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Study finds high prevalence of psychiatric visits among pediatric patients

Pediatric patients, primarily those who are underinsured (either without insurance or receiving Medicaid), are increasingly receiving psychiatric care in hospital emergency departments (EDs), according to an abstract presented Friday, Oct. 14, at the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) National Conference and Exhibition in Boston.

14 Oct 2011

Hospitals, health groups going green

Hospitals and health systems are organizing the industry's vast purchasing power to push manufacturers of medical products to make them with safer chemicals and to be more environmentally friendly.

14 Oct 2011

Continued access to hospital pharmacists increases patient safety and care

Making sure patients and their primary caregivers are ready for the return home is critical in the recovery process. So Gottlieb Memorial Hospital, part of Loyola University Health System, is adding an extra measure of patient safety and care by offering increased communication with inpatient pharmacists.

14 Oct 2011

Bonuses tied to Medicare Advantage's star system reward insurers on quality marks

For the first time, a government-backed quality rating will have a financial meaning to health insurance companies looking to attract millions of older Americans to privately run Medicare coverage next year.

14 Oct 2011

Reducing medicine to economics makes mockery of doctor-patient bond

Physicians who once only grappled with learning the language of medicine must now also cope with a health care world that has turned hospitals into factories and reduced clinical encounters to economic transactions, two Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center physicians lament.

14 Oct 2011

DRC worst off among 26 countries facing 'alarming' or 'extremely alarming' hunger levels, according to new Global Hunger Index

"Twenty-six countries have 'alarming' or 'extremely alarming' hunger levels, with the situation deteriorating particularly badly in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), according to this year's Global Hunger Index," AlertNet reports.

14 Oct 2011

Longer looks: Miss. ballot-initiative on abortion; personal fortune may have helped Herman Cain battle cancer; for doctors, breaking up is hard to do

One evening in late September John Perkins, a veteran of the civil-rights movement, attended a rally at a Baptist church in Jackson in support of what he called "a total justice issue," … It was concerned with Amendment 26, a measure on Mississippi's ballot this November that defines a person as being "every human being from the moment of fertilisation, cloning or the functional equivalent thereof". The reason for the measure is straightforward; its consequences less so. The Supreme Court, in its landmark Roe v Wade ruling in 1973, held that the right of a woman to terminate her pregnancy in the first trimester was guaranteed by her constitutional right to privacy.

14 Oct 2011

Tips to strengthen family connections

Combined with increasingly hectic work, school and extracurricular schedules, the advent of wireless technology has led to less quality time between parents and children. University of Missouri human development specialists say powering down digital devices is a vital step in maintaining family relationships and health.

14 Oct 2011

AMCs must make systematic changes to improve quality of life, productivity of their faculty

Academic medical centers (AMCs) must make systematic changes to improve quality of life—and thus productivity—of their faculty, according to a commentary that will appear in the October 12 issue of Science Translational Medicine.

14 Oct 2011

Viewpoints: 'Moneyball' and health care; Daschle on diabetes treatment; Elton John and Sen. Nelson on paying for AIDS drugs

Billy Beane's data-driven strategies made him the talk of baseball, the king of the current box office and a highly visible advocate for evidence-based medicine. But Beane's teams have faded since their "Moneyball" heyday -; and evidence-based medicine might not be the home run that some reformers hope it will be.

14 Oct 2011

UMA to sponsor 'Learn for the Cure' breast cancer initiative

In honor of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Ultimate Medical Academy (UMA) will be sponsoring a "Learn for the Cure" initiative, which will take place October 17-23, 2011.

13 Oct 2011

Univita earns Health Utilization Management Accreditation from URAC

Univita announced today that it has been awarded Health Utilization Management Accreditation from URAC, a Washington, DC-based health care accrediting organization that establishes quality standards for the health care industry.

13 Oct 2011

First Edition: October 13, 2011

In today's headlines, a report about how Mitt Romney's health law waiver plan would work -- states could skirt some of the measure's biggest requirements, but it's still not a complete repeal.

13 Oct 2011

Improved SNAP benefit levels more effective for children's health

Pediatric researchers from Boston Medical Center (BMC), in partnership with Children's HealthWatch investigators in Boston, Minneapolis, Little Rock, Philadelphia, and Baltimore, have found that higher benefit amounts in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program protected the health and well-being of very young, low-income children during a period of great financial hardship for many families in America.

13 Oct 2011

HHS: Pica eating disorder hospitalizations on the rise in the U.S.

An unusual eating disorder that many people have never even heard of is attracting attention because of a recent government study that indicated the disorder is on the rise in the United States.

13 Oct 2011

UofL associate professor to create an emergency countermeasure staffing plan

Building on the success of Louisville's response to the 2009 H1N1 influenza pandemic, Ruth Carrico, PhD, plans to use a $250,000 one-year cooperative agreement from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to create an emergency countermeasure staffing plan that utilizes nursing, pharmacy and public health students.

13 Oct 2011

Expert identifies employment resources for people with autism

Statistics show that the number of people diagnosed with autism has increased steadily over the past 30 years resulting in a surge in the number of adults with autism graduating from high school. However, preliminary employment studies indicate that this population may earn less and be employed at a lower rate compared to other people with disabilities.

13 Oct 2011

AARP members take to the Hill to protect entitlements

In effort to reinforce national television advertising, more than 400 AARP volunteers and staffers will be on Capitol Hill today to remind lawmakers not to cut Medicare. Meanwhile, both Democratic and Republican leaders are sending clear messages to the "super committee" and their fellow lawmakers regarding what they think should be on the table and how to frame expectations.

13 Oct 2011

Haiti uses 'peanut butter medicine' to battle malnutrition

CNN/Global Health Frontline News examines how "ready-to-use therapeutic foods" are being used in Haiti to help children with severe malnutrition. U.S. nonprofit organization Meds and Food for Kids makes "Medika Mamba, which means 'peanut butter medicine' in Creole. It's a ready-to-eat paste packed with nutritious ingredients that -- over a period of weeks -- gives a jolt to the system and puts children back on track," the news agency writes.

13 Oct 2011

SWHR hosts Capitol Hill briefing, The War Within: Women and Autoimmunity

50:1, 9:1, 2:1 these are just some ratios of autoimmune disease disparities between women and men. The Society for Women's Health Research (SWHR) hosted the Capitol Hill briefing, The War Within: Women and Autoimmunity, on Tuesday, October 11 to address these concerns.

13 Oct 2011