International News

US: Nurse practitioners to help fill growing health care need

13 May 2010: Saint Anthony College of Nursing is fulfilling part of federal health care reform efforts by establishing a nurse practitioner program to address the need for more primary care providers. College officials recognized the importance of such a program a few years ago, with the need to bolster primary care services for underserved patients who are coming to hospitals sicker than ever before.

US: Study: Megadoses of Vitamin D offer no benefit

12 May 2010: Sometimes too much of a good thing can be ... not such a good thing. That's the conclusion of the largest study to date of the effects of giving superdoses of vitamin D. The supplement helps bodies build bone and muscle, but the new study, published this week in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), finds that megaquantities of the vitamin — a year's supply given in an single dose, for instance — do not appear to reduce the risk of falling or suffering fractures in elderly women.

Contraceptive pill turns 50

12 May 2010: It sparked protests and controversy, and is credited with spurring the women's liberation movement.

Beating anorexia can come at a price

11 May 2010: A clinic in Cape Town claims a 70 per cent success rate in aiding sufferers. Founded by South African businessman and former alcohol and cocaine addict Johnny Graaff, it claims to offer a new approach to managing eating disorders. The clinic claims a 70 per cent success rate, based on follow-ups after one year for those who completed its 90-day program. Now, it is to open a centre in London for pre- and post-program care patients.

US presidential cancer advisers say Americans are being "bombarded" with cancer-causing chemicals and radiation

10 May 2010: Although most experts agree that as many as two-thirds of cancer cases are caused by lifestyle choices like smoking, poor diet and lack of exercise, the two-member panel said many avoidable cancers were also caused by pollution, radon gas from the soil and medical imaging scans.

Opinion: In a nursing home at age 40

7 May 2010: Of all the places I thought I’d be when I turned 40, I never imagined it would be a nursing home. However, after a devastating fracture that required surgery, the pragmatic choice was to go to a sub-acute rehab facility and receive therapy on a near-daily basis. The facility was housed in a nursing home, and I would be the youngest patient. I was not looking forward to this but, in the process, I was blessed to meet many wonderful people, both young and old.

Opinion: New rating system needed for nursing homes

9 May 2010: As representatives from the long-term care provider community, we definitely want to echo the importance of quality care at the bedside. Many of us have been there with our own family members and know first-hand that quality people = quality care no substitutions. Technology and aesthetics all add to the experience, but these things alone do not deliver compassion to the bedside. Your article unfortunately did not mention that in the past 10 months, a total of 31 state attorneys general have sent letters requesting that Kathleen Sebelius, secretary of the U.S. Dept. of Health & Human Services, suspend and revise the current 5-Star Rating System because of the misleading confusion it causes. Since receiving that letter, she has acknowledged the “inherent flaws” in the 5-Star Rating System for nursing homes. While speaking at the National Council of Aging earlier this year she commented, “The suggestion that it’s a flawed snapshot because it forces the reviewers at the outset to make decisions that may or may not be accurate I think that’s serious criticism that needs to be looked at; the last thing we want to do is have an arbitrary bell curve just for the sake of having a system.”

Local News

WEEK COMMENCING 08 MAY 2010

Flinders emergency nurse James Bonello takes top award

14 May 2010: The best graduate nurse in the country is a South Australian. Flinders Medical Centre emergency nurse James Bonello took out the graduate nurse award at the Hesta Australian Nursing awards in Melbourne tonight.

Barcode plan for disaster victims

14 May 2010: Victims of disasters such as the Kerang rail crash and Black Saturday bushfires may be barcoded at the scene under a radical plan to improve the speed and efficiency of their treatment. The Victorian Government is looking at technological solutions to improve response times at emergency scenes involving multiple victims.

Opinion: Budget has ignored a significant health need

14 May 2010: Have Kevin Rudd and Nicola Roxon forgotten about mental health? You are certainly left with this impression after the budget and health reform announcements.

Sickest Australians to be left out of pocket by clawback of medical tax

14 May 2010: Our sickest citizens will be left up to $100 out of pocket under a $350 million clawback of medical cost tax deductions. The measure, hidden deep in the Budget papers, means the sick will have to spend $2000 on medical bills – up from $1500 – before they can reclaim 20 per cent of their costs. Kidney Health Australia agreed, saying dialysis patients would be put under even greater financial strain.

