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Liverpool Care Pathway provides little clinical benefit for dying cancer patients

The first randomised trial to test the effectiveness of the Liverpool Care Pathway (LCP) programme, developed and implemented widely to support patients as they near death, has found little clinical benefit compared with standard care for cancer patients dying in hospital.

17 Oct 2013

Patients who received care at multiple HIV clinics have higher HIV viral loads

Patients who received care at multiple HIV clinics—as opposed to only one— were less likely to take their medication and had higher HIV viral loads, a new study published in the journal AIDS and Behavior of almost 13,000 HIV patients in Philadelphia from Penn Medicine found.

10 Oct 2013

Three Penn Medicine researchers awarded grants for neuromuscular disease research

The Muscular Dystrophy Association has awarded research grants totaling over $1,000,000 to three Penn Medicine researchers: James Shorter, PhD, associate professor of Biochemistry and Biophysics; Hansell Stedman, MD, associate professor of Surgery; and Lee Sweeney, PhD, director of the Center for Orphan Disease Research and Therapy.

9 Oct 2013

Penn brain trauma experts provide latest data, guidelines from Neurocritical Care Society Meeting

A team of experts in neurocritical care, engineering, and informatics, with the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, have devised a new way to detect

4 Oct 2013

Research roundup: Managed care for dementia patients; bundled payments after the hospital; disparities among Medicare beneficiaries

Dementia is a leading cause of death in the United States; however, patients dying with this disease may not receive optimal end-of-life care. ... many of these [nursing home] residents commonly experience burdensome and costly interventions, such as hospital transfers, tube-feeding, and intravenous antibiotics. ... Nursing home reimbursement policies are among the factors that incentivize more aggressive care. ... This study linked unique prospective clinical data with Medicare claims to describe and compare patterns of care between nursing home residents with advanced dementia enrolled in a Medicare managed-care insurance plan and those with fee-for-service Medicare.

30 Sep 2013

Discoveries pave way for use of new therapies for advanced thyroid cancer

For many years, patients with advanced thyroid cancer faced bleak prospects and no viable treatment options. But now, building on recent discoveries about the genetics and cell signaling pathways of thyroid tumors, researchers are developing exciting new weapons against the disease, using kinase inhibitors that target tumor cell division and blood vessels.

30 Sep 2013

CME Medical urges hospices to improve patient safety with T34 Ambulatory Syringe Pump

CME Medical, is urging hospices to improve their patient safety as part of Hospice Care Week (Oct 7-13) by making the transition from using older ambulatory syringe drivers to using its own T34TM Ambulatory Syringe Pump, to help meet National Patient Safety Agency (NPSA) guidance.

27 Sep 2013

Study indicates that RNA translation is dictated by translational hotspots

Protein synthesis in the extensions of nerve cells, called dendrites, underlies long-term memory formation in the brain, among other functions. "Thousands of messenger RNAs reside in dendrites, yet the dynamics of how multiple dendrite messenger RNAs translate into their final proteins remain elusive," says James Eberwine, PhD, professor of Pharmacology, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, and co-director of the Penn Genome Frontiers Institute.

27 Sep 2013

Proton therapy reduces treatment side effects among head and neck cancer patients

The precise targeting and limited dosing of radiation via proton therapy is proving to be an advantage in ongoing efforts to reduce treatment side effects among head and neck cancer patients, according to a new study of pediatric patients from researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.

25 Sep 2013

Primary care services may result in less costly care for residents with advanced dementia: Study

Nursing home residents with advanced dementia commonly experience burdensome, costly interventions that do not improve their quality of life or extend their survival. Now a new study suggests that providing intensive primary care services may result in less burdensome and less costly care for these terminally ill residents.

24 Sep 2013

Skilled Healthcare announces funding of first loans insured by U.S. Department of HUD

Skilled Healthcare Group, Inc. (NYSE: SKH) today announced the funding of its first loans insured by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The loans have a combined principal balance of $21.6 million and are secured by three skilled nursing facilities.

21 Sep 2013

New islet transplantation improves results for patients with type 1 diabetes

The latest approach to islet transplantation, in which clusters of insulin-producing cells known as islets are transplanted from a donor pancreas into another person's liver, has produced substantially improved results for patients with type 1 diabetes, and may offer a more durable alternative to a whole pancreas transplant.

20 Sep 2013

Gentiva, Harden enter into definitive merger agreement

Gentiva Health Services, Inc., the largest provider of home health and hospice services in the United States based on revenue, and Harden Healthcare Holdings, Inc., a leading provider of home health, hospice and community care services, announced today that they have entered into a definitive merger agreement whereby Gentiva will acquire Harden.

19 Sep 2013

Choosing Wisely List released by The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons

The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) today released a list of specific tests or procedures that are commonly ordered but not always necessary in orthopaedics as part of the Choosing Wisely- campaign, an initiative of the ABIM Foundation. The list identifies five targeted, evidence-based recommendations that can support conversations between patients and physicians about what care is really necessary.

12 Sep 2013

State highlights: Democratic Gov. hopefuls spar over hospitals in N.Y.

A selection of health policy stories from New York, Indiana, South Carolina, California and Kansas.

10 Sep 2013

Research roundup: The financial burden of hospital acquired infections

Health care–associated infections (HAIs) account for a large proportion of the harms caused by health care and are associated with high costs. ... [Using a simulation, the researchers found that the] total annual costs for the 5 major infections were $9.8 billion (95% CI, $8.3-$11.5 billion), with surgical site infections contributing the most to overall costs (33.7% of the total), followed by ventilator-associated pneumonia (31.6%), central line–associated bloodstream infections (18.9%), C difficile infections (15.4%), and catheter-associated urinary tract infections (<1%). ... recent analyses indicate that at least 50% are preventable. ...

7 Sep 2013

State highlights: Calif. bill to expand nurse role in health care dies; Ohio senior housing developer turns eye to primary care; examining Miss. trauma care costs

A selection of health policy stories from California, Ohio, Mississippi and Washington. An effort to ease a shortage of primary-care doctors in some California communities by letting nurse practitioners operate more independently has flat-lined in the Legislature after a fierce lobbying battle. A bill by Sen.

4 Sep 2013

Viewpoints: Rove says job losses growing under health law; GOP strategists say health overhaul is aiding their path to white house; Mich. Senators who opposed Medicaid expansion gave themselves lifetime medical benefits

Thousands of American higher-education administrators will spend part of Labor Day weekend trying to plumb the meaning of the ideas President Obama dropped on them last week to "reform" the American college and university system.

30 Aug 2013

Viewpoints: Sen. Cruz's strategy and a looming deadline; Michigan republicans face key test

Mr. Cruz also acknowledged that he does "not have the votes right now" to force a shutdown. At least 41 Senators need to play along, and, so far, only 13 have signaled their commitment to the cause. But the senator would only go so far in accepting reality.

28 Aug 2013

California residents to reap benefits of CHI and xG partnership

Residents of California's Central Coast will soon reap the benefits of a newly formed healthcare partnership that aims to advance quality while driving down costs thanks to an innovative healthcare delivery model known as the patient-centered medical home.

27 Aug 2013