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Local news
WEEK COMMENCING 18 JULY 2009
$250m of painkillers and drugs to help nation cope
24 July 2009
Medicine cabinets are overflowing as Australians pop a $250 million cocktail of painkillers and mind-altering drugs. GPs are writing a record 10 million scripts a year for patients with chronic pain, ADHD, depression and anxiety.
Hotline help for mothers
24 July 2009
Women suffering from acute depression during and after pregnancy, and parents dealing with the loss of a baby, will have access to more counselling services from next year. Federal Health Minister Nicola Roxon today will announce four new, phone-based counselling services for families mourning the loss of a baby – either before term or after birth – and experiencing perinatal depression (acute depression suffered around the birth.
ALP 'didn't pledge hospital takeover'
24 July 2009
Labor did not promise a federal takeover of the nation's public hospitals at the last election, Health Minister Nicola Roxon says. The National Health and Hospitals Reform Commission is reported to have stopped short of calling for a federal takeover of public hospital funding but it is expected to propose moving powers to Canberra.
Nurses explore best practices for quality care in upcoming two-day conference
23 July 2009
On October 16, Ausmed Conferences, a leading provider of conferences and seminars for practicing health care providers, will host the "Young NSW 2009 Nurses' Conference". The conference will span two days and feature leading health care professionals and experts, and dynamic and informative presentations on assessment skills, new technologies and the psychological aspects of nursing care, among other topics. Allied Health Professionals are welcomed.
Beta-blockers tied to higher cataract risk
23 July 2009
Australian researchers are reporting a possible link between widely used beta-blocker drugs and an increased risk of cataracts.
Australian volunteers take trial of first swine flu vaccine
23 July 2009
The world's first human trials of the swine flu vaccine began in Australia yesterday as 300 people voluntarily allowed themselves to be injected with the experimental formula.
Health ministers moved by Geelong's youth suicide problems
23 July 2009
Federal and state health ministers pledged in Geelong today to work harder making people aware of suicide support services.
Elliot: $43.8 million package to train more than 8000 aged care workers
23 July 2009
Minister for Ageing, Justine Elliot today announced a $43.8 million education and training package designed to up-skill more than 8,000 aged and community care staff.
Roxon: $5 Million Investment for Geelong Hospital
23 July 2009
The Rudd Government will provide over $5m towards two important infrastructure projects at Geelong Hospital.
Roxon: $16 Million for Deakin University to Establish a Rural Clinical Training Program
23 July 2009
The Rudd Government will provide $16m to Deakin University to expand their medical program by setting up a Rural Clinical School program with major sites at Geelong, Warrnambool, Ballarat, and Camperdown.
Swine flu: intensive care beds will be swamped experts warn
23 July 2009
Dr Bob Winter, president of the Intensive Care Society, said information from Australia and New Zealand is that their intensive care beds are swamped as 15 per cent of swine flu patients in hospital require specialist intensive care. Dr Winter said: "If that happened here we would be screwed."
Major cancer boost for Geelong Hospital
23 July 2009
Thousands of patients from Geelong and surrounding areas will have life-saving cancer diagnosis performed in Geelong when state-of-the-art PET scanners are operational at Geelong Hospital mid next year.
Deakin's $16m medical boost
23 July 2009
Deakin University will receive $16 million from the Rudd Government to expand its medical program. The money will be used to set up a Rural Clinical School program with major sites at Geelong, Warrnambool, Ballarat and Camperdown.
Opinion: Politicians fiddling at the edges of health system
23 July 2009
If the initiatives described in your report "Federal takeover of health services" (July 22) represent the only serious reforms to come out of the National Health and Hospitals Reform Commission, the public, patients and health professionals should be outraged.
Palm Islanders angry as swine flu digs in
23 July 2009
Fear gripped the 3000 mostly indigenous residents of Palm Island yesterday as health authorities failed to allay growing concerns that the North Queensland community had become a hot spot for swine flu. While there are fewer than 20 confirmed cases of swine flu on the island, authorities expect numbers to rise rapidly over the next few weeks, and feel Palm Island is more vulnerable than other parts of Australia because of the number of people in each household.
Swine flu vaccine ready to go when Roxon is
23 July 2009
Scientists leading the first Australian tests of a swine flu vaccine say the federal government can fast-track the vaccine into communities as soon as it likes. Andrew Cuthbertson, chief scientific officer at biopharmaceutical company CSL, yesterday said the clinical trial of the vaccine in Adelaide was not expected to demonstrate any major risks and was largely about finding the appropriate dosage.
Brumby open to health services reform
23 July 2009
Premier John Brumby, who has previously rejected a federal takeover of state health services, has kept open the option of accepting a proposal for federal control of services outside hospitals.
Doctors' $300m to help disabled
22 July 2009
Disabled children and people injured by medical mishaps or accidents would have their accommodation, domestic support and health care needs fully funded under a $300 million scheme by the Australian Medical Association.
