Primary Care News and Research

Latest Primary Care News and Research

New tool to assess the quality of home health care

University of Michigan researchers are part of a team that has developed a new tool to assess the quality of home health care, with the goal of improving care and providing meaningful feedback about the care.

12 Jan 2005

Diagnosis of tuberculosis in young children can be confirmed by a straightforward sputum test

Diagnosis of tuberculosis is difficult in infants and young children and can be complicated by HIV infection. Heather Zar (School of Child and Adolescent Health, University of Cape Town, South Africa) and colleagues studied 250 children aged 1 month to 5 years who were admitted for suspected pulmonary tuberculosis in Cape Town. Sputum induction and gastric lavage were done on three consecutive days according to a standard procedure.

7 Jan 2005

Researchers want to see physicians reevaluate the drugs their elderly patients take to determine if they are appropriate

Just as our bodies physically slow down as we age, changes occur in the way that older bodies handle pharmaceuticals, and prescribing physicians need to be aware of those medications inappropriate for the elderly.

6 Jan 2005

Four out of five sexually active adolescent females infected with the human papillomavirus

More sexually active adolescent females than previously thought may be infected with a virus linked to cervical cancer and genital warts, according to a study published in the Jan. 15 issue of The Journal of Infectious Diseases.

5 Jan 2005

Obesity may impose a smaller healthcare cost on African-Americans than other demographic groups

Obesity may impose a smaller healthcare cost on African-Americans than other demographic groups, according to a study led by researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) that found spending on obesity-related problems becomes progressively higher as adults grow older.

28 Dec 2004

Race appears to be a factor in how doctors communicate with their patients

Race appears to be a factor in how doctors communicate with their patients, according to a new study of primary care visits conducted by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and School of Medicine.

22 Dec 2004

Health impact of resolving racial disparities

Lives saved by reducing the mortality rate of African-Americans to the rate of whites are five times those that could be saved by improvements in medical technology. So said the authors of "The Health Impact of Resolving Racial Disparities: An Analysis of US Mortality Data," published in the December edition of the American Journal of Public Health.

20 Dec 2004

Ads for full-body scans to detect potential diseases, called into question

A burgeoning industry that sells full-body scans to detect potential diseases - without a doctor's referral - is running advertisements that frequently include unsubstantiated claims about the benefits of getting CT and MRI scans, while rarely providing information about the technology's limitations and risks.

13 Dec 2004

Silent risk of osteoporosis in men with prostate cancer

Men being treated for prostate cancer using hormone therapy maybe under-recognized for their risk of developing osteoporosis, according to a new study.

13 Dec 2004

PCT waste fears as patients shun new treatment centre

Patients prefer to wait nine months for orthopaedic operations rather than be treated within ten weeks by a new independent treatment centre, a referral centre has found.

13 Dec 2004

Patients and GPs agree on out of hours care

New research published today (Wednesday 8 December 2004) by DPP: Developing Patient Partnerships shows that high quality care and good access to health professionals are key concerns for both patients and GPs.

8 Dec 2004

Self-confidence workshops improve depressive symptoms

Self-confidence workshops improve depressive symptoms, distress and self-esteem significantly, according to a study published in the December issue of the British Journal of Psychiatry.

6 Dec 2004

UK is well on the way to having the best healthcare system in the world

The UK is well on the way to having the best healthcare system in the world, surpassing that of the US, says leading health strategist, Dr Donald Berwick of the US Institute of Healthcare Improvement.

1 Dec 2004

High-quality care for depression can improve productivity at work

A two-year program for depressed employees treated at 12 primary care practices nationwide improved productivity at work by an average of 6 percent, or an estimated annual value of $1,491 per depressed full-time employee.

24 Nov 2004

Postpartum depression: Beyond the 'Baby Blues'

In a culture where giving birth is often believed to be the most joyful moment in life, many women instead feel tired, sad, anxious, distracted and depressed after the baby is born.

18 Nov 2004

Smacking legislation is unworkable for doctors

The recent Commons' decision not to outlaw the physical punishment of children means that the law will offer its most vulnerable citizens (children) less protection from assault than is offered to adults, says an editorial in this week's BMJ.

18 Nov 2004

Majority of seniors switch their primary care physicians because they are forced to

Nearly nine out of ten seniors switch their primary care physicians because they are forced to – not by choice. That's the finding of research published in the November edition of The Journal of the American Board of Family Practice.

18 Nov 2004

Canadian prescription drugs

Canadian pharmacies that mail prescription drugs to U.S. patients have been backed into a no-win situation by the Canadian government and the provincial medical and pharmacy associations.

16 Nov 2004

Americans encouraged to stay in touch with their family history for health reasons

The United States Department of Health and Human Services is encouraging Americans to learn about their families' health histories as a way of promoting personal health and preventing disease.

9 Nov 2004