NHS :: £97 million boost to tackle violence against NHS staff
NHS trusts across England will share £97 million to help tackle violence and abuse against NHS staff, the Department of Health confirmed today.
NHS :: Johnson crack down on cleanliness and infections, UK
Next steps in the drive to maintain cleanliness in hospitals and tackle healthcare associated infections were confirmed today by the Department of Health.
Medicare :: Seven Medicare PFFS plans are approved following rigorous marketing review
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced today that, after being found compliant with Medicare requirements through a comprehensive marketing review, seven health plan sponsors may resume marketing their Private-Fee-For-Service (PFFS) plans. The approvals allow the sponsors, as well as all other Medicare Advantage organizations, to market to newly eligible Medicare beneficiaries through October 1, 2007. The plans may also market to those beneficiaries with special enrollment periods.
Huntington’s Disease :: Stem cells show promise for treating Huntington’s Disease
Paying close attention to how a canary learns a new song has helped scientists open a new avenue of research against Huntington’s disease – a fatal disorder for which there is currently no cure or even a treatment to slow the disease.
Cholera :: Cholera in Iraq – update 2
Since late August 2007, an outbreak of cholera has spread to 25 districts of Northern Iraq and 4 districts in Southern Iraq and across the centre of the country. It is estimated that more than 30 000 people have fallen ill with acute watery diarrhoea, among which 2 116 were identified as positive for Vibrio cholerae. The case fatality rate is 0.52% and has remained low throughout the outbreak, although it continues to spread across Iraq and dissemination to as yet unaffected areas remains highly possible.
Ebola :: Ebola haemorrhagic fever in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Ministry of Health (MoH) of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), with the support of international partners, is continuing field investigations to determine the extent of the outbreak of Ebola haemorrhagic fever in the Province of Kasai Occidental. Active surveillance is under way to investigate recent deaths in the affected communities, to identify other suspected cases and to follow-up on all contacts. Case numbers associated with the outbreak continue to rise and the situation has become further complicated by concomitant reports of cases of typhoid and Shigella dysenteriae type 1.
Hypertension :: Anger and psychological stress play a role in development of heart disease in prehypertensive middle-aged adults
Prehypertensive middle-aged men who have high levels of trait anger – a tendency to experience anger across a range of situations – are at increased risk of progressing to hypertension and developing coronary heart disease, according to a secondary analysis of a large population-based study.
Depression :: Primary care physicians unlikely to broach the topic of suicide with depressed patients
Though the primary care setting presents an excellent venue for detection of and early intervention for suicide risk – up to 75 percent of people who commit suicide have seen a primary care clinician in the previous 30 days – this study finds that primary care physicians do not consistently inquire about suicidality.
Blood Pressure :: Racial differences in effectiveness of antihypertensive therapy
Because racial or ethnic differences in response to antihypertensive drug therapies may contribute to disparities in cardiovascular disease, this systematic review of 28 studies attempts to (1) identify racial differences in the efficacy of antihypertensive drug therapies and (2) quantify the number and proportion of racial and ethnic minorities participating in these clinical trials.
Prostate Cancer :: Accurate Prostate Cancer Diagnosis Depends on Biopsy Location
The part of the prostate that is biopsied may matter more than the number of biopsy samples taken for accurately diagnosing prostate cancer.