Health Systems News and Research

RSS

Lancet studies examine aspects of global health funding

"Global health funding boosted by private donors has quadrupled since 1990, but the extra money has not always gone to the right countries and diseases, according to a pair of studies released Friday," in the journal Lancet, AFP/Google.com reports (Hood, AFP/Google.com, 6/18).

21 Jun 2009

CNN, The Independent, VOA News examine technology, health systems in developing countries

CNN examines the increasing numbers of health workers using cell phone technology to monitor diseases in the developing world. The article features EpiSurveyor - "a free, open-source application designed for personal digital assistants" that can be downloaded onto cell phones, so that officials can "gather data directly from the site of the outbreak and send it electronically back to headquarters for faster analysis," CNN writes.

18 Jun 2009

GOP returns fire on comparative effectiveness, health reform

"GOP Senate Leader Mitch McConnell, Ky., GOP Senate Whip Jon Kyl, Ariz., Senate Republican Conference Chairman Lamar Alexander, Tenn., and House Republican Conference Chairman Mike Pence, Ind., went on the offensive following Obama's speech in Chicago to the American Medical Association. Kyl and McConnell unveiled a bill to rival the Democratic bill, while Alexander and Pence spoke to reporters," according to the Hill.

17 Jun 2009

Groups mark day of “The African Child”, highlight improvement in children's survival, work to be done

To mark Day of the African Child on Tuesday, the U.N. Millennium Campaign is calling on African governments, civil society organizations and the private sector to address child and maternal mortality and other targets related to the U.N. Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), InDepthNews reports (Mwanda, InDepthNews, 6/16), while Save the Children released a new briefing paper, indicating that more than 1,500 babies born in sub-Saharan Africa die daily, "mostly from preventable or treatable causes," (Save the Children release, 6/16).

17 Jun 2009

U.N. Secretary-General, WHO Director-General appeal for continued investment in global health

Despite the current global economic crisis, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Monday called for a continued international commitment to investing in health, Xinhua/People's Daily reports.

17 Jun 2009

Opinion: U.S. should double global maternal, child health spending; Ban, Chan want 'global solidarity'; resources for diabetes, HIV/AIDS

Although "child survival is improving - albeit way too slowly - in most regions of the world," sub-Saharan Africa "continues to have the world's highest child-mortality rates," former U.S. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, who serves as the chairman of Save the Children's Survive to 5 campaign, writes in a Washington Times opinion piece. Frist asserts, "We cannot continue to allow one of every seven African children to die when it is so readily within our reach to prevent those deaths."

17 Jun 2009

Michigan hospitals suffer GM's bankruptcy, new Medicaid cuts

Health care could be the next Michigan industry to take a tumble, as hospitals anticipate caring for more uninsured patients in the wake of General Motor's bankruptcy and cuts to the state Medicaid program, the Detroit Free Press reports.

13 Jun 2009

Study finds childhood obesity increases early signs of cardiovascular disease

At a press conference held today at The Endocrine Society's 91st Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C., Nelly Mauras, M.D., Division Chief of Endocrinology at Nemours Children's Clinic in Jacksonville, announced the results of a four year study with findings that show childhood obesity increases early signs of cardiovascular disease. Dr. Mauras' study was chosen for distinction among 5,000 abstracts that were submitted to the national conference.

11 Jun 2009

Obama says health overhaul necessary

President Barack Obama said this afternoon that the window for overhauling the nation's health systems will close when Congress breaks for its summer vacation.

2 Jun 2009

Farmer still under consideration for Obama administration position, takes Harvard Medical School appointment

While Partners in Health co-founder Paul Farmer is still being considered for a senior role in the Obama administration, Farmer has been appointed chair of Harvard Medical School's Department of Global Health and Social Medicine -- Jeffrey Flier, the medical school's dean, said on Wednesday -- the Boston Globe reports. Flier said that Farmer will take a leave of absence from the medical school if he is offered a position with the administration. For now, Farmer is slated to succeed the current chair, Jim Kim, on July 1 (Smith, Boston Globe, 5/28).

28 May 2009

Advocates at Kenyan conference explore new strategies to combat HIV/AIDS in Africa

Nearly 30 years after the emergence of HIV/AIDS, the global health community must develop new strategies to curb the spread of the disease in sub-Saharan Africa, some experts said Tuesday ahead of the Global Citizens Summit for Social Mobilization to End AIDS in Nairobi, Kenya, AFP/Google.com reports.

27 May 2009

Global Health Council names Jeffrey Sturchio as next leader

Jeffrey L. Sturchio, a longtime leader at Merck & Co. whose quiet diplomacy helped build programs treating more than 100,000 AIDS patients in Botswana as well as protecting millions of Africans from river blindness, has been named President and CEO of the Global Health Council, the Council's board of directors announced today.

26 May 2009

WHO-International Atomic Energy Agency join forces to fight cancer in developing countries

WHO and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) today announced the launch of a Joint Programme on Cancer Control, aimed at strengthening and accelerating efforts to fight cancer in the developing world.

26 May 2009

62nd World Health Assembly closes with resolutions on public health

The 62nd World Health Assembly, which brought together health ministers and senior health officials from WHO's Member States, closed today with the adoption of resolutions on a variety of global health issues including primary health care, the prevention and control of multidrug- resistant and extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis, public health, innovation and intellectual property and pandemic influenza preparedness. The Health Assembly also passed the Programme Budget for 2010 -2011.

22 May 2009

Comparison key to lower drug costs, better outcomes

Patients can expect significant savings and better outcomes from their prescription medications when health care professionals use comparative effectiveness research, according to researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

22 May 2009

United States should increase its commitment to improving the health of developing nations, IOM report says

To fulfill America's humanitarian obligations as a member of the international community and to invest in the nation's long-term health, economic interests, and national security, the United States should reaffirm and increase its commitment to improving the health of developing nations, says a new report from the Institute of Medicine.

20 May 2009

Health Systems News and Research

Lancet studies examine aspects of global health funding

CNN, The Independent, VOA News examine technology, health systems in developing countries

GOP returns fire on comparative effectiveness, health reform

Groups mark day of “The African Child”, highlight improvement in children's survival, work to be done

U.N. Secretary-General, WHO Director-General appeal for continued investment in global health

Opinion: U.S. should double global maternal, child health spending; Ban, Chan want 'global solidarity'; resources for diabetes, HIV/AIDS

Michigan hospitals suffer GM's bankruptcy, new Medicaid cuts

Study finds childhood obesity increases early signs of cardiovascular disease

Obama says health overhaul necessary

Farmer still under consideration for Obama administration position, takes Harvard Medical School appointment

Advocates at Kenyan conference explore new strategies to combat HIV/AIDS in Africa

Global Health Council names Jeffrey Sturchio as next leader

WHO-International Atomic Energy Agency join forces to fight cancer in developing countries

62nd World Health Assembly closes with resolutions on public health

Comparison key to lower drug costs, better outcomes

United States should increase its commitment to improving the health of developing nations, IOM report says

Resverlogix files two patents on compounds for inflammatory diseases

World Health Assembly opens amid concerns about flu pandemic

Swine flu preoccupies world health leaders

Two New York State health agencies launch series of projects that seek to reduce racial health disparities

Sensing a Healthier Future

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

Latest News