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Medtronic to make nearly $4 million in 2011 to address non-communicable diseases

In its continued commitment to reduce the global burden of non-communicable diseases, Medtronic, Inc. today announced it will make nearly $4 million in Medtronic Foundation grants in 2011 to international organizations specifically to address diseases such as diabetes and heart disease in developing countries.

3 Mar 2011

GHI executive director addresses global health community at Kaiser Family Foundation town hall

In her first public address since being tapped in January to serve as executive director of President Barack Obama's Global Health Initiative, Lois Quam on Tuesday said she's been doing "a lot of listening" to officials at the State Department, PEPFAR, CDC and other agencies about the GHI.

3 Mar 2011

Adherence counseling during HIV treatment greatly improves patient outcomes

Intensive adherence counseling around the time of HIV treatment initiation significantly reduces poor adherence and virologic treatment failure in sub-Saharan Africa, according to a recent study in PLoS Medicine by Dr. Michael Chung, assistant professor of Global Health at University of Washington, who works at the Coptic Hope Center for Infectious Diseases in Nairobi, Kenya.

3 Mar 2011

Thirty organizations call on Congress to reverse cuts to life-saving programs in the U.S. budget

A coalition of 30 Christian and Jewish organizations in the U.S. have joined together with the ONE Campaign to urge senators now considering fiscal 2011 budget measures to reverse the disproportionate and devastating cuts to international assistance approved by House lawmakers last week.

2 Mar 2011

Star-Ledger examines Tibotec's agreement with generic drug makers on experimental HIV/AIDS treatment

In a piece on the move by drug manufacturer Tibotec Pharmaceuticals to grant licenses to generic manufacturers in India and South Africa to create copies of its experimental HIV/AIDS drug, the New Jersey Star-Ledger examines why drug companies are particularly focused on expanding their reach in sub-Saharan Africa.

1 Mar 2011

Opinions: Foreign aid budget cuts would negatively affect food, global health

The "hard truth is that if the United States doesn't keep its word" on a pledge to deliver $3.5 billion to the G20's $22 billion food security initiative for "vulnerable" developing countries, "no one else will," a New York Times editorial states.

1 Mar 2011

Researchers report 'surprisingly little' evidence that economic downturns are associated with deep development aid cuts

Despite concerns expressed by the World Bank and the WHO that the current economic climate would lead donor countries to scale back development assistance, a study published online Friday in the WHO Bulletin finds what the authors "described as 'surprisingly little' evidence that economic downturns are associated with deep cuts in aid, at least in the first few years of a financial crisis," Reuters reports.

1 Mar 2011

Event marks ceremonial launch of U.N. Women

"After years of planning, fundraising and consultations, U.N. Women was officially launched Thursday," Inter Press Service reports, describing the expectations for the agency voiced by leaders gathered at the event. The ceremonial launch took place during a meeting of the Commission on the Status of Women in New York, U.N. News Centre writes.

28 Feb 2011

New study: Little historical evidence justifies economic downturns linked with large cuts in health aid

The World Bank and World Health Organization have voiced fears that policymakers will break their commitments to support desperately needed global health services in low- and middle-income countries because of the ongoing global economic downturn. Yet, according to a new study from the Harvard School of Public Health, there is surprisingly little historical evidence to justify reversing these commitments.

28 Feb 2011

House, Senate leaders continue negotiations on FY11 budget; global health advocates protest spending cuts

Federal budget negotiations continued on Thursday, "as Senate Democrats looked for targets for cuts in the remaining months of fiscal 2011 and House Republicans appeared ready to unveil a stopgap plan that would make deep reductions over the next two weeks," CQ reports.

28 Feb 2011

Johns Hopkins students to provide hands-on help to communities in need on spring break trip

In the coming months, college students across the U.S. will make their annual southern pilgrimage for fun in the sun. At the Johns Hopkins School of Nursing, however, 16 students have a different agenda for a southern spring break: providing hands-on help to communities in need.

27 Feb 2011

Daily report global health conversations: Health sector corruption

Recent media reports have drawn attention to an internal audit that revealed several countries' misuse of Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria grant money, totaling $34 million.

24 Feb 2011

New DNA technology to study cystic fibrosis 'superbug' during infection

The bacterium, called Pseudomonas aeruginosa, is the most common cause of persistent and fatal lung infections in cystic fibrosis patients. Scientists at Liverpool identified a particularly virulent strain of the bacteria that is transmissible between patients. The Liverpool Epidemic Strain (LES), referred to as a cystic fibrosis 'superbug', can cause aggressive infection and results in progressive lung decline.

