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WEEK COMMENCING 26 JUNE 2010

Grants and fellowships continue to inspire professional excellence

30 June 2010: Information on grants and scholarships administered by RCNA.

More people seeking hospital treatment

30 June 2010: The number of people seeking treatment at Australian hospitals is about 20 per cent higher than it was five years ago, a new report shows. The latest State of Our Public Hospitals report was released by Health Minister Nicola Roxon on Tuesday.

The State of our Public Hospitals, June 2009 report

The state of our public hospitals, June 2009 report provides a snapshot of public and private hospital activity in 2007-08. The 2009 report is based on data collected in 2007-08.

Surgery wait time crippling

30 June 2010: Patients are still waiting longer than they did five years ago for elective surgery in public hospitals while costs have surged well beyond inflation in that time. The public hospitals' performance has only marginally improved after the early funding injections of the Rudd Government, according to the latest figures in the annual State of our Public Hospitals report released yesterday.

Hospital costs soar as system faces overload

30 June 2010: Hospital expenses are continuing to balloon. Figures show the cost of the average hospital admission grew 14 per cent over and above the inflation rate in the five years to 2009. The State of Our Public Hospitals report, released by Health Minister Nicola Roxon yesterday, also showed hospital admissions had jumped to nearly five million patients a year in 2008-09, a 17 per cent increase over the four million patients admitted five years earlier.

Doctors query local control of medical services

30 June 2010: Senior doctors have raised the alarm over another element of the federal government's health reform program. They warn that the original promise that the system would be "run locally" is under threat as states move to set up hospital networks.

Pressure on beds as Queensland's hospitals fall behind national average

30 June 2010: Queenslanders have less than three public hospital beds for every 1000 people, with the state slipping below the national average, a snapshot shows. The State of Our Hospitals report, released on Wednesday, finds bed numbers for patients in the state's public hospitals trail those in South Australia and NSW. Nationally, the 2008-09 average was 2.5 public hospital beds for every 1000 Australians.

After five years, some justice for Patel's victims

30 June 2010: When the former Bundaberg surgeon Jayant Patel faced an extradition hearing in Oregon three years ago, prosecutors said he faced more than 100 years in jail, including three life sentences.

New laws mean doctors can't hide their past

30 June 2010: Doctors will be banned from moving interstate to practice if they have been in trouble, under new laws to come into force tomorrow. A new national medical registration body will mean patients will have to visit only one website to check a clinician's medical licence to ensure there have been no restrictions imposed on them by interstate medical authorities.

Doctors charging up to $50 for being just 10 minutes late for appointments

30 June 2010: Doctors have begun charging patients a fee of up to $50 for being just 10 minutes late for appointments. Consumer groups are accusing the profession of a double standard, given that doctors often keep patients kicking their heels in surgery waiting rooms. But general practitioners say the fees are necessary to ensure practices run efficiently.

States failing on Aboriginal child health checks

30 June 2010: Aboriginal child health checks are occurring at only a fraction of that rate in other parts of Australia. Medicare Benefits Scheme data reveal that fewer than one in five Aboriginal children received a health check between 2006 and 2009 in all states excluding the Northern Territory, where the majority of indigenous children have received the service.

Smokes get in their eyes and they can't resist

30 June 2010: Almost 30 per cent of smokers said they would quit or cut down if cigarettes were less easily available, according to research published in the journal Social Science & Medicine. The people most likely to buy on impulse were those most interested in quitting, younger people who smoked less, the study's leader, Christine Paul, said.

Depression is a forgotten side effect of cancer

30 June 2010: One in five breast and prostate cancer patients are not getting psychological help following their cancer diagnosis. According to one of the largest combined studies of its kind in Australia, conducted in collaboration with the University of New England and Bond University and released yesterday, found all patients had some level of mood alteration following a cancer diagnosis, but for one in five patients it progressed to serious depression.

Premier warns Gillard against vexing voters

30 June 2010: West Australian Premier Colin Barnett has warned the Gillard government will anger voters if it withholds health funding from the state. Mr Barnett said withholding $350 million of health funding would discriminate against the sick and elderly.

Fat facts law for fast food

30 June 2010: The kilojoule count for burgers, sandwiches, pizzas, hot chips and soft drinks will have to be clearly advertised in all fast-food chains from 2012. The Victorian State Government has moved to become the first in Australia to adopt tough New York-style labelling laws that help fight obesity and diabetes, which is plaguing some of Melbourne's poorer suburbs. Obesity is estimated to cost the Australian economy about $60 billion a year.

