Warren Truss, leader of the Nationals, while in Wagga yesterday along with Barnaby Joyce, the party’s Senate leader for launching Michael McCormack’s bid for winning the Riverina seat, said the Coalition will act further for fixing regional health services.

Research conducted for a UK consumer group indicates mobile phones tend to harbour 18 times more living bacteria than any flush in a men’s toilet.

The swabbing and analysing of 30 mobile handsets by a hygiene expert found seven had warning or high levels of environmental bacteria.

A school in New Zealand is fighting to remain open after its student count dropped to just two pupils, the children of Principal Steve Harley.

To try and increase student numbers, the Paerau School Board in Central Otago is considering offering a year of free accommodation to families with children of school going age.

Hundreds of Brisbane medical students, some underpaid during the Queensland Health pay debacle, now face paying up to $16,000 on scholarships believed to be free.

Earlier this month, an Australian Tax Office ruling on the Queensland Health Bonded Medical Scholarship left 235 Queensland medical students in tax debt.

The launch of a free SMS support service launched yesterday has given South Australian smokers another tool to help kick the habit.

Quit SA launching the 12-month state wide trial, sees the Quit onQ programme sending users free text messages that provide support and guidance for those who have quit smoking.

The findings of a recent e-health survey conducted by CSC have been welcomed by the National E-Health Transition Authority (NEHTA), which indicates Australians would like an e-health record, despite over 50% of Australians surveyed unaware of the government’s e-health initiatives.

Community, dental and health groups have banded together to urge the main political parties to commit to taking urgent action for helping one in three Australians, who are compelled to delay, even avoid dental services due to their cost.

Researchers have discovered a molecule responsible for causing nerve cell death in the brain, sparking the condition which they hope to prevent in the near future.

Their findings have been described as a significant step forward in the fight against the degenerative disease affecting around 120,000 people, or one in 500 of UK’s population, with 10,000 new cases diagnosed every year.