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PAREXEL appoints Peyton Howell as chief commercial and strategy officer

PAREXEL International Corporation, the world’s leading innovator of biopharmaceutical services, today announced the appointment of Peyton Howell as Chief Commercial and Strategy Officer, effective May 7, 2018. Ms. Howell most recently served as Executive Vice President at AmerisourceBergen and will be responsible for leading PAREXEL’s commercial strategy, including global sales, customer service and sales operations.

From Parexel 27 Apr 2018

Study: VA hospitals provide better quality care than other health providers

The VA health care system performs similar to or better than non-VA systems on most measures of inpatient and outpatient care quality, although there is high variation in quality across individual VA facilities, according to a new RAND Corporation study.

26 Apr 2018

Probiotics may be safe, low-cost prevention tool for Clostridium difficile infections

Probiotics may be a relatively safe, simple, and low-cost solution for preventing Clostridium difficile infections in hospital settings, according to two studies published today in Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology, the journal of the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America.

26 Apr 2018

Study: Nearly three-quarters of commonly used medical scopes tainted by bacteria

In an ominous sign for patient safety, 71 percent of reusable medical scopes deemed ready for use on patients tested positive for bacteria at three major U.S. hospitals, according to a new study.

23 Apr 2018

Scientists use CRISPR tool to make multiple edits to DNA samples 'in vitro'

Scientists at Christiana Care Health System's Gene Editing Institute have developed a potentially breakthrough CRISPR gene-editing tool. It could allow researchers to take fragments of DNA extracted from human cells, put them into a test tube, and quickly and precisely engineer multiple changes to the genetic code, according to a new study published today in the CRISPR Journal.

20 Apr 2018

Physician assistants less likely to accurately diagnose early stage skin cancers

Physician assistants (PAs) are increasingly used in dermatology practices to cut costs and improve access to care, but are more likely than dermatologists to perform unnecessary skin biopsies to check for cancer, while being less likely to accurately diagnose early stage skin cancers, according to new research conducted by the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine.

18 Apr 2018

Study suggests HIV testing in emergency department as effective strategy to identify undiagnosed cases

South Africa has the worst epidemic of HIV in the world. According to the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS, 19 percent of the global number of people living with HIV are in South Africa. Many people in South Africa and around the globe do not even know they have HIV.

3 Apr 2018

California sues Sutter Health alleging excessive pricing

California's attorney general announced a lawsuit Friday against Sutter Health, alleging the hospital giant engaged in anticompetitive conduct that drove up prices for patients and employers in the state.

30 Mar 2018

Expert group presents framework to address physician burnout

Physician burnout continues to be a pervasive issue, with more than 50 percent of doctors reporting problems such as dissatisfaction, high rates of depression, and increased suicide risk.

29 Mar 2018

Weight loss surgery widely underutilized among young patients with severe obesity

Among U.S. teenagers and young adults with severe obesity, a new study finds that only a small percentage undergo weight loss surgery, even though it is broadly considered the most effective long-term weight loss therapy.

20 Mar 2018

Dementia patients do not undergo diagnostic evaluation at onset of disease, study finds

A study conducted by a multidisciplinary Spectrum Health neurology team has found that dementia patients are not undergoing evaluation at the onset of the dementia process, a delay that prevents early, beneficial treatment.

15 Mar 2018

Study highlights need to focus on healthcare transition period in young patients with type 2 diabetes

Youth-onset type 2 diabetes is increasing globally as a result of pediatric obesity. A new study in Diabetic Medicine shows that young adults with type 2 diabetes have substantially worse blood sugar control and loss to follow-up during healthcare transition from pediatric to adult health systems. This is the first study of healthcare transition effects in youth-onset type 2 diabetes.

13 Mar 2018

Mind over body: A psychiatrist tells how to tap into wisdom and grow with age

We've all seen it happen: An older friend or family member retires, is diagnosed with a serious illness or loses a spouse. Suddenly, this individual's world is altered, sometimes seemingly beyond recognition. He has reached a fork in the road; will he get stuck or find a way to regroup and move on?

8 Mar 2018

New Canadian guideline lays out optimal strategies for treatment of opioid addiction

A new Canadian guideline for managing opioid use disorders lays out the optimal strategies for the treatment of opioid addiction, including recommending opioid agonist treatment with buprenorphine-naloxone as the preferred first-line treatment.

5 Mar 2018

Never too late to operate? Surgery near end of life is common, costly

At 87, Maxine Stanich cared more about improving the quality of her life than prolonging it. She suffered from a long list of health problems, including heart failure and chronic lung disease that could leave her gasping for breath.

28 Feb 2018

Expanded model of care could relieve depression and fatigue in chronic heart failure patients

Patients with chronic heart failure face related problems, such as depression and fatigue, that could be relieved by an expanded model of care, according to a recently published study led by a researcher from the University of Colorado School of Medicine.

27 Feb 2018

Patients with multimorbidity suffer from high out-of-pocket costs

Current strategies for treating patients with several chronic diseases are putting an unnecessary financial burden on countries' health systems and individuals, a global study led by the National University of Singapore and the University of Melbourne has found.

7 Feb 2018

New tool to monitor patterns and trends of cancer burden across Europe

On the occasion of the World Cancer Day, the European Commission's Joint Research Centre launched the European Cancer Information System (ECIS), which makes it possible to explore geographical patterns and temporal trends of cancer incidence, mortality, and survival from data submitted by some 150 European population-based cancer registries.

6 Feb 2018

Hackensack Meridian Health offers cutting-edge treatment option for patients with carotid artery disease

Hackensack Meridian Health's academic medical centers, Hackensack University Medical Center in Hackensack, NJ and Jersey Shore University Medical Center in Neptune, NJ, are just two of only a few hospitals in the country and two of only three hospitals in New Jersey to offer an innovative new treatment that dramatically reduces the risk of stroke in patients with blocked carotid arteries, the major blood vessels that deliver blood to the brain.

1 Feb 2018

Inappropriate antibiotic prescribing linked to patient's age and race, study shows

A patient's age and race are associated with risk of receiving an unneeded antibiotic prescription for upper respiratory conditions caused by viruses, according to a study published today in Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology, the journal of the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America.

30 Jan 2018