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Integrated system, rapid transfer offers lifeline for heart attack victims

Heart attack patients received lifesaving treatment quickly when hospitals and communities used an integrated, rapid transfer system to get patients to a facility equipped to perform artery-opening procedures, according to a report in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.

3 Aug 2007

Three million seniors could lose their Medicare Advantage coverage

Three million seniors could lose their Medicare Advantage coverage, while millions more would face benefit cuts and higher out-of-pocket health care costs under legislation passed today by the U.S. House of Representatives.

1 Aug 2007

Obese patients get patchy weight-loss support from their local health surgery

Only one in seven UK doctors’ surgeries provide well-developed support programmes for obese patients, according to a survey of primary care nurses published in the latest Journal of Advanced Nursing.

1 Aug 2007

Poorer people could lose out on elective hospital care

New research from the University of Bristol shows that wealthier people are likely to travel further than poorer people do for elective care.

31 Jul 2007

Health care access problems in New Orleans

As the second anniversary of Hurricane Katrina's landfall approaches, new analysis by the Kaiser Family Foundation of its household survey of people in the New Orleans area shows that more than four in 10 (43 percent) adults reported at least one health care access problem in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

31 Jul 2007

Patient data safety in healthcare industry in Europe

Legislation is promoting the development of healthcare IT infrastructure, while supporting efforts to enhance patient data privacy and security across the European healthcare spectrum.

30 Jul 2007

New framework for patient dignity

Clinicians are being offered a new guide to help them maintain patients' dignity, according to this week's British Medical Journal.

27 Jul 2007

Critical for Congress to vote for health care for children and seniors

In a letter to leaders of the U.S. House of Representatives Ways and Means, and Energy and Commerce committees, the president of the American College of Physicians (ACP) expressed support for the Children's Health and Medicare Preotection (CHAMP) Act of 2007 (H.R. 3162).

26 Jul 2007

Initiative to improve heart failure care at nation's hospitals makes major gains

A national initiative designed to improve heart-failure patient care in hospitals proved effective at increasing hospital adherence to key quality-of-care performance measures and reducing the length of hospital stays for patients.

24 Jul 2007

Most patients satisfied with their GP's opening hours

Proof that GP practices are open at times to suit the vast majority of patients (84%) comes today (24 July 2007) ) with publication of results from the English Department of Health's GP Patient Survey.

24 Jul 2007

Medical students respond positively to simulated patient experience

When a vomiting, simulated patient mannequin was rolled into the lecture hall last fall to teach large numbers of first- and second-year Wake Forest University School of Medicine students about the brain and nervous system, Michael T. Fitch, M.D., Ph.D., wasn't sure what to expect.

23 Jul 2007

Giving patients question checklists helps patients ask right questions

Asking more questions during a visit to the doctor might help patients get care that is more satisfactory, but many patients are not sure where to start.

20 Jul 2007

Medicare plans to slash physician payments will harm Maine seniors

Highlighting a looming access to care crisis for Maine's more than 220,000 Medicare patients, the American Medical Association (AMA) National House Call campaign barnstormed Portland today.

18 Jul 2007

$900 million for public health emergency response

HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt today announced that the department has provided another $896.7 million to the states, territories, and four metropolitan areas to improve and sustain their ability to respond to public health emergencies.

18 Jul 2007

Inverse relationship between mortality rates and performance in the hospital quality alliance measures

A new study from the Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) shows that patients who go to hospitals ranked higher according to specific quality measures have a lower chance of dying than patients treated at lower-ranked hospitals.

17 Jul 2007

Growing support for tobacco tax increase to fund SCHIP by lawmakers

Congressional support "appears to be growing" for an increase in the federal tobacco tax as a way to fund the reauthorization and expansion of SCHIP, the Wall Street Journal reports.

11 Jul 2007

Some professionals choose to enter nursing field as second career

The Boston Globe on Monday examined how a "small but growing number of mid-career professionals" are choosing to enter the nursing field as a second career, a trend that could help "mitigate the widespread nursing shortage facing" the nation.

11 Jul 2007

CBO report projects possible impact of health care spending growth on income tax rate

If health care costs continue to grow at the same rate as the last 40 years, income tax rates will need to increase substantially by 2050 if they are the only mechanism used to pay for the additional costs, according to a Congressional Budget Office report released on Monday, CQ HealthBeat reports.

11 Jul 2007

Electronic health records not associated with improved quality of outpatient health care

Electronic health records have been hailed as a key element in making U.S. medical care more effective and efficient, but a new study led by a researcher at the Stanford University School of Medicine shows that electronic records were not associated with improved quality of outpatient health care in 2003 and 2004.

10 Jul 2007

Federal farm bill includes funds for critical access hospitals in rural areas

Rural Pennsylvania hospitals are "eagerly awaiting passage" of the federal 2007 Farm Bill (HR 2419), which would provide about $1.6 billion to critical access hospitals that serve rural populations across the U.S., the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports.

10 Jul 2007