Healthcare News and Research

Latest Healthcare News and Research

AACN and Elsevier/MC Strategies announce Critical Care Pharmacology online nursing course

Elsevier/MC Strategies, a pioneer in providing e-learning solutions to more than 1,300 healthcare organizations, has partnered with the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN) to develop a series of online nursing courses. Today, AACN and Elsevier/MC Strategies announced the first course in this series: AACN Critical Care Pharmacology.

20 May 2010

Cato Research to provide etrials EDC solution through Merge Healthcare's technology transfer program

Merge Healthcare, a leading Health IT solutions provider, announced today that it was selected by Cato Research Ltd. to provide the proprietary etrials EDC solution through Merge's technology transfer program. This new agreement expands Merge's partnership with CATO to provide additional technology for clinical trials management, as well as extending the relationship for an additional five years.

20 May 2010

Prolifiq conducts workshop on driving sales activity with systematic adherance to regulations

As the medical device industry gathers at Sales and Marketing Excellence 2010, Prolifiq, the leading provider of Sales Content Management software, offers medical device companies a solution to promote and sell in this highly regulated environment.

20 May 2010

Patterson's consolidated sales for fourth-quarter fiscal 2010 up 4%

Patterson Companies, Inc. today reported consolidated sales of $812,762,000 for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2010 ended April 24, an increase of 4% from $779,884,000 in the year-earlier quarter. Internal growth accounted for 1% of the fourth quarter sales increase, with acquisitions and foreign currency adjustments accounting for the balance.

20 May 2010

Stockell Healthcare Systems launches new website

Stockell Healthcare Systems, Inc. is pleased to announce the unveiling of its new website at www.stockell.com.

20 May 2010

Canadian Cancer Statistics 2010 focuses on care, support for dying patients

The type and quality of care and services to ensure a cancer patient dies with dignity in the setting of their choice depends on where the person lives in Canada, according to a special report about end-of-life care in Canadian Cancer Statistics 2010, released today by the Canadian Cancer Society.

20 May 2010

Boston University biomedical engineers develop new nanopore method for DNA sequencing

Sequencing DNA could get a lot faster and cheaper - and thus closer to routine use in clinical diagnostics - thanks to a new method developed by a research team based at Boston University. The team has demonstrated the first use of solid state nanopores - tiny holes in silicon chips that detect DNA molecules as they pass through the pore - to read the identity of the four nucleotides that encode each DNA molecule.

20 May 2010

Dynamic testing approach for HIV/AIDS diagnostics

A relatively simple electronic gadget could speed up HIV/AIDS diagnostics and improve accuracy particularly in parts of the world with very limited access to healthcare workers. The device is described in the International Journal of Biomedical Engineering and Technology.

20 May 2010

Healthiest Companies in America for 2010

Amid the glaring spotlight focused on healthcare reform in the U.S., Interactive Health Solutions today announced a list of the "Healthiest Companies in America" for 2010, a group of thirty-four corporations who have significantly reduced healthcare costs through employee participation in a prevention-based health program in the workplace.

20 May 2010

US subsidiary of Novartis disputes claims of discrimination

Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation (NPC), a US subsidiary of Novartis AG, strongly disputes the claims of past discrimination in the sales force during the period of 2002 to 2007.

20 May 2010

Research shows improved treatment of severe epilepsy reduces overall cost of the condition

Improved treatment of severe epilepsy could reduce the overall cost of the condition, according to research presented at the annual meeting of the International Society of Pharmacoeconomic Outcomes Research at the Hilton Atlanta in Atlanta, Georgia.

20 May 2010

Accretive Health prices initial public offering at $12.00 per share

Accretive Health, Inc., a provider of end-to-end revenue cycle management services for U.S. healthcare providers today announced the initial public offering of 10,000,000 shares of its common stock at a price to the public of $12.00 per share. Of the 10,000,000 shares being offered to the public, 6,666,667 shares are being offered by Accretive Health and 3,333,333 shares are being offered by selling stockholders.

20 May 2010

Apotex launches generic Lipitor

Apotex Inc, a Canadian owned pharmaceutical company with headquarters in Toronto, launched today Apo-Atorvastatin, a generic version of 'Lipitor(R)' produced by Pfizer(R). This is the largest product to be genericized in Canadian history with approximate yearly sales of $1.2 billion. This last patent on Lipitor(R) will not expire until 2022. Apotex Inc. invented its own crystal form, thus overcoming the patents, 12 years ahead of time, which will result in close to $7 billion of cost-savings for the Canadian healthcare system.

20 May 2010

CMS to spend $73 million over 5 years to improve public websites

Washington Business Journal: "The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has awarded Fairfax-based CGI Federal Inc. a five-year contract worth $73.2 million to continue its modernization, application management and maintenance efforts on three external websites that provide information to 44 million beneficiaries and millions more health care providers."

20 May 2010

Hospitals under pressure from flagging budgets, regulators

The Washington Post reports on one suburban Maryland health system: "A special panel in charge of finding a company to take over Prince George's County's ailing health-care system has been unable to complete a sale of the system after a two-year search ... Bidders have been interested in separate parts of the system. But the panel's mandate is to ensure the facilities are sold at the same time to prevent buyers from cherry-picking ...

20 May 2010

Mass. Senate approves health costs bill to help small biz pay health costs and other state news

The Massachusetts Senate Tuesday approved a bill that would make wealthy hospitals pay $100 million in a one-time contribution to help small businesses ease insurance premiums. "The bill would let businesses with 50 or fewer workers form cooperatives to purchase insurance at a lower cost. Another provision presses insurers to spend at least 90 percent of premium dollars on care and 10 percent or less on administrative costs.

20 May 2010

Fraud and abuse cases come to conclusions

Los Angeles Times: "A man who recruited destitute HIV patients to be straw purchasers in a prescription drug scheme was convicted by a federal jury Tuesday in Los Angeles. Nathaniel Newhouse, 53, showed no expression as the verdict was read in the courtroom of U.S. District Judge Dean D. Pregerson." Newhouse was caught with 29 bottles of powerful painkillers two years ago. Investigators said they had a street value of up to $80,000. HIV patients arranged for doctors to prescribe the drugs, which were passed on to Newhouse (Glover, 5/19).

20 May 2010

Lawsuit fears hinder physician adoption of medical innovations

According to a new national survey on defensive medicine by Jackson Healthcare, the threat of a lawsuit causes many physicians to delay the adoption of medical innovations. More than half (53%) of survey respondents reported they had delayed adopting medical innovations such as new pharmaceuticals, procedures and medical devices due to fear of litigation.

19 May 2010

St. Elizabeth Regional Health selects TeleHealth Services as compliance partner in new facility

TeleHealth Services, the nation's leading provider of health care grade televisions and interactive patient education solutions to hospitals, has been selected by St. Elizabeth Regional Health as a compliance partner in their new facility, St. Elizabeth East, located at 1701 S. Creasy Lane in Lafayette. St. Elizabeth East opened on February 25, 2010 and will benefit from TeleHealth's interactive educational solutions in an effort to increase patient satisfaction and create a patient-focused, technologically advanced facility.

19 May 2010

maxIT Healthcare, Ingenuity Solutions Group enter definitive agreement to merge

maxIT Healthcare, LLC and Ingenuity Solutions Group, Inc. announced today that they have entered into a definitive agreement, under which the companies will be combined as maxIT Healthcare. The combined company is now better positioned to extend its presence throughout the healthcare IT professional services market, particularly in the area of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system solutions.

19 May 2010