23 Feb 2011

'Day on Deadly Killers'

Experts from Europe, the US and Asia will present their research results and discuss how new therapeutical approaches against infectious diseases may look like.

22 Feb 2011

House passes FY11 budget bill

The House voted 235-189 on Saturday to pass legislation that "would fund government operations through Sept. 30, the end of fiscal 2011, while sharply reducing spending across a wide swath of federal agencies and programs," CQ reports. "Most spending levels under the bill would be based on fiscal 2010 levels, less eliminations, reductions and rescissions totaling roughly $61.5 billion. The measure would provide $99.6 billion less than President Obama sought for fiscal 2011," the news service writes (Weyl, 2/19).

22 Feb 2011

Sanofi Pasteur, International Vaccine Institute support Dengue Vaccine Initiative

Sanofi Pasteur, the vaccines division of sanofi-aventis Group, announced today that it is partnering with the International Vaccine Institute (IVI) to support the recently launched Dengue Vaccine Initiative (DVI). Sanofi Pasteur and the IVI will aim to raise awareness and to work to move dengue vaccination higher on the global health agenda.

21 Feb 2011

SAP launches Collaborative E-Care Management application

To address the current reactive approaches to treating chronic and post-acute care conditions, SAP AG is launching a new solution. The SAP® Collaborative E-Care Management application connects patients, care providers and their families through medical monitoring software and mobile devices to better manage their health with individualized treatment plans and educational content.

21 Feb 2011

Best Medical Belgium to purchase Nordion's Belgian operations

Nordion Inc., a leading provider of products and services to the global health science market, today announced it has signed a share purchase agreement (SPA) with Best Medical Belgium (Best Medical) for the divestiture of the Company's Belgian operations, MDS Nordion S.A. Pursuant to the SPA, Best Medical will acquire all of Nordion's Belgian operations with the exception of the TheraSphere® business.

21 Feb 2011

House to vote on FY11 budget bill, Senate likely to reject it

House Appropriations Chairman Harold Rogers (R-Ky.) said on Thursday that Republicans had reached an agreement with Democrats to reduce the the number of pending amendments to a bill that would fund the government through the end of the current fiscal year, CQ reports (Carter, 2/17). "A final vote on the 2011 budget measure may come as soon as today. It then would go to the Senate, where the Democratic majority is likely to reject the proposal, raising the prospect of a government shutdown," Bloomberg Businessweek reports (Faler, 2/18).

19 Feb 2011

Recent releases in Global Health

Factors Contributing to Health Of Women Worldwide: The Kaiser Family Foundation features a narrated slide tutorial by epidemiologist Laurel Spielberg on the health issues facing women around the world. The tutorial touches on issues such as economic status and biological, social, and cultural factors that affect women's health, as well as access to health services such as family planning (2/17).

19 Feb 2011

Global Health News and Research

Medtronic to make nearly $4 million in 2011 to address non-communicable diseases

GHI executive director addresses global health community at Kaiser Family Foundation town hall

Adherence counseling during HIV treatment greatly improves patient outcomes

Thirty organizations call on Congress to reverse cuts to life-saving programs in the U.S. budget

Star-Ledger examines Tibotec's agreement with generic drug makers on experimental HIV/AIDS treatment

Opinions: Foreign aid budget cuts would negatively affect food, global health

Researchers report 'surprisingly little' evidence that economic downturns are associated with deep development aid cuts

Event marks ceremonial launch of U.N. Women

New study: Little historical evidence justifies economic downturns linked with large cuts in health aid

House, Senate leaders continue negotiations on FY11 budget; global health advocates protest spending cuts

Johns Hopkins students to provide hands-on help to communities in need on spring break trip

Daily report global health conversations: Health sector corruption

New DNA technology to study cystic fibrosis 'superbug' during infection

'Day on Deadly Killers'

House passes FY11 budget bill

Sanofi Pasteur, International Vaccine Institute support Dengue Vaccine Initiative

SAP launches Collaborative E-Care Management application

Best Medical Belgium to purchase Nordion's Belgian operations

House to vote on FY11 budget bill, Senate likely to reject it

Recent releases in Global Health

Designing fluidic architecture for scalable diagnostic platforms

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

Expanding access to NMR with the Fourier 80 Duo

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