Realistic about obesity? Fat chance

14 May 2010: What is the difference between smoking and obesity and alcohol abuse? According to Health Minister Nicola Roxon, it is all a matter of ingestion: whereas smoking even one cigarette can cause health damage, drinking alcohol or eating junk food can, in moderation, cause little harm.

Govt 'drops ball on preventative health'

14 May 2010: The federal government buried its response to the preventative health taskforce this week and is running scared of the alcohol industry in an election year, a leading health group says.

Nurse clinic to offer free treatment

13 May 2010: As nurses around the world were recognised on international nurses' day, Australia's first nurse-led walk-in clinic was opened in Canberra. Located next to Canberra Hospital's emergency department, the centre will be staffed by specialist nurses and provide free treatment for minor illnesses and injuries from May 18.

Roxon media release: Biggest Morning Tea has $12 million target for cancer

13 May 2010: Australia’s Biggest Morning Tea – one of the Cancer Council’s leading fund-raising events – came to Parliament House today. All through this month similar events are being held around Australia in offices, shops, on worksites and in private homes, with a fund-raising target for this year of $12 million.

Warrnambool petitions for MRI

13 May 2010: A petition calling for Warrnambool to be granted an MRI scanner licence has been presented to the Federal Parliament. Health Minister Nicola Roxon has so far refused requests to grant a licence for Warrnambool.

Labor fails to tackle alcohol and junk-food giants

13 May 2010: In contrast to the crackdown on cigarettes, the Rudd government has rejected its own experts' recommendations to take on the powerful food and alcohol industries. Obesity was recently found to trigger more diseases in Australia than tobacco, but the government has given the thumbs-down to the call from its preventative health taskforce for a ban on junk-food advertising before 9pm.

Doctors slam Medicare Locals

13 May 2010: Some doctors have expressed concern at the federal government's rebranded primary healthcare organisations, to be known as Medicare Locals, warning they could compete with GPs by taking on a service delivery role.

Govt defends mental health spending

13 May 2010: The Rudd government has defended its efforts to boost mental health services amid accusations it has "left the sector to rot". Despite a $7.4 billion injection for health in Tuesday's budget, only a little under $200 million has gone towards mental health. Health Minister Nicola Roxon concedes budgetary constraints have kept a lid on spending in the sector, but argues the system simply isn't ready for more.

Medical services ailing in the western corridor

13 May 2010: Ipswich is the “poorer cousin’’ in the Queensland Government’s $6billion hospital redevelopment program, according to Australian Medical Association Queensland president Mason Stevenson. Speaking at the Ipswich Hospital on Friday, he said poor planning for the region’s population growth had left medical services in the western corridor wanting.

CoN media release: College of Nursing celebrates International Nurses Day 2010

12 May 2010 The College of Nursing celebrates International Nurses Day, May 12, the anniversary of Florence Nightingale’s birth, Tracey Osmond, Chief Executive said today. “This year, the focus is Delivering Quality, Serving Communities: Nurses Leading Chronic Care,” said Osmond.

RCNA media release: Nurses celebrating their contribution to leading the way with chronic care – International Nurses Day May 12

12 May 2010

Patient records go online

12 May 2010: The Budget allocates almost half a billion dollars over two years for a new system of electronic health records. Patients will be able to read the information online as will doctors, hospitals, pharmacists, and allied health workers. Privacy is an obvious concern, but the Government says patients will be in control of their own information. Doctors say what's been announced is still a long way from what's needed.

Opinion: Will e-health records be outsourced to Google, Microsoft?

12 May 2010: Over the past few months, federal Health Minister Nicola Roxon has kept mum on who exactly will run the proposed electronic health records system. Will it be the private sector, Medicare, or some other government body? Will it be handed over to health insurers to manage? The crystal ball is still blurry, but we're hopeful Ms Roxon's office will clear the air once and for all today.

Stanhope media release: Australia's first public nurse-led Walk-in Centre launched in Canberra

12 May 2010: International Nurses' Day was celebrated today by the Federal Minister for Health and Ageing Nicola Roxon and ACT Minister for Health Katy Gallagher as they launched Australia's first public nurse-led Walk-in Centre. The new Centre, located beside the Emergency Department at Canberra Hospital, will provide free treatment for people with minor illnesses or injuries.

