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First Edition: August 6, 2012

Today's headlines include a progress a report about health insurance exchanges as well as news from the campaign trail.

6 Aug 2012

Medication reconciliation in hospitals: an interview with Dr. Leonard Feldman

Adverse drug effects are harms caused by the use of a medication. There are many different types of ADEs, including medication errors.

6 Aug 2012

Associate director of Clinical Genetics receives Angelo DiGeorge Medal of Honor

Donna McDonald-McGinn, M.S., CGC, associate director of Clinical Genetics and program director of the "22q and You" Center at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, received the Angelo DiGeorge Medal of Honor on July 6 at the 8th Biennial International 22q11.2 DS Conference in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. Ms. McDonald-McGinn, who began her career at CHOP in 1985, is the second person to receive this highly esteemed honor.

6 Aug 2012

Study focuses on factors related to obesity in nurses with adverse work schedules

For nurses who work long hours or other "adverse work schedules," the risk of obesity is related to lack of opportunity for exercise and sleep, suggests a study in the August issue of Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, the official publication of the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine (ACOEM).

6 Aug 2012

Montefiore launches first fellowship program in Women's Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation

Montefiore Medical Center has launched the nation's first fellowship program in Women's Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (WPM&R), and established a new clinical program in this specialty.

6 Aug 2012

UCSF/SFGH report addresses widespread gaps in health literacy and shows how to bridge them

Is it possible for a health care system to redesign its services to better educate patients to deal with their immediate health issues and also become more savvy consumers of medicine in the long run? The answer is yes, according to a study led by scientists at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) and San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center (SFGH) that was recently reported by the Institute of Medicine (IOM).

6 Aug 2012

USDA's Economic Research Service report examines global food security

In a post on the USDA Blog, economists Stacey Rosen and Shahla Shapouri of the Economic Research Service's (ERS) Food Security and Development Branch describe the latest ERS International Food Security Assessment, which covers 76 countries in Asia, Latin America, North Africa, and sub-Saharan Africa.

3 Aug 2012

Viewpoints: Romney's 'repeal and replace' pledge; 'Socialized medicine' in the U.S.; Pros and cons of expanding Medicaid

Greg Sargent already took a crack at Mitt Romney's new "Plan for a Stronger Middle Class," but one thing that he didn't get to shouldn't be ignored: Romney is apparently still campaigning on a "repeal and replace" plan on health care reform.

3 Aug 2012

Self-insurance for small businesses goes under the microscope

Politco Pro describes the growing focus on this part of the insurance marketplace as a "sleeper battle to watch." Meanwhile, Reuters reports that a growing number of people are signing up for supplemental insurance coverage.

3 Aug 2012

Science magazine recaps issues discussed at AIDS 2012

Science looks back at the XIX International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2012), which ended last week in Washington, D.C., writing, "The battle against HIV is having more success than ever. ... But several presentations made clear that a gulf separates aspirations from reality when it comes to 'ending AIDS,' which [Secretary of State Hillary] Clinton and many other prominent speakers at the conference emphasized was now possible."

3 Aug 2012

Power outage points out how technology can undermine patient care

Dozens of hospitals across the country lost access to crucial electronic medical records for about five hours during a major computer outage last week, raising fresh concerns about whether poorly designed technology can compromise patient care.

3 Aug 2012

Two GAO reports focus on global health issues

The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently released two reports on issues related to global health.

3 Aug 2012

Panel discussion looks back on AIDS 2012, explores possible topics for AIDS 2014

Devex reports on a panel discussion held in Washington, D.C. Wednesday during which experts "looked back at the main surprises of the just-concluded [XIX International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2012)], and offered predictions on what the 2014 follow-up [in Melbourne, Australia] will focus on."

3 Aug 2012

Summer camp pairs 'smores and anti-abortion activism

State news on abortion focuses on a summer camp that trains anti-abortion activists and a Kansas City Planned Parenthood whose charges of performing illegal late-term abortions were dismissed in order to narrow a case against it.

3 Aug 2012

Widespread use of current technologies 'essential' to improve global health

Noting that this week's issue of the Lancet explores the theme of "[a]ccess to beneficial health technology, including essential medicines and medical devices, for those most in need," a Lancet editorial states, "Maximizing use of current health technologies (drugs, devices, biological products, medical and surgical procedures, support systems, and organizational systems) is essential to improving global health."

3 Aug 2012

Science, Lancet articles examine efforts to eradicate polio

In a series of "News Focus" articles in Science, the magazine examines the global effort to eradicate polio. One article examines the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) -- a partnership of the WHO, Rotary International, UNICEF, the CDC, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation -- and recent reports on the program by an Independent Monitoring Board (IMB), "an oversight body" that provides feedback and guidance.

3 Aug 2012

U.S. announces additional $12M in humanitarian aid to Syria

"The United States announced Thursday it would hike its humanitarian aid to Syria, adding another $12 million to provide food, water, medicine and other necessities for battered and displaced people" affected by violence in the Syrian conflict, the Los Angeles Times blog "World Now" reports.

3 Aug 2012

Research roundup: Massachusetts health reform; Role of race and insurance in kidney transplantation

Access to Care After Massachusetts' Health Care Reform: A Safety Net Hospital Patient Survey -- Policy analysts have long said that Massachusetts and its 2006 health reform law provide great insight into the federal health law and how its expansion of insurance coverage will play out.

3 Aug 2012

Outsourcing trend emerging in health care industry

Outsourcing, an established but fairly static practice in the U.S. health care industry, may grow in scope as the country experiences major shifts in health care delivery.

3 Aug 2012

Gilead Sciences signs deals with 3 Indian pharmaceutical companies to promote low-cost HIV drugs in developing countries

Gilead Sciences Inc. announced Thursday that it plans to partner with Mylan Inc., Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd. and Strides Arcolab Ltd. "to promote access to high-quality, low-cost generic versions of Gilead's HIV medicine emtricitabine in developing countries," the Wall Street Journal reports.

3 Aug 2012