The Latest Breaking News from NT Health

Health authorities in the Northern Territory say there has been an increase in cases of melioidosis, warning people with pre-existing conditions to take precautions against the deadly bacterial infection.

Nearly all of the Northern Territory is set to swelter through a heatwave emergency later this week as temperatures build, triggered by a 'pseudo-monsoon' which last week dragged moisture away from northern Australia.

Low numbers of daily COVID-19 cases are beginning to climb rapidly again in the NT, where health workers say the official daily average is likely a significant under-count.

The Northern Territory is 130 full-time equivalent nurses short, but its only university has been forced to slash the number of enrolments for its nursing program.

Just months after announcing a plan to remove about 45 people from leadership positions across two of the Northern Territory's largest hospitals, NT Health has told staff the restructure has been put on hold.

An all-staff email says widespread Cabcharge misuse has been identified in a recent audit, with "quite a number" of excessive fares racked up in a government department $90 million over its allocated budget.

A day after the Katherine Hospital was hit with a 'code yellow', the Northern Territory's health department has taken the same step in Darwin amid a surge in patient demand.

Authorities say an increase in emergency department admissions has prompted the decision to implement "a number of measures" to ease pressure on the town's 60-bed hospital.

NT Health purchased hundreds of packets of cigarettes for smokers isolating at the Howard Springs quarantine centre, documents obtained by the ABC reveal.

When remote nurse Lorraine Walcott arrived in Yuendumu on the night Kumanjayi Walker was shot by Constable Zachary Rolfe, all she could do was officially pronounce the local 19-year-old dead.

Almost a quarter of all nursing roles and half of all mental health-related positions are unfilled in Central Australia, an inquest has been told, while it is "almost impossible" to recruit workers to the remote community where Kumanjayi Walker was killed.