Primary Care News and Research

Latest Primary Care News and Research

United Auto Workers planning to sell Chrysler stock obtained from bankruptcy deal to fund VEBA

United Auto Workers will sell its 55% stake in the reorganized Chrysler as soon as possible to fund a trust that will cover retirees' health care costs, UAW President Ron Gettelfinger said Monday, the AP/Houston Chronicle reports.

5 May 2009

Congress not likely to pass permanent Medicare physician payment fix this year

Senate Finance Committee Chair Max Baucus (D-Mont.) on Monday said that comprehensive health reform legislation likely will not include a permanent solution to the Medicare physician payment system, CQ Today reports.

5 May 2009

Eliminating Rhode Island's HIV test signature requirement would boost prevention, treatment efforts

Rhode Island's legislature currently is considering a bill (H.B. 5415) that would eliminate a requirement that a person sign his or her name before undergoing an HIV test, which "would essentially make getting an HIV test more like getting any other medical test," Brian Alverson, assistant pediatrics professor at Brown University's Alpert Medical School and head of the Section of Pediatric Hospitalists at Hasbro Children's Hospital, writes in a Providence Journal opinion piece.

5 May 2009

Recent criticism of Washington, D.C.'s Whitman-Walker could 'undermine' clinic, editorial says

Washington, D.C., Council Member David Catania's recent criticism of the Whitman-Walker Clinic could "undermine the very institution he says he's trying to save," a Washington Post editorial says.

5 May 2009

Unique electronic strategy alerts physicians to latest clinical information on H1N1 flu

History was made at 2:30 p.m. (EDT) on Wednesday, April 29, when more than 3,000 physicians in Indianapolis were sent a broadcast alert on swine flu (H1N1 virus) from the Marion County Health Department. The message was of critical importance to patient care; history was made in the way it was transmitted and received.

5 May 2009

Some HIV-positive people in Wales denied treatment for common conditions, physician says

Some HIV-positive people in Wales are being denied medical treatment for common illnesses, Olwen Williams, a physician specializing in sexually transmitted infections, said recently, BBC News reports. Williams noted that primary care physicians often refer HIV-positive people to hospitals or HIV specialists for common conditions, such as colds.

5 May 2009

HIV/AIDS expert urges routine HIV testing

Two influential medical organizations, along with researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB), have announced they strongly recommend universal and routine testing for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) to help curb the AIDS epidemic. HIV infects more than 30 million globally; during last year alone, more than 2 million worldwide died from AIDS, which is caused by HIV.

3 May 2009

Sen. Baucus proposes Medicare changes he says could drive 'transformation of the health care delivery system'

The Senate Finance Committee on Wednesday during a six-hour meeting discussed proposed changes to the Medicare system from committee Chair Max Baucus (D-Mont.) and ranking member Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), the New York Times reports (Pear, New York Times, 4/30).

30 Apr 2009

Rapid malaria tests improve health outcomes in practice

A new study, carried out in primary care units in Zanzibar and published in this week's issue of PLoS Medicine, evaluates the impact of rapid malaria tests on prescribing practice and clinical outcomes.

30 Apr 2009

Arterial disease of the leg frequently overlooked in patients with heart disease

Peripheral arterial disease (PAD) of the legs, in which the arteries become blocked with plaque and blood supply to the legs is reduced, affects eight million people in the U.S. Early detection of PAD is important because it can limit the ability to walk and exercise, it may place patients at greater risk for limb loss and it increases the chance of having a heart attack or stroke.

30 Apr 2009

Generics less effective than branded counterparts in treating lower urinary tract symptoms

Men taking generic drugs may be more likely to have less effective results and more adverse events than if they were using branded medications, according to new data from researchers in New York.

26 Apr 2009

PDAs, more education help doctors follow cholesterol treatment guidelines

A new study by researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine suggests that patients with high cholesterol receive better care when physicians use a variety of tools to learn and apply a clinical practice guideline for treating the condition.