Six Minutes: Budget: 'Medicare Locals', more super clinics

Strong delivery on health in tough times

12 May 2010: Within a tight fiscal environment, the federal budget has delivered investment of more than $7 billion to bolster the health system and provide Australians with better access to quality health services. In good economic times and bad, governments must invest in the health of the population – and this budget delivers strongly for health.

ANF: International Nurses' Day

12 May 2010: Ged Kearney, Federal Secretary of the Australian Nursing Federation (ANF) said International Nurses’ Day was an important day for nurses all around the world. “It is very fitting today that nurses in Australia will celebrate with the Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd following last night’s budget announcements which are a tremendous boost for the nursing and aged care workforce.

Labor turns the screw on the disabled

May 12, 2010: Strugglers have been forgotten in this ''boring'' Labor budget, except for people with disabilities – and their life will become harder. The Rudd Labor is plunging in where the Howard government feared to tread in cracking down on those applying for the Disability Support Pension. Howard's welfare-to-work initiative failed to make a scintilla of difference to the growth in numbers on the disability pension, which had reached more than 777,000 by last December.

Letter: Aged care nurses deserve equality (Requires scrolling)

12 may 2010: I am unclear what all the misunderstanding is about with aged care and rates of pay (''Funding to expand services will ease the pressure for more GPs'', May 11). If the Australian healthcare system has a standard qualification for registered nurses then surely this means all registered nurses are equal irrespective of where they trained and are working. So why aren't they paid the same?

Australian Government 2010-11 Health and Ageing Portfolio Budget Statements

11 May 2010: The 2010-11 Health and Ageing Portfolio Budget Statements informs Senators and Members of Parliament of the proposed allocation of resources to Government outcomes and outputs, by agencies within the portfolio.

Budget speech: Better health and hospitals

11 May 2010: The ageing of our population and rising health costs pose a long-term challenge for our nation. Total healthcare expenditure is projected to more than double as a share of the economy over the next 40 years. That's why this Government is putting so much effort into reforming our health and hospital system.

GST increase to add $782 million to SA's kitty

11 may 2010: The GST figures in the Federal Budget also indicate for the first time exactly how much GST money the state will forego each year under the new national health agreement thrashed out at COAG last month. Under the agreement, 30 per cent of each state's GST funds are taken by the Commonwealth for health spending initiatives. The first of the health deductions will occur in 2011-12 when SA would have received a total GST share of $4.8 billion. That will now be reduced by $1.2 billion going to health.

ANF: Aged care workers and residents big winners in Budget 2010

Ged Kearney, Federal Secretary of the Australian Nursing Federation (ANF) said today that Budget 2010 had delivered a huge win for aged care nurses, care staff and the residents they care for.

Budget not delivering for most disadvantaged

11 May 2010: The Federal Budget fails to deliver for Australia's most disadvantaged, social welfare groups say. Catholic Social Services Australia executive director Frank Quinlan said the Government had promised a more socially inclusive nation, but had failed to deliver in the budget.

More GP super clinics the key to Labor's primary care plan

11 May 2010: Labor wants to roll out another 450 GP super clinics to deliver coordinated health care in the community – despite the fact only three of the 31 clinics it promised before the last election are fully operational today. The budget also includes $390 million for 4600 new nurses to work in GP clinics. The big losers from Tuesday's budget are people with mental illnesses and dental problems.

Aussies to get electronic health records: Budget

11 May 2010: Stood on a rusty nail? Need to know when you had your last tetanus shot? From mid-2012 the answer will be a click of the computer mouse away. The Rudd Government will spend $467 million over the next two years to give every Australian who wants one, an electronic health record by July 2012.

Government rejects bans on alcohol advertising: Budget

11 May 2010: The Rudd Government won't ban alcohol advertising during children's TV shows or sport broadcasts, or immediately introduce health warning on alcohol packaging similar to that on cigarette packs. Labor responded to three major health reports today – in the areas of health and hospitals reform, preventative health and primary care.