Swine-flu vaccine almost ready, Australian maker says
22 July 2009
Human trials are under way and a world-first swine-flu vaccine could be ready by September, Australian pharmaceutical company CSL Ltd said Wednesday. Melbourne-based CSL, part of the international CSL Group, said 240 people would receive the updated Tamiflu vaccine in a trial that has begun in Adelaide.
Out of pocket: rethinking health copayments
22 July 2009
Australia's health community is holding its breath for the National Health & Hospital Reform Commission to deliver what has been described as the 'biggest health shake-up in decades'. But there's one issue that's barely on the radar - the growing proportion of health funding that is coming out of patients' own pockets.
E-health vital to rural areas: AMA
22 July 2009
E-health infrastructure in rural Australia must be a priority for federal and state governments, the new president of the Australian Medical Association, Andrew Pesce, has warned.
Patients coughing up too much, but who cares?
22 July 2009
We shall soon know the future, or at least how the National Health and Hospitals Reform Commission would like to see the future of health care evolve in Australia.
First human trials of swine flu vaccine begin in Australia
22 July 2009
The world's first human trials of a swine flu vaccine have begun in Australia, drug company officials said today, as the global death toll from the virus rose to 700.
NSW says control not key to reform of health system
22 July 2009
Who runs the health system is not the key to solving the problems and challenges it faces, NSW Health Minister John Della Bosca says. The National Health and Hospitals Reform Commission's final report on the health system, to be released next week, is reported to recommend Canberra take over funding for hospital outpatient services and community health centres, but not the hospitals themselves.
Swine flu vaccine trials underway
22 July 2009
The first trials of a Federal Government-commissioned swine flu vaccine that is likely to be distributed globally will begin in Adelaide today.
World swine flu deaths top 700: WHO
22 July 2009
The World Health Organisation (WHO) says swine flu has killed more than 700 people around the world since the outbreak began four months ago.
There are now over 125,000 laboratory-confirmed cases of swine flu worldwide but the WHO acknowledges the number of actual cases far exceeds that.
Swine flu hits largest Aboriginal community
22 July 2009
The mayor of Palm Island has pleaded with state and federal governments to improve their indigenous swine flu strategies after an outbreak of the disease in Australia's largest Aboriginal community.
International news
GERMANY: The risk of developing deep vein thrombosis during a flight is often overestimated
The risk of developing deep vein thrombosis during a long flight is often overestimated. According to the German Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG), this condition is very unlikely in healthy travellers.
UK: Swine flu: Race to develop vaccine to combat pandemic strain
24 July 2009
The race is on to develop a vaccine that is effective against the pandemic strain of swine flu before the flu season begins this fall in the northern hemisphere.
US: Obama defends health care plan
23 July 2009
US President Barack Obama has fiercely defended his embattled campaign to overhaul US health care, calling it vital to pulling the economy back from a "full-blown crisis." At a defining moment of his presidency, Obama warned at his fourth prime-time press conference on Wednesday that political stalemate must not be allowed to kill what he has described as a central plank of his domestic platform.
US: Study finds rapid growth in health costs hurts economic performance of US industries
23 July 2009
A first-of-its-kind RAND Corporation study has linked the rapid growth in health care costs in the United States with job losses and lower output among industries that commonly provide workers with health insurance. Researchers examined the economic performance of 38 industries from 1987 through 2005 and compared changes in employment, gross economic output and the value added to the gross domestic product for industries where a large number of workers have employer-sponsored health insurance to those industries where few workers have job-based health insurance.
Brits get direct access to a pandemic flu service
22 July 2009
Brits will soon have direct access to a pandemic flu service which will make drugs for swine flu available without needing to consult a doctor. Britain has been struggling to cope with exceptional levels of demand over swine flu and the phone and website service, which will at present only cover England, is the first of its kind in the world.
US: $3M NIH grant to UIC to study lesbian drinking
The UIC College of Nursing has received a $3 million federal grant to continue research to identify risk factors for excessive drinking among lesbians.
US: Obama's healthcare plan: A prescription for disaster
22 July 2009
The healthcare bill unveiled last week by the U.S. House of Representatives (with the full support of the Obama administration) is one of the worst pieces of legislation ever drafted.
UK: Babies and pregnant women to be given GP diagnosis amid fears over swine flu helpline
22 July 2009
Pregnant women, babies under one and people with underlying health conditions will continue to be treated by their family doctor rather than the government's new swine flu helpline.
US: What the US is doing about conflicts of interest in health and medicine
21 July 2009
Health reform efforts in the US are not only attempting to improve access, efficiency and quality of care. They are also seeking to inject greater transparency into the relationships between industry and health care providers, reports Dr Lesley Russell from Washington.
US: What the US is doing about conflicts of interest in health and medicine
21 July 2009
Health reform efforts in the US are not only attempting to improve access, efficiency and quality of care. They are also seeking to inject greater transparency into the relationships between industry and health care providers, reports Dr Lesley Russell from Washington.
UK: Shut schools to limit number of swine flu deaths, ministers told
20 July 2009
Ministers were urged tonight to rethink their policy of keeping schools open through the swine flu pandemic after research showed that a shutdown would curb the spread of infection and limit the number of deaths.
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