Almost 300,000 people in Ireland live in consistent poverty according to the latest report from the Combat Poverty Agency. The 2006 annual report also claims that 10% of Irish children are living in poverty.

Ireland’s first dedicated unit for pulmonary hypertension has opened at the Mater Hospital in Dublin. Around 200 people are currently being treated for the condition, which affects the heart and lungs.

A new report from the National Cancer Registry shows the number of new diagnoses of the disease continues to increase. The report says most of the increase is due to Ireland’s aging population.

Over thirteen million pounds was spent employing temporary nurses in Northern Ireland last year because of a shortage of trained staff, the Department of Health has said. The Royal Hospital in Belfast was the largest user of the agency staff, an official report said.

The Health Service Executive is to review the files of more than 3,000 breast cancer patients who attended the Midlands Regional Hospital in Portlaoise over a four year period. 3000 mammograms and 2500 breast ultrasounds will be re-examined.

A 92-year-old man suffered a heart attack and died after a doctor gave him a drugs overdose, an inquest has heard. Walter Kenneth Johnston was injected with 100 times the correct dose of insulin by a junior doctor at Belfast City Hospital who claimed he did not know how to treat him.

The number of cases dealt with by the District Court increased by 10% last year. Of the thousands of cases each year, many are passed onto higher courts such as the Circuit Court or in the case of murder or rape, the Central Criminal Court.

New childcare regulations come into force today, which will reduce the number of children a childminder can care for. The Childcare Pre-School Services Regulations were signed into law in 2006, but only take effect from today.

A leading charity has called on the NI Assembly to press ahead with a bill to make age discrimination illegal. New research for leading charity Age Concern suggests that more than 250,000 older people in Northern Ireland think ageism should be banned.

With the Stormont Assembly preparing to resume next week after a summer recess, Dr Kieran Deeny has outlined his immediate intention to address the “healthcare geographical discrimination” in the North.