Mental health misses out in health spend

11 May 2010: Advocates hoping for a boost in mental health funding in Tuesday's federal budget will be disappointed by what's been put on the table. There is not a cent of new money beyond that which was promised last month as part of the health deal struck between the commonwealth and Labor premiers and chief ministers. The government will spend $176 million on youth services, mental health nurses and community care beds. But mental health experts have previously said only $120 million of that is actually new.

Bungle gives pay to ex-health workers

11 May 2010: Staff who quit Queensland Health months ago are still being paid, while current workers are going without their wages thanks to a computer glitch plaguing the system. One former Queensland Health employee told the Queensland Times she received $1,500 in her bank account last week, despite having left the service two months ago.

Govt to promote corporate bonds

11 May 2010: The federal government will encourage ordinary Australians to consider investing in bonds issued by corporations, to help expand the nation's debt market. The plan, announced in the 2010/11 federal budget released on Tuesday, would help increase competition in the business lending sector by making it easier for firms to borrow directly from ordinary Australians.

Lure for nurses risks leaving sectors short

11 May 2010: Ambitious plans to encourage more nurses to work in GP surgeries could create problems by poaching staff from other hard-pressed areas such as public hospitals and aged-care facilities.

NPs: Is there a nurse in the house?

11 May 2010: More patients are looking to nurses for health care as long queues and high gap fees deter them from visiting doctors. A new survey suggests one in four avoid going to the doctor because they can't afford it. And one in three have not seen a GP because they couldn't get an appointment.

IBM researchers get their thinking caps on to tackle child obesity

11 May 2010: Counting calories may not seem like a typical field of study for scientists at IBM's Almaden Research Centre in San Jose, which is better known for its pioneering work with disk drives and relational databases. But the tech giant is launching a research effort to develop advanced computer modeling tools for studying health issues. The first target will be childhood obesity.

Fat-packed diet shows genes count for kilos

11 May 2010: An Australian study shows that people who share the same poor diet can put on different amounts of weight depending on their genetic make-up. The study required subjects to gorge themselves on high-fat snacks. It revealed that those with a family history of diabetes tended to put on much more weight.

Nurses refuse to work in 'unsafe' Noarlunga mental health wards

11 May 2010: Nurses are refusing to work in much-needed mental health services at Noarlunga because of an ongoing staffing dispute, the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation says. Beds in Noarlunga Hospital's mental health unit are being used for less complex cases because, nurses say, SA Health will not fund enough staff to look after patients safely.

Row prompts review of dialysis services

11 May 2010: Dialysis services for kidney patients in Central Australia are to be scrutinised in a joint governmental review following a barrage of criticism over indigenous patients being turned away from Alice Springs. The review, to be conducted by the commonwealth in conjunction with the governments of the Northern Territory, South Australia and Western Australia, will seek to work out ways to avoid making patients travel thousands of kilometres away from their homes to receive kidney treatment.

E-health plan needs $1.6bn in funding

11 May 2010: The health technology sector is hoping for about $1.6 billion in today's budget, but will be happy to get $200 million to $300m to fund real e-health programs. Deloitte partner and National E-Health Strategy lead author Adam Powick said it would cost about $1.6bn over four years to implement the strategy.

Study blasts lack of commitment to e-health

11 May 2010: E-health programs could cut healthcare spending by 3 per cent annually, saving at least $7.6 billion in 2020 alone, according to a Booz & Co study released last week. The firm has developed a global e-health investment modelling tool and used publicly available information to come up with its findings – the first time a comprehensive benefits/cost comparison has been possible.

Pills to fix PM's political health

11 May 2010: Today's Budget will be focused on health – with cheaper medicines at its core – but the jury's out whether it will resuscitate the collapsing fortunes of the Rudd Government. Treasurer Wayne Swan will announce a plan to strip pharmacies of $1.9 billion in subsidies for dispensing widely-used cholesterol and reflux drugs.

Lifeline for e-health talks

10 May 2010: The federal Health Department is "finalising a commitment" to the medical software industry over the troubled Healthcare Identifiers project as crisis talks continue today. Chief executives from more than 60 leading firms flew into Sydney to meet with Health officials in a bid to resolve outstanding technical issues before the HI service commences operation.