ANF: Nurses most ethical profession for the 16th year in a row

29 June 2010: The Australian Nursing Federation congratulates nurses for once again being voted the most ethical and honest professionals. In the annual Roy Morgan Image of Professions survey 89% of Australians rated nurses as most trusted. Nurses were first included in the survey in 1994 and have topped the list every year since.

Stroke patients get hi-tech help

29 June 2010: Stroke patients will be the first to receive health services through the federal government's national broadband network. The breakthrough will come next year,  when researchers start delivering rehabilitation classes straight into people's living rooms.

Roxon pleads for patience on mental health

29 June 2010: Federal Health Minister Nicola Roxon has asked people to be patient with the Government's progress on improving mental health services.

Cash threat to WA in health deadlock

29 June 2010: More than $350 million in health funding will be withheld from Western Australia from Thursday. The threat comes as the Barnett government and federal Health Minister Nicola Roxon remain deadlocked over the commonwealth's $50 billion health reform plan.

NSW Government increases trip in an ambulance to $309

29 June 2010: Ambulance fees will rise to $309, with the State Government charging patients $5.48 for each kilometre. A trip in an ambulance will now be about 40 per cent more expensive than it was four years ago. The ambulance fee rise comes as the Australian Medical Association announced patients will have to pay up to $43 for blood tests carried out by their doctor in the surgery. There is no Medicare rebate for the tests which include finger prick tests to check cholesterol levels, blood sugar levels, blood counts for blood thinning medicine and troponin tests to predict heart attacks.

Doctors, hospitals have no money for medical supplies

28 June 2010: Doctors cannot get basic medical supplies replaced because hospital budgets are running out, they say. The Australian Medical Association says this year is particularly bad, with spending restrictions affecting doctors' ability to do their jobs.

Health a key issue for Labor at election

28 June 2010: Health will take centre stage at the upcoming federal election, says Health Minister Nicola Roxon. Addressing the Sydney Institute on Monday night, Ms Roxon said the Labor government was elected in 2007 on a mandate to reform the health system - "a sweeping mandate to deliver real changes to families and communities around Australia now, and to reform the system to ensure it remains strong and sustainable into the future".

Some expert health tips for the new PM

28 June 2010: Health professionals have their say on Croakey.

Neurology Update

28 June 2010: Battery of tests predict falls in Parkinson's

1. •Report highlights need for more research on AF in Australia
   

2. •Add-on corticosteroids beneficial in MS
   

3. •No CV benefit on reducing homocysteine: SEARCH
   

4. •Anxiety disorders a 'strong beacon' for CHD
   

5. •Family histories neglected: audit
   

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Rheumatology Update

28 June 2010: Cartilage biomarkers identify OA subgroups

1. •Scope to improve gout treatment
   

2. •No need for orthopod follow up
   

3. •Denosumab and alendronate have different effects on bone
   

4. •Surprising twist in gout-diabetes link
   

5. •Pfizer halts tanezumab trials
   

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Facebook blamed for rise in British teenagers self-harming

28 June 2010:A shocking rise in the number of British teenagers mutilating themselves with knives was blamed on cyber bullying. Sarah Brennan, chief executive of YoungMinds, which campaigns over kids' mental health issues, said: "The rise of the internet means they face new pressures from cyber bullying, and looking good on social networks such as Facebook.

CHINA Double-wjammy: Aging China has few children to care for it

28 June 2010: Decades ago, the idea that China's eldest residents would be put in the care of non-family members was laughable - impossible, said Qing Zhuren, manager of the Shanghai Fahua Home for the Aged. In China's tradition-ruled society, parents and grandparents have always depended on their children, grandchildren or in-laws to care for them in their old age. However, the full rooms at the Fahua Home for the Aged here are proof of a demographic change that's quietly making itself felt throughout this country of 1.3 billion.

Abortion trial without precedent in Australian court

28 June 2010: The impending trial of a young Queensland woman for allegedly illegally aborting her pregnancy has no precedent in Australia. The finding by prominent obstetrician and abortion law reform campaigner Caroline de Costa reinforces how intensely the prosecution of Tegan Leach and her partner, Sergie Brennan, both of Cairns, will be watched.