22 Apr 2009

Medicare recipients see declines in continuity of care

According to a study by researchers at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, elderly Medicare recipients transitioning from outpatient to hospital settings were more likely to experience lapses in continuity of care in 2006 than 1996.

22 Apr 2009

Potential genetic cause of congenital defect colonic atresia

In a finding that helps resolve a long-standing question in developmental biology, Klaus H. Kaestner, PhD, Professor of Genetics, and colleagues report in the journal Developmental Cell this week about how the mammalian gut forms. Mice were genetically engineered to lack the protein Cdx2 in the cells that normally go on to form the stomach and intestine.

22 Apr 2009

Continuity of care for older adults from outpatient to hospital is low, and decreasing

The proportion of Medicare patients experiencing continuity of care between outpatient and inpatient settings decreased substantially between 1996 and 2006, with decreases occurring in all areas of the country and in all types of hospitals, according to a study in the April 22/29 issue of JAMA, the Journal of the American Medical Association.

22 Apr 2009

A link found between health literacy, happiness

A new University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) study published in the advanced online edition of the journal Social Indicators Research suggests a link between the ease with which older adults can access and understand health information and their happiness.

21 Apr 2009

Psoriasis increases risk for developing diabetes and hypertension in women

Women with psoriasis appear to have an increased risk for developing diabetes and hypertension (high blood pressure), according to a report in the April issue of Archives of Dermatology.

21 Apr 2009

New drug use screening tools for physicians

The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), part of the National Institutes of Health, today unveiled its first comprehensive Physicians' Outreach Initiative, NIDAMED, which gives medical professionals tools and resources to screen their patients for tobacco, alcohol, illicit, and nonmedical prescription drug use.

20 Apr 2009

Penn's online survivorship care plans empower cancer survivors, caregivers

An online tool that provides cancer survivors and their family members with an easy-to-follow roadmap for managing their health as they finish treatment and transition to life as a survivor got high marks from users, according to new University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine research which will be presented this weekend at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) 100th Annual Meeting 2009 in Denver.

20 Apr 2009

Risks from colorectal cancer

Although the presenting features of colorectal cancer are well known, the risks they confer are less well defined.

16 Apr 2009

Primary Care News and Research

Latest Primary Care News and Research

United Auto Workers planning to sell Chrysler stock obtained from bankruptcy deal to fund VEBA

Congress not likely to pass permanent Medicare physician payment fix this year

Eliminating Rhode Island's HIV test signature requirement would boost prevention, treatment efforts

Recent criticism of Washington, D.C.'s Whitman-Walker could 'undermine' clinic, editorial says

Unique electronic strategy alerts physicians to latest clinical information on H1N1 flu

Some HIV-positive people in Wales denied treatment for common conditions, physician says

HIV/AIDS expert urges routine HIV testing

Sen. Baucus proposes Medicare changes he says could drive 'transformation of the health care delivery system'

Rapid malaria tests improve health outcomes in practice

Arterial disease of the leg frequently overlooked in patients with heart disease

Generics less effective than branded counterparts in treating lower urinary tract symptoms

PDAs, more education help doctors follow cholesterol treatment guidelines

Medicare recipients see declines in continuity of care

Potential genetic cause of congenital defect colonic atresia

Continuity of care for older adults from outpatient to hospital is low, and decreasing

A link found between health literacy, happiness

Psoriasis increases risk for developing diabetes and hypertension in women

New drug use screening tools for physicians

Penn's online survivorship care plans empower cancer survivors, caregivers

Risks from colorectal cancer

How microRNA is transforming science: From discovery to diagnostics

Advancing benzodiazepine detection

The Surgeon-Scientist Pioneering Regenerative Engineering

Primary Care News and Research

Latest Primary Care News and Research

How microRNA is transforming science: From discovery to diagnostics

Advancing benzodiazepine detection

The Surgeon-Scientist Pioneering Regenerative Engineering

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