WHO evaluates rapid diagnostic tests for malaria

10 May 2010: The latest evaluation of malaria rapid diagnostic tests will help health care workers to more quickly identify which patients have malaria and need immediate treatment. This assessment is in line with World Health Organization (WHO) recommendations to confirm diagnosis of malaria before treatment.

Budget tipped to extend GP nurse subsidy

10 May 2010: General practitioners are tipped to receive $25,000 towards the cost of hiring additional nurses in Tuesday night's federal budget, but there are concerns the plan could have dire consequences for services in remote and regional areas. Dr Steve Sant, the head of the Rural Doctors Association, says the arrangement has worked well and he welcomes its extension. But he says in some cases the funding may not cover the cost of hiring additional staff.

Budget tipped to give GPs extra money for nurses

10 May 2010: Medical and nursing groups have long argued that the Federal Government should help general practitioners to hire additional nurses. Their wish may be about to come true.

ANF: Budget 2010: It’s time to deliver for aged care

10 May 2010: Ged Kearney, Federal Secretary of the Australian Nursing Federation has called on the Federal Government to begin addressing the chronic workforce issues facing the aged care sector in the Federal Budget to be released tomorrow (May 11).

Media release, Snowdon, Elliott: Funding round open for 80 Indigenous traineeships in remote communities

10 May 2010: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people will have the opportunity to undertake traineeships in aged care and frontline healthcare services under a $15.7 million program to help boost job opportunities in remote Indigenous communities.

Doctors protest over long visits

10 May 2010: Hundreds of GPs are considering a day-long boycott of bulk-billing in protest at Medicare's hawkish attitude towards doctors who claim longer consultations – an approach they say contradicts the federal government's encouragement of more preventive care.

Women to sue over hepatitis C

10 May 2010: A multi-million-dollar lawsuit against the Medical Practitioners Board of Victoria, a late-term abortion clinic and an anaesthetist is being prepared on behalf of a group of women who allegedly became infected with hepatitis C after undergoing treatment.

Price of medicines to tumble

10 May 2010: Kevin Rudd will underline his re-election campaign theme of health in the federal budget by slashing the cost of some prescription medicines and announcing new Medicare payments for practice nurses. But the razor gang has taken a close look at the health budget, with the government looking for up to $2 billion in savings from the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, which subsidises the cost of drugs for thousands of Australians.

Budget 2010 leaks and announcements

10 May 2010: This is what we know so far about every announcement, leak and initiative that is likely to be unveiled in this year's Budget.

Opinion: Danger of dancing, acid and disco candy in Sydney

10 May 2010: Working in an emergency department you see a broad spectrum of people, including those who do the wrong thing and those who are very lucky. Dr Gordian Fulde, is the head of emergency at St Vincent's Hospital.

Call for GP health checks for mentally ill

10 May 2010: The government has been called on to introduce a Medicare Benefits Scheme item number as a way of getting more GPs to conduct health checks on people with a mental illness. The call comes after the latest SANE Australia data found that 90 per cent of the mentally ill also had a chronic physical condition such as diabetes, heart disease or circulatory problems.

DNA study promises brain cancer insights: genetic markers

8 May 2010: Advances in DNA technology are giving cancer experts their best hope in a generation of improving treatments for brain cancer which, although rare, remains one of the least understood and most deadly of all malignancies. A five-year study of Australian brain cancer patients is gathering steam. It aims to detect genetic markers linked to better prognoses, and environmental factors that may worsen outcomes.

Price of medicines to tumble

10 May 2010: Kevin Rudd will underline his re-election campaign theme of health in the federal budget by slashing the cost of some prescription medicines and announcing new Medicare payments for practice nurses. Primary care will be a big focus in Tuesday's budget, in particular delivering better financial support for nurses taking on new responsibilities to ease the doctor shortage.

Doctors protest over long visits

10 May 2010: Hundreds of GPs are considering a day-long boycott of bulk-billing in protest at Medicare's hawkish attitude towards doctors who claim longer consultations – an approach they say contradicts the federal government's encouragement of more preventive care.

Doctors and nurses lead revolution in Federal Budget

10 May 2010: Every doctor's practice in the country will get its own nurse to help treat patients, make home visits, write prescriptions and co-ordinate follow-up care, under a medical revolution in tomorrow's federal Budget. Each GP will be eligible for $25,000, worth up to $75,000 a year to a three-doctor practice, enough to hire a full-time nurse.

