Healthcare News and Research

Latest Healthcare News and Research

Health advice on NHS website saves £44 million per year

The latest study has shown that as more people self diagnose using the NHS Choices website, Britain’s national healthcare service saves millions of pounds every year. The website was launched three years ago. Last year more than 100 million visits were recorded at the site which offers patients a quick reference guide to illnesses, symptoms, diagnosis and treatment. Overall, there was a 10% increase in the number of visits to the website in 2010 compared to 2009. Some 19 million people logged on to NHS Choices for information on swine flu.

9 Nov 2010

ARIAD reports $20.4 million net loss for third quarter 2010

ARIAD Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today reported financial results for the third quarter and nine months ended September 30, 2010 and provided an update on corporate developments.

9 Nov 2010

Gentiva third quarter total net revenues increase 38% to $387.8 million

Gentiva Health Services, Inc., a leading provider of home health and hospice services, today reported third quarter 2010 results.

9 Nov 2010

First Edition: November 9, 2010

Today's news includes reports about the Supreme Court's decision regarding an early challenge to the health law.

9 Nov 2010

Data breaches of patient information cost healthcare organizations $6 billion annually

The latest benchmark study by Ponemon Institute, sponsored by ID Experts®, finds that data breaches of patient information cost healthcare organizations nearly $6 billion annually, and that many breaches go undetected. The research indicates that protecting patient data is a low priority for hospitals and that organizations have little confidence in their ability to secure patient records, putting individuals at great risk for medical identity theft, financial theft and embarrassment of exposure of private information.

9 Nov 2010

American Specialty Health wins Silver California Fit Business Award for fourth time

Health and wellness company American Specialty Health Incorporated (ASH) announced that it had received a Silver California Fit Business Award for the fourth time from the California Task Force on Youth and Workplace Wellness.

9 Nov 2010

Patented cover for stethoscopes will curb hospital-acquired infections

Saints Medical Center is pleased to announce that Richard H. Ma, M.D, chair of its hospitalist department, has received a patent for a lightweight plastic cover for stethoscopes that will dramatically reduce hospital-acquired infections.

9 Nov 2010

RadNet third quarter revenue increases 5.0% to record $140.1 million

RadNet, Inc., a national leader in providing high-quality, cost-effective, fixed-site outpatient diagnostic imaging services through a network of 192 fully-owned and operated outpatient imaging centers, today reported financial results, including record revenues, for its third quarter of 2010.

9 Nov 2010

Exempla Healthcare selects ProVation MD for streamlined procedure documentation and coding

Wolters Kluwer Health, a leading global provider of information for healthcare professionals and students, announced today that Exempla Healthcare has selected its ProVation® MD software for gastroenterology and pulmonary procedure documentation and coding. ProVation MD will be deployed across three hospitals in the nationally recognized Exempla Healthcare System.

9 Nov 2010

Endeca, eHealth Ontario partner to implement chronic disease management system

Endeca Technologies, Inc., a search and business intelligence (BI) company, today announced that eHealth Ontario, an agency of the Government of Ontario, has selected Endeca and commenced work on the chronic disease management system (CDMS) and portal project previously announced in August 2010. Endeca, working with its partners, will assist with the design, build, and implementation of the system that will be used initially to better manage diabetes care throughout the province.

9 Nov 2010

Dorland Health launches Professional Patient Advocate Institute

Dorland Health today announced the launch of The Professional Patient Advocate Institute (PPAI), a membership organization and community aligned around the common cause of providing advocacy for consumers as they strive to secure their healthcare needs and cover complex insurance and financial matters.

9 Nov 2010

DHA improves memory function in older adults with mild cognitive impairments

A study published in the November edition of Alzheimer's & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer's Association suggests that taking docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) may improve memory and learning in older adults with mild cognitive impairments. This is promising news for many aging Americans who are searching for options to maintain memory and support overall cognitive health.

9 Nov 2010

Abbott, CHAI enter agreement to provide HIV testing to infants

Abbott and the Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI) have joined forces to provide HIV testing to infants in all countries working in partnership with the CHAI. A key focus of this cooperation will be sub-Saharan Africa, which the World Health Organization estimates to account for 90 percent of global HIV infections in children.

9 Nov 2010

ORVACS launches ERAMUNE 01 Phase II study to decrease HIV viral reservoirs

ORVACS has launched a Phase II study designed to test the hypotheses that combination therapy with potent antiviral agents and immunomodulator can lead to a decrease in the HIV viral reservoirs and, ultimately, to eradication of the virus. The study is currently being conducted at clinical sites in France, Spain, Italy, and the United Kingdom.

9 Nov 2010

AHF joins breakthrough research for HIV control

A study published in Science yesterday, reveals what could be the key to why some HIV/AIDS patients' immune systems keep the disease at bay without medication.

9 Nov 2010

GE Healthcare announces collaboration with The Health Management Academy

GE Healthcare today announced it will expand its collaboration with The Health Management Academy (The Academy) over the next five years. This extended commitment emphasizes GE's dedication to working alongside the nation's health systems to address or eliminate challenges to delivering better health and outcomes to more people at lower cost.

9 Nov 2010

Merrimack receives $2.44 million under QTDP program to support cancer research

Merrimack Pharmaceuticals was awarded $2.44 million to support research on 10 of its cancer programs through the Qualifying Therapeutic Discovery Project, a grant program created as part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 to advance research in areas of unmet medical need.

9 Nov 2010

CMS to review cancer vaccine, analysis shows high Medicare drug spending not correlated with better care

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services are conducting an unusual review to determine whether the government should pay for an expensive new vaccine for treating prostate cancer, rekindling debate over whether some therapies are too costly.

9 Nov 2010

Feds crack down on fraud by issuing new Medicaid rules, helping medical students catch fraud

The Hill Healthwatch: "The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services on Friday proposed new rules for the use of private contractors that work for states to audit Medicaid payments. The Recovery Audit Contractors will function similarly to the way they do in the Medicare program, where they audit payments that may have been underpaid or overpaid, and recover overpayments or correct underpayments. … Under the new law, states must establish Medicaid RAC programs by submitting state plan amendments to CMS by December 31" (Pecquet, 11/5).

9 Nov 2010

Study finds canola-type rapeseed oil decreases fibrinogen level

According to research on fatty acids conducted at the universities of Helsinki and Tampere, the consumption of canola-type rapeseed oil decreases the level of fibrinogen detrimental to health in the body. The increased fibrinogen level, caused by an imbalance in essential fats in one's diet, decreases when saturated fatty acids are replaced with rapeseed oil.

9 Nov 2010