Healthcare News

RSS

Survey outlines German physicians' attitude towards end of life practices

Discussions about end of life practices in Germany have been almost taboo for over half a century, but now intense debate is underway as professional bodies review their guidelines to physicians caring for the dying. A new study out today in Palliative Medicine, published by SAGE, reveals that German physicians do hasten death in some cases, against current ethical guidelines - sometimes without sufficient patient involvement.

7 Sep 2010

Public and private expenditure in long-term elderly care

The September Policy Brief by Ricardo Rodrigues and Andrea Schmidt aims to present information on the current picture of public and private expenditure on long-term care for older people and to discuss the challenges of financing care. Moreover it provides preliminary results on potential redistribution effects of home care benefits (based on SHARE data).

7 Sep 2010

Study finds increase in patient traffic to hospital emergency departments

About 17 percent of all visits to hospital emergency departments across the United States could be treated at retail medical clinics or urgent care centers, potentially saving $4.4 billion annually in health care costs, according to a new RAND Corporation study.

7 Sep 2010

An overview on low-carbohydrate diets

Headlines make news, but don't read too much into current headlines about a recent study titled "Low-Carbohydrate Diets and All-Cause and Cause-Specific Mortality," published in the September 7, 2010, issue of Annals of Internal Medicine. Although the headlines may say the study suggests that long-term adherence to a low-carb diet based heavily on animal protein may reduce lifespan, Dr. Funga, who was the lead author of the study, says that her research "is not representative of popular low-carb eating plans

7 Sep 2010

RWJF unites civil rights organizations to reverse childhood obesity

A $2 million initiative of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) is bringing together five civil rights organizations with the prominence and strength to help reverse childhood obesity, especially in African-American and Latino communities where the epidemic continues to hit hardest.

7 Sep 2010

Endocrine Society releases new clinical practice guideline on congenital adrenal hyperplasia

Today, The Endocrine Society released a new clinical practice guideline on the diagnosis and treatment of congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH). The guideline features a series of evidence-based clinical recommendations developed by an expert task force.

7 Sep 2010

Consumers misinterpret low carbohydrate claims to have health benefits: Study

Food manufacturers advertise a variety of foods on grocery store shelves by using nutrient claims on the front of packaging. A study in the September/October issue of the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior evaluates how consumers are interpreting certain carbohydrate-related content claims and the effects of claims on consumer perceptions of food products. Findings from this study reveal that consumers misinterpret low carbohydrate claims to have health benefits and weight loss qualities beyond their nutrition facts.

7 Sep 2010

Berwick planning Medicare test sites for new health care models

The Boston Globe, "Newly installed Medicare chief Donald Berwick, keeping a low public profile after encountering controversy over his appointment, is moving quickly behind the scenes to seed the US health care system with 100 to 300 sites to test new models of caring for patients.

7 Sep 2010

Employees pay more for health insurance while wages remain stagnant

Despite growth in the economy, the economic climate for American workers hasn't improved much since last Labor Day, and they are significantly worse off on most measures than they were a decade ago, according to the third annual Labor Scorecard compiled by Rutgers' School of Management and Labor Relations (SMLR). While August's unemployment rate was 9.6 percent, 0.1 percent lower than last August, the figure is about 2.5 times August 2000's 4.1 percent.

6 Sep 2010

Red Cross provides help and shelter from Hurricane Earl

The American Red Cross has provided help and shelter from North Carolina to New England as Hurricane Earl and its winds and rain moved up the Atlantic Coast.

6 Sep 2010

To win senior votes, some campaigns focus on Medicare fears

With Labor Day weekend the traditional start of intense campaigning, some news coverage focused on seniors' health care.

6 Sep 2010

Employers urged to ensure top priority for workplace safety

A leading Scottish lawyer has urged employers to make sure safety is always their top priority after a man suffered a serious brain injury whilst working.

4 Sep 2010

Threat of agricultural pesticides to vultures may also risk human health

While vultures across Asia teeter on the brink of extinction, the vultures of Cambodia are increasing in number, providing a beacon of hope for these threatened scavengers, according to the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and other members of the Cambodia Vulture Conservation Project.

4 Sep 2010

Kavli Day 2010 at Norwegian University of Science and Technology

In celebration of Kavli Prize Week, the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters, and the Kavli Foundation will hold a series of lectures and events on 9 September 2010 in Trondheim, Norway at the NTNU campus. The event features a number of 2010 Kavli Prize Laureates. The festivities continue after the official celebration, with two symposia sponsored by NTNU, one in neuroscience and one in nanoscience.

4 Sep 2010

New VA regulation helps to get recognition, treatment for three disorders in Agent Orange exposure

A new VA regulation adding three health conditions to the list of those presumed to have been caused by exposure to the toxic defoliant Agent Orange during the Vietnam War was published this week. Pending a 60-day congressional review, the regulation will make some 200,000 veterans eligible for VA benefits over the next year and a half.

4 Sep 2010

Fundraising events in September in support of pulmonary fibrosis research

The Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation (PFF) today announced its September schedule of fundraising events as part of its ongoing campaign to support the efforts of patients and families to raise new funds for pulmonary fibrosis (PF) research.

4 Sep 2010

Aetna to help members access care in storm-impacted areas

Aetna is making it easier for members who may be impacted by Hurricane Earl to refill prescriptions and access employee assistance and behavioral health programs. The company is monitoring the situation carefully, and will re-evaluate its medical and dental policies for members as necessary to help them access care in the storm-impacted areas along the East coast.

4 Sep 2010

MIT develops safer, simpler way to attach phosphorus to organic compounds

Phosphorus, a mineral element found in rocks and bone, is a critical ingredient in fertilizers, pesticides, detergents and other industrial and household chemicals. Once phosphorus is mined from rocks, getting it into these products is hazardous and expensive, and chemists have been trying to streamline the process for decades.

4 Sep 2010

Colorado Society of Anesthesiologists disagree with NPATCH's support on anesthesia administration

"The Colorado Society of Anesthesiologists (CSA) strongly disagrees with NPATCH's support for allowing nurses to administer anesthesia without physician supervision.

4 Sep 2010

Almost half of all Americans use prescription drugs each month

Nearly half of all Americans used at least one prescription drug per month in 2008, according to a study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Bloomberg reports. That's a 10 percent increase over the preceding decade. Over that time, yearly spending by Americans on drugs doubled to $234 billion. "The two biggest-sellers last year were Pfizer Inc.'s Lipitor for high cholesterol and Bristol-Myers Squibb Co.'s clot-buster, Plavix.

4 Sep 2010