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US Oncology selects PatientPoint's self-service solutions to enhance patient experience

PatientPoint, a provider of multi-channel self-service applications for the healthcare industry, today announced that US Oncology, the leading integrated oncology company supporting more than 1,300 affiliated physicians in 500 locations throughout 39 states, has selected PatientPoint solutions to provide self-service technologies to enhance the patient experience.

9 Sep 2010

Defensive medicine costs much less than 'imagined' by malpractice reformists

The combined cost of malpractice -- and doctors' efforts to avoid it by practicing so-called defensive medicine -- costs about $55.6 billion a year, or 2.4 percent of total health spending, according to a new analysis by "Harvard University's Atul Gawande and co-authors, Bloomberg reports. "The yearly price of so-called defensive medicine -- tests, visits and procedures performed to reduce litigation risk -- is about $45.6 billion, the authors said today in the journal Health Affairs, in a report using 2008 dollars."

9 Sep 2010

Overweight and obesity contribute to increase in womb cancer cases

The number of women diagnosed with womb cancer is at its highest for over 30 years according to new figures published today by Cancer Research UK which show more than 7,530 people now develop the disease each year in the UK.

9 Sep 2010

Study finds long-term use of bone-strengthening drugs increase risk of oesophageal cancer

People who take bone-strengthening pills called bisphosphonates over a long period of time could be more likely to develop cancer of the oesophagus (gullet), new research suggests.

9 Sep 2010

Indiana State Legislators holds hearing to improve methamphetamine production

Today, the Indiana State Legislature's Criminal Law and Sentencing Policy Study Committee is holding a hearing on how the state can improve its policies for preventing the illegal diversion of pseudoephedrine (PSE) a key ingredient in leading cold and allergy medicines for methamphetamine production.

9 Sep 2010

Conservative group forecasts Medicare doctor access problem

Writing for Kaiser Health News, Marilyn Werber Serafini reports in a KHN short take: "Getting a doctor's appointment may become increasingly difficult for seniors and the disabled over the next decade unless Congress changes the new health law, according to a report that the conservative National Center for Policy Analysis plans to release today.

9 Sep 2010

First Edition: September 8, 2010

In today's headlines, reports about how health reform is playing on the campaign trail and the latest on health insurance premium hikes.

8 Sep 2010

Save the Children report finds neediest children in many developing countries are overlooked

The deaths of four million of the world's poorest children over 10 years could have been avoided if governments had not turned "a blind eye" to the neediest children, said a report from Save the Children, released on Tuesday, the U.K. Press Association reports (9/6).

8 Sep 2010

OrthoAccel Technologies to host private lecture for orthodontic specialists in Brighton

OrthoAccel Technologies, Inc. has announced its plans to host a private lecture and reception for orthodontic specialists in Brighton during the British Orthodontic Conference.

8 Sep 2010

Lack of data on best way to treat nausea and vomiting in children undergoing chemotherapy

Although nausea and vomiting are common in children undergoing chemotherapy, few quality studies identify absolutely the best way to prevent and treat this problem in kids, said Robert Phillips, M.D., lead author of a new Cochrane review. Phillips, a pediatric oncologist at St. James's Hospital in Leeds, England, said the main finding is the paucity of data that he and his colleagues uncovered.

8 Sep 2010

Immigrants to Canada and US have less access to health care than natives

In spite of Canada's universal medical coverage, immigrants to that country have less access to health care than native-born Canadians for certain procedures, a new study finds. In fact, immigrants have about the same access as immigrants to the United States who depend on private health insurance or Medicaid and who have less access than native-born Americans.

8 Sep 2010

Study finds increase in emergency department usage among US patients

Only 45 percent of the 354 million annual visits for acute care in the United States are made to patients' personal physicians, as Americans increasingly make busy emergency departments, specialists or outpatient care departments their first point of contact for treatment of new health problems or a flare up of a chronic condition like asthma or diabetes.

8 Sep 2010

Studies examine health care use, quality

The New York Times: A new study finds "that more than half of the 354 million doctor visits made each year for acute medical care, like for fevers, stomachaches and coughs, are not with a patient's primary physician, and that more than a quarter take place in hospital emergency rooms. The authors of the study, which was published Tuesday in the journal Health Affairs, said it highlighted a significant question about the new federal health care law: can access to primary care be maintained.

