and POPIA: getting the information side right
Consent in healthcare is not only about treatment. It is also about the lawful and secure handling of personal information. Start with the correction POPIA is the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013, not 2014. That distinction matters in publication...
Is there such a thing as over-servicing a patient?
Yes. And the risk is not only financial. It is also ethical, clinical and legal. The answer is yes Over-servicing is a real concept in South African healthcare regulation. In broad terms, it refers to treatment, investigations, referrals or procedures that are not...
Caught in the Crossfire: Autism, Divorce, and the Hidden Medico-Legal Risks Across Healthcare Settings
At a glance When autism-related care intersects with parental separation or divorce, healthcare environments can quickly become complex legal landscapes. What may appear to be routine clinical interactions can, in high-conflict situations, evolve into points of...