Charity News and Research

RSS

Probiotics may help fight obesity post pregnancy

One year after giving birth, women were less likely to have the most dangerous kind of obesity if they had been given probiotics from the first trimester of pregnancy, found new research that suggests manipulating the balance of bacteria in the gut may help fight obesity.

7 May 2009

Utah hospitals significantly affected by Medicaid reimbursement cuts

Hospital officials in Utah say that recent cuts to Medicaid reimbursement rates were much steeper than anticipated and that they might be forced to offset costs by increasing fees on insured patients or scaling back on charity care, the Salt Lake Tribune reports. Hospitals are facing a nearly 25% cut in Medicaid reimbursement beginning July 1.

5 May 2009

Removal of ovaries during hysterectomy increases risk of death, outweighs benefits

Results of a landmark study led by a doctor at John Wayne Cancer Institute at Saint John's Health Center raises serious questions about the long-term survival benefits of removing a woman's ovaries during routine hysterectomy.

20 Apr 2009

New genetic understanding of progressive hearing loss

In parallel studies in human and mouse, two groups of researchers have come to the same conclusion: that a new kind of gene is associated with progressive hearing loss.

12 Apr 2009

U.S.-funded HIV/AIDS, malaria initiatives represent 'new approach' to foreign aid, opinion piece says

In her book "Dead Aid," author Dambisa Moyo comes to "disastrously wrongheaded conclusions" regarding U.S. foreign aid, columnist Michael Gerson writes in a Washington Post opinion piece.

5 Apr 2009

Brightly coloured uniforms improve perceptions of hospital nurses among children and parents

Putting hospital nurses in brightly coloured, unconventional uniforms makes children more comfortable and parents more confident, according to a study in the April issue of the Journal of Clinical Nursing.

1 Apr 2009

Hospital-to-hospital health information exchange begins

LifeBridge Health has begun an electronic exchange of health information between its two hospitals, Sinai Hospital of Baltimore and Northwest Hospital, and Saint Agnes Hospital, a community hospital with an overlapping service area.

1 Apr 2009

Discovery of new gene that causes Leber congenital amaurosis and retinitis pigmentosa

The team of Dr. Robert Koenekoop which includes Dr. Irma Lopez from the Research Institute of the MUHC at the Montreal Children's Hospital played a crucial role in the international collaboration that led to the discovery of a new gene that causes Leber congenital amaurosis (LCA) and retinitis pigmentosa (RP), two devastating forms of childhood blindness.

5 Mar 2009

Seattle report ranks local hospitals on access to care for minorities, low-income individuals

Four advocacy groups in Seattle on Tuesday issued a report that highlighted disparities in access to care for minorities at several local hospitals, the Seattle Times reports.

5 Mar 2009

Having health insurance essential for people's health and well-being

The evidence shows more clearly than ever that having health insurance is essential for people's health and well-being, and safety-net services are not enough to prevent avoidable illness, worse health outcomes, and premature death, says a new report from the Institute of Medicine.

24 Feb 2009

Mentally ill endure lives of loneliness and exclusion

New research from the Australian mental illness charity SANE has revealed that victims of mental illness pay a high price in terms of personal relationships and social contact.

9 Feb 2009

Temozolomide sales reach $1 billion

Sales of Temozolomide, an anti-cancer drug developed by Cancer Research UK scientists, have reached $1 billion.

8 Feb 2009

Over a million U.S. cancer survivors foregoing vital treatments due to costs

More than a million cancer survivors living in the United States are foregoing what they believe is necessary medical care due to the cost, and Hispanics and African-Americans are twice as likely to go without services, according to data presented at the American Association for Cancer Research conference on the Science of Health Care Disparities.

5 Feb 2009