8 Sep 2010

State Roundup: Some premiums soar in Washington State; Building boom for Denver hospitals; Looking for uninsured kids

The Seattle Times: "Whopping rate increases are coming soon for many people with individual health-insurance policies. Most insurers offering individual policies in the state have asked for and been granted rate increases, effective Oct. 1, according to the state's insurance commissioner. Regence BlueShield's rate increase — an average 16.5 percent — was one of the highest.

7 Sep 2010

OpEds: Health costs and new law; Penn. doctor supply; Anesthesiologists vs. nurses

Some sort of Medicare-for-all program remains the only equitable way that every American can be provided with adequate and affordable coverage. This wouldn't be socialized medicine and it wouldn't be state-run healthcare (David Lazarus, 9/7).

7 Sep 2010

Survey reveals lack of public awareness about radiotherapy's importance in treating cancer

Only one in ten people know that radiotherapy helps cure forty per cent of cancer patients according to new figures published by Cancer Research UK today.

7 Sep 2010

Connecting Kids to Coverage Challenge to enroll five million uninsured children in Medicaid, CHIP

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius and U.S. Department of Education Secretary Arne Duncan today highlighted the Connecting Kids to Coverage Challenge to enroll five million children in Medicaid and CHIP within five years. Since Sebelius announced the Challenge last February, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services have built an unprecedented coalition of partners, ranging from state governors to national advocacy organizations, who have stepped up to the challenge to enroll kids and educate families.

4 Sep 2010

State News: Ohio, Florida take advantage of federal health funds; Mass. psychiatrists win court case

The Columbus Dispatch: "Gov. Ted Strickland's administration announced today that nearly $200 million in recently freed up state funds will go to Ohio hospitals, community mental health services, and a program which provides medication to low-income residents with HIV/AIDS. … The state money became available after Congress agreed to continue paying a higher share of the cost of state Medicaid programs that provide insurance coverage to the poor.

3 Sep 2010

NYBC calls for blood donations as Hurricane Earl approaches

New York Blood Center, serving more than 20 million people in New York City, Long Island, the Hudson Valley and New Jersey, calls upon our communities to please donate blood and platelets, as the East Coast braces for Hurricane Earl. While donations from Rh-negative types are especially crucial, healthy people of all blood types and ethnicities are encouraged to donate.

3 Sep 2010

St. Jude Doctors and scientists work together to improve survival rates for childhood cancer

Survival rates overall for childhood cancer are almost 80 percent—a marked advance against a disease that was curable in only a small fraction of children 50 years ago. However, despite progress, pediatric cancer remains the leading cause of death due to disease among U.S. children older than 1 year of age.

3 Sep 2010

Doctor News and Research

US Oncology selects PatientPoint's self-service solutions to enhance patient experience

Defensive medicine costs much less than 'imagined' by malpractice reformists

Overweight and obesity contribute to increase in womb cancer cases

Study finds long-term use of bone-strengthening drugs increase risk of oesophageal cancer

Indiana State Legislators holds hearing to improve methamphetamine production

Conservative group forecasts Medicare doctor access problem

First Edition: September 8, 2010

Save the Children report finds neediest children in many developing countries are overlooked

OrthoAccel Technologies to host private lecture for orthodontic specialists in Brighton

Lack of data on best way to treat nausea and vomiting in children undergoing chemotherapy

Immigrants to Canada and US have less access to health care than natives

Study finds increase in emergency department usage among US patients

Studies examine health care use, quality

State Roundup: Some premiums soar in Washington State; Building boom for Denver hospitals; Looking for uninsured kids

OpEds: Health costs and new law; Penn. doctor supply; Anesthesiologists vs. nurses

Survey reveals lack of public awareness about radiotherapy's importance in treating cancer

Connecting Kids to Coverage Challenge to enroll five million uninsured children in Medicaid, CHIP

State News: Ohio, Florida take advantage of federal health funds; Mass. psychiatrists win court case

NYBC calls for blood donations as Hurricane Earl approaches

St. Jude Doctors and scientists work together to improve survival rates for childhood cancer

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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