Healthcare News and Research

Latest Healthcare News and Research

High CRP and low protein albumin levels associated with increased risk of death after PEG-operations

The combination of high CRP and low levels of the protein albumin in the blood, is associated with an increased risk of death after a PEG-operation; implantation of a nutritional catheter into the stomach through the abdominal wall. This was shown in a new study from the Swedish medical university Karolinska Institutet, published in the scientific journal Gastrointestinal Endoscopy. Of the PEG patients in the study that showed both current indicators, 20 percent died within 30 days.

20 Nov 2010

MedSynergies receives gold-level award for website design

MedSynergies Inc., the leading provider of hospital-physician alignment solutions, received the gold-level award for achieving the best website design in the Corporate Business Improvement Site division of the 2010 eHealthcare Leadership Awards.

20 Nov 2010

PROTOX closes first tranche of investment by Warburg Pincus

Protox Therapeutics Inc., a leader in the development of receptor targeted therapeutic fusion proteins, today announced it has closed the first tranche of the investment by Warburg Pincus. The investment was approved by 100% of the votes cast by shareholders at the recent special shareholders meeting.

20 Nov 2010

Evelyn Y. Davis gifts $100,000 to Swedish Medical Center

Swedish Medical Center announced today that it has received an unrestricted $100,000 gift from nationally known shareholder advocate Evelyn Y. Davis and the Evelyn Y. Davis Foundation. Since establishing her Foundation in 1989, Davis – who is from Washington, D.C. – has now made significant donations across the country to leading medical centers, nationally prominent universities, and various arts organizations.

20 Nov 2010

PIPC's white paper provides guidance in defining CER procedures

The Partnership to Improve Patient Care today released a white paper that defines a Procedural Framework for the Conduct of Comparative Effectiveness Research. The paper and its executive summary provide guidance for policy-makers, patient and providers for establishing CER procedures that foster openness, transparency and patient-centeredness.

20 Nov 2010

Siemens to unveil Biograph mMR system at RSNA Annual Meeting

At the 96th Scientific Assembly and Annual Meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA), November 28 - December 2 in Chicago, Siemens Healthcare (Booth #822, East Building/Lakeside Center, Hall D) will unveil the Biograph mMR, the world's first integrated whole-body molecular Magnetic Resonance (MR) system with simultaneous data acquisition technology, currently undergoing clinical use testing.

20 Nov 2010

Repeal, replace and revise are the new health overhaul buzzwords as congressional power changes hands

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and 32 other GOP senators officially filed a brief on Thursday in favor of a court case challenging healthcare reform. McConnell filed a 16-page brief in a federal case based in Florida arguing that a key part of the new healthcare law, the requirement that all individuals have health insurance, was unconstitutional.

20 Nov 2010

GE Healthcare Canada wins ITAC 2010 Company of the Year Award

GE Healthcare Canada, a global leader in information technology, has won the Information Technology Association of Canada's (ITAC) 2010 Company of the Year Award. This award recognizes a distinguished for-profit healthcare IT company that has demonstrated excellence in the Canadian health informatics industry over the past twelve months. GE Healthcare won the award as the solutions provider for several major image exchange projects funded by Canada Health Infoway and eHealth Ontario.

20 Nov 2010

Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield in Nevada receives award for Our Health Connects Us campaign

Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield in Nevada, together with its agency, Deutsch LA, received a 2010 CLIO Healthcare Award for its "Our Health Connects Us" campaign. The bronze level award in the Integrated Campaign category was presented on November 12th at a ceremony in New York City.

20 Nov 2010

No agreement on health cost containment at bipartisan commission

The Obama administration's bipartisan commission studying efforts to reduce the nation's debt remained at odds after three days of closed door meetings - on how to deal with health care costs.

20 Nov 2010

Recent releases in Global Health

New This Week In The Kaiser Global Health Policy Tracker: The President's Malaria Initiative announced a new focus country and USAID released a new fact sheet on the agency's reform initiative. Kaiser's Policy Tracker provides a timely single reference point for the latest information on congressional and administration action on global health.

20 Nov 2010

CMS grants Qutenza J-code to NeurogesX

NeurogesX, Inc. a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing novel pain management therapies, today announced that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has granted a unique, Level II Health Care Common Procedural Coding System (Level II HCPCS), commonly referred to as a J-code, for Qutenza (capsaicin) 8% patch.

19 Nov 2010

Task Force for National Conference on Diabetes issues Call to Action to improve diabetes care

The Task Force for the National Conference on Diabetes issued a Call to Action today entitled Shaping our future: a call to action to tackle the diabetes epidemic and reduce its economic impact. This Call to Action is a result of the National Conference on Diabetes, held earlier this year in Washington, D.C., which was attended by nearly 100 participants representing the Administration, Congress, government officials, public health organizations and industry.

19 Nov 2010

Acacia subsidiary receives patents for wireless physiological monitoring technology

Acacia Research Corporation announced today that a subsidiary has acquired 11 patents for wireless physiological monitoring technology.

19 Nov 2010

DCR to present data on DaVita Cathaway program at ASN Annual Meeting

DaVita Clinical Research, a provider of clinical research and diagnostic laboratory services, announced today that 56 posters and five oral presentations will be presented by the Company's unsurpassed renal experts at the 43rd American Society of Nephrology (ASN) Annual Meeting and Scientific Exposition from November 16 - 21, 2010, at the Colorado Convention Center located in Denver, Colorado.

19 Nov 2010

Experts formulate research related to psychological adjustment and traumatic brain injury

Five U.S. federal agencies recently cosponsored a set of expert work groups to formulate common data elements for research related to psychological adjustment and traumatic brain injury (TBI).

19 Nov 2010

Prescription abandonment can undermine medical treatment, increase healthcare costs

Failure to have a prescription filled can undermine medical treatment, result in increased health care costs and potentially have devastating results for the patient.

19 Nov 2010

ProvenCare to focus on potential problems in lung cancer patients

Northwestern Memorial Hospital is one of six national participants in a pilot study that will test whether operable lung cancer patients and their families have a smoother care experience and better outcomes by hardwiring data systems to reduce medical error and to reliably adhere to best practice standards.

19 Nov 2010

New book for parents of premature infants

Years after the homecoming, parents of premature infants frequently report difficulty explaining the concept to their children, and are unprepared to handle their strong reactions.

19 Nov 2010

Study: Hospitals use clout to jack up prices

A new study claims some hospitals command far greater prices from commercial insurers than their nearby competitors, suggesting they have the clout to demand higher rates.

19 Nov 2010