Veterans Affairs News and Research

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Mental Health America and Prescription Audio team up to provide free sound therapy

Mental Health America today announced it is partnering with Prescription Audio, a Philadelphia-area based firm (Voorhees, N.J.), to make the company's scientifically based sound therapy available without charge as a download to veterans, active duty servicemen and women, their family members and health care providers.

12 Nov 2009

Catheter-directed therapy: First-line treatment option for massive pulmonary embolism

Catheter-directed therapy or catheter-directed thrombolysis-an interventional radiology treatment that uses targeted image-guided drug delivery with specially designed catheters to dissolve dangerous blood clots in the lungs-saves lives and should be considered a first-line treatment option for massive pulmonary embolism, note researchers in the November Journal of Vascular and Interventional Radiology.

12 Nov 2009

LCA launches webpage with information on lung cancer meant for veterans

Lung Cancer Alliance (LCA) salutes all veterans today on Veterans Day and announces the launch of a new webpage with information specifically for veterans on lung cancer -- the leading cause of cancer death among veterans.

12 Nov 2009

Tentative agreement reached with Oklahoma lawmaker stalling veterans' health bill

Congressional Quarterly: "Senate Democratic leaders reached a tentative agreement with Tom Coburn, R-Okla., on Tuesday night that averted the necessity of filing cloture on a veterans' health care omnibus measure and could lead to passage of the bill early next week. ... On Monday, Coburn said he objected to the bill because its five-year, $3.7 billion cost was not offset" (Oliveri, 11/10).

12 Nov 2009

Post-traumatic stress disorder among veterans on the rise, reveals survey

Recent survey results reveal that the prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has increased 4 to 7 times following the invasion of Iraq.

11 Nov 2009

Premier healthcare alliance expert's efforts to enhance patient safety receives recognition from DoD

The United States Department of Defense (DoD) has recognized a Premier healthcare alliance expert for his efforts to enhance patient safety while reducing healthcare costs.

11 Nov 2009

Veteran peer support is key to combat social isolation and post-traumatic stress disorder

Last month in Washington, Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki made a staggering announcement: more veterans have committed suicide since 2001 than have been killed in Iraq and Afghanistan.

11 Nov 2009

Two VA employees lose their lives in Ft. Hood shooting

In the midst of providing mental health services and other support to the Ft. Hood community following the recent shooting, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) learned about its own losses from the violence. Two VA employees, both serving on active duty with their Army Reserve units, were among the slain. A third VA health care worker on reserve duty was seriously wounded.

11 Nov 2009

$9M ARRA funds to reduce healthcare-associated infections in ambulatory surgical centers

To reduce healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) in stand-alone or same-day surgical centers, the HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius today announced the availability of up to $9 million in funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) to state survey agencies in 43 states. HAIs are infections some patients acquire when they are in a health care setting such as a hospital or outpatient clinic.

11 Nov 2009

Wounded Warrior Project calls for the Congress to pass the Family Caregiver Legislation

As Veterans Day approaches, Wounded Warrior Project (WWP), a nonprofit organization whose mission is to honor and empower wounded warriors, is urging Congress to pass crucial legislation that will assist the family caregivers of the most severely injured veterans.

11 Nov 2009

Handbook for rural health care ethics

With an eye to small-town health professionals as well as to the people training students to practice medicine beyond metropolitan settings, Dartmouth's Department of Community and Family Medicine is unveiling the Handbook for Rural Health Care Ethics.

11 Nov 2009

National Pain Summit calls for better pain care in America

Pain medicine physicians from the American Academy of Pain Medicine (AAPM) continued to advance the call for better pain care as they joined with physician leaders from across the country in a closed-door National Pain Summit that took place adjacent to an AMA meeting last week in Houston, Texas.

10 Nov 2009

America's attention is focused on physical and psychological well being of its soldiers

With the tragic events at Fort Hood in Texas fresh in our minds, this week's observance of Veterans Day, and President Obama's pending decision on future troop levels in Afghanistan, the nation's attention is firmly focused on the physical and psychological well being of those who serve in America's armed forces.

10 Nov 2009

Higher investment of physicians' time may be required to deliver high-quality care

Adult primary care visits have increased in quality, duration and frequency between 1997 and 2005, according to a report in the November 9 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

10 Nov 2009

Sonova Group achieves year-on-year sales growth of 18.2%

The Sonova Group achieved sales of CHF 709.2 million in the first half of 2009/10, representing year-on-year sales growth of 18.2% in Swiss francs. Organic sales growth of 17.5% in local currencies was well above the estimated market growth of around 3% in units. Numerous smaller acquisitions in Europe, Asia/Pacific and North America contributed a total of 4.3% to sales growth.

10 Nov 2009

University of Michigan to develop novel therapy for neuropathic pain

Researchers from the University of Michigan Department of Neurology have received a $1.8 million dollar grant to develop a novel therapy for neuropathic pain, a difficult to treat condition in which patients experience pain because of damage to nerve without obvious tissue injury.

10 Nov 2009

Military and VA struggle with mental health and other health care issues

The events at Fort Hood highlight the military's struggle to provide mental health care for soldiers, veterans and the therapists who treat them.

10 Nov 2009

Increased use of CAS procedures to treat carotid stenosis associated with adverse clinical outcomes

Among eligible Medicare beneficiaries, increased use of carotid arterial stenting (CAS) procedures to treat carotid stenosis-the narrowing of the carotid artery-is associated with higher rates of mortality and adverse clinical outcomes, including heart attack and stroke, according to researchers from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine.

7 Nov 2009

CABG completed "off-pump" has no advantages in patient outcomes: Study

A study of 2,203 cardiac surgery patients from Veterans Affairs (VA) medical centers nationwide revealed that coronary-artery bypass grafting (CABG) completed "off-pump," meaning without a heart-lung machine, had no advantages in patient outcomes compared to the traditional "on-pump" procedure.

6 Nov 2009

Lack of evidence a problem for policymakers, doctors and patients

One category of medical mysteries that stumps expert doctors and policymakers alike falls under the heading: What works? News reports on two new studies - and one that was never completed - offer insight into that issue.

6 Nov 2009

Veterans Affairs News and Research

Mental Health America and Prescription Audio team up to provide free sound therapy

Catheter-directed therapy: First-line treatment option for massive pulmonary embolism

LCA launches webpage with information on lung cancer meant for veterans

Tentative agreement reached with Oklahoma lawmaker stalling veterans' health bill

Post-traumatic stress disorder among veterans on the rise, reveals survey

Premier healthcare alliance expert's efforts to enhance patient safety receives recognition from DoD

Veteran peer support is key to combat social isolation and post-traumatic stress disorder

Two VA employees lose their lives in Ft. Hood shooting

$9M ARRA funds to reduce healthcare-associated infections in ambulatory surgical centers

Wounded Warrior Project calls for the Congress to pass the Family Caregiver Legislation

Handbook for rural health care ethics

National Pain Summit calls for better pain care in America

America's attention is focused on physical and psychological well being of its soldiers

Higher investment of physicians' time may be required to deliver high-quality care

Sonova Group achieves year-on-year sales growth of 18.2%

University of Michigan to develop novel therapy for neuropathic pain

Military and VA struggle with mental health and other health care issues

Increased use of CAS procedures to treat carotid stenosis associated with adverse clinical outcomes

CABG completed "off-pump" has no advantages in patient outcomes: Study

Lack of evidence a problem for policymakers, doctors and patients

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

Examining how pain could play a direct protective role in the gut

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