Mental health 'needs better funding'

10 May 2010: Too many intellectually disabled Victorians are controlled by drugs or restrained instead of receiving earlier treatment under funded programs, an expert says. A total of 2036 disabled people were restrained or held in seclusion in Victorian state and community housing from July 2008 to June 2009, according to the Office of the Senior Practitioner (OSP). The annual report, published last month, also showed most of them were chemically restrained. Nearly 200 were aged five to 14.

Qld Health payroll bungle report due

9 May 2010: Premier Anna Bligh has pledged to make public a preliminary report into Queensland Health's payroll bungle. A snapshot of the problems that have plagued the introduction of a new payroll system will be made available to cabinet on Monday.

Is COAG the “Temple of Doom” for mental health and health reform?

9 May 2010: Fiona Armstrong (a woman of many hats – registered nurse, journalist, public policy consultant and former chair of the Australian Health Care Reform Alliance) has a piece in the Weekend Australian that is well worth a read – and is unlikely to cheer Health Minister Rudd (but I’d guess is likely to ring bells with many in DOHA and perhaps even Minister Roxon’s office).

How we placed all the facts at your fingertips

9 May 2010: The Sun-Herald’s MyHospital data visualisations for the first time present statistical information about NSW hospitals in a form ordinary people can readily understand and use. By clicking on an individual hospital, you will see an instant graphical snapshot of how it compares to the government's benchmarks for waiting times for elective surgery and for treatment times in emergency departments.

Opinion: Why doctor knows best

8 May 2010: One of the more contentious aspects of the recently announced Fifth Community Pharmacy Agreement is that it allows pharmacists to issue "pharmacy generated prescriptions". Initially they will be able to prescribe medication for hormonal contraceptives and lipid modifying agents but this could be extended to medications for chronic diseases at a later stage.

Newborn mix-up mums' trauma

8 May 2010: Babies are being handed to the wrong mothers who are unknowingly breastfeeding another woman's child, with a string of dangerous hospital blunders exposing both mums and newborns to disease. At least 26 cases where babies have been wrongly identified have occurred in NSW public maternity wards in the past three years. Staff shortages and the failure by some midwives to check identification tags have been blamed for the errors.

Breastfeeding, it’s not about choice

7 May 2010: The breastfeeding debate has reared its controversial head again with news that the NSW public service had granted new mums 60 minutes per day, over and above their allocated meal breaks, to breastfeed or express milk in a private room furnished with a refrigerator for their exclusive use.

Doctors 'cause blood pressure to rise'

7 May 2010: The 'white-coat' effect – where blood pressure rises during a check by a doctor – is even worse in someone whose level is already high, researchers say. The effect is due to patients becoming stressed by being in a doctor's surgery or a hospital. Writing in the British Medical Journal, an Australian team say giving people a cuff to wear for 24 hours is a better way of checking blood pressure.

Southeast Queensland boom puts health services at risk

7 May 2010: Southeast Queensland's premier growth corridor will buckle under the strain of insufficient health resources, the Australian Medical Association has warned. After a two-day tour of the western corridor, AMAQ president Dr Mason Stevenson said plans to ramp up medical facilities through Springfield, Ipswich and Toowoomba were "grossly inadequate".

Emergency e-health meeting called

7 May 2010: Leading medical software-makers are meeting on Monday to hammer out policy and technical concerns over the Rudd government's Healthcare Identifiers project in a worsening crisis as the proposed July 1 launch date looms. It's understood more than 70 members have agreed at short notice to attend a full-day industry roundtable in Sydney, as Health Minister Nicola Roxon's departmental chiefs and Medicare officials hustle to fix key regulatory matters threatening to derail enabling legisation for the HI service in the Senate. It's understood Health officials have floated creating a further – and different – set of health identity numbers for health IT software and service organisations, sparking further confusion.

Pain killer and epilepsy drug join Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme list

7 May 2010: A non-narcotic pain killer and an alternative epilepsy drug will be subsidised under the Federal Government's pharmaceutical benefits scheme (PBS). Health Minister Nicola Roxon said nearly 200,000 Australians had epilepsy, a neurological condition involving recurring, unprovoked seizures.

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