Doubts but timing test gives menopause for thought

28 June 2010: Women as young as 20 could take a blood test to learn the precise age at which they will no longer be able to have babies. Hundreds of Australian women have already undertaken similar blood tests to determine when menopause was likely to begin, but so far doctors have only been able to give a rough prediction within a few years.

McGorry raises mental health stakes

27 June 2010: Ausralian of the Year Patrick McGorry has called on the new prime minister to urgently reform Australia's beleaguered mental health sector, warning that the crisis could cost Labor votes at the looming election. Contacted by The Sunday Age, Ms Gillard's office said the Prime Minister was ''certainly happy to consider any meeting request from Professor McGorry''.

Winter's chill means a big comeback for swine flu

27 June 2010: Amid an average start to winter, in terms of temperature and rainfall, there were only 884 cases of flu diagnosed nationally this year to June 11, according to the federal Health Department. The figure was 3611 last year, to June 16, driven largely by the low levels of immunity to swine flu.

Why living near a road is bad for your health

27 June 2010: Children living within 500 metres of a major road or freeway are at greater risk of developing asthma, while adults face an increased likelihood of lung and heart-related illnesses, a landmark health study has revealed. The US Health Effects Institute looked at 700 worldwide health-pollution studies, and found that there was a clear health risk for those living near arterial roads or highways.

Comment: Where there's a will there's a way to finally fix the crisis in mental health

27 June 2010: If you were to visit a facility for homeless people anywhere in the country, you would be surprised at the level of disability among such people. About 50 per cent of those there would have a mental illness. Some would have acquired their mental illness while homeless; others would be homeless because of their illness.

Push for suicide assessments in hospital emergency rooms

26 June 2010: Emergency departments will have to have at least one mental health professional if recommendations in a Senate report become law. The report, which made 42 recommendations to the federal government on suicide prevention and awareness, was the result of the first Senate inquiry into the issue in Australia, and was tabled in parliament late on Thursday.

No pain for fetus prior to 24 weeks

26 une 2010: The human fetus cannot feel pain before the age of 24 weeks, according to an independent review of scientific evidence. Nerve connections in the fetal brain do not form fully enough to allow perception of pain until after the 24-week limit for terminating pregnancies, an expert report commissioned by Britain's Department of Health concluded. The findings, by the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, rebukes claims by anti-abortion activists that legal terminations can inflict pain on fetuses.

G8 pledges $A5.77b in health aid

26 June 2010: Leaders from the Group of Eight industrialised countries have pledged $US5 billion ($A5.77 billion) to help fight child and maternal illness. But the proposals faced an immediate barrage of criticism from development groups, who accused leaders of trying to mask previous unfulfilled promises to help millions out of poverty.

US bans health risk pesticide: endosulfan

26 June 2010: The leading environmental regulator in the US has moved to end that country's use of an agricultural chemical permitted in Australia, claiming it poses an unacceptable risk to human and environmental health. Endosulfan, used here on crops such as cotton and nuts, was recently linked to attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder in children and increased risk of Parkinson's disease among men. Endosulfan is a so-called organochlorine compound, as is DDT, banned in Australia.

Mental clinic bans patient from nursing

26 June 2010: The enrolled nurse Alistair Colgrave was driving home after his first shift at a psychiatric unit on the north shore when he received a call from his boss telling him not to return. The 37-year-old thought he had performed well and had been pencilled in for 15 more casual shifts by the nurse in charge, but a check of records had revealed he had been a patient there a few months earlier.

Opinion: Research key to healthcare reform: hard evidence

26 June 2010: The most important outcome of the federal government's new centralist healthcare agenda is the potential to create a rational health system in which resources are deployed on the basis of Australia's real health needs, rather than on state political agendas often skewed by unjustifiable investments in old, dysfunctional hospitals in marginal electorates.

Better focus below the belt: prostate

26 June 2010: In an ideal world Rob McLachlan would like all men to be able to explain what a prostate is. He also imagines men and their doctors chatting comfortably about rectal exams. In reality, there's a long way to go, says McLachlan, director of Andrology Australia, a government funded group providing education on male reproductive health to the public and health professionals.

Deeper into uncharted waters: embryo research

26 June 2010: In November 2007 the world of stem cell science changed overnight. That's when independent Japanese and US teams simultaneously reported that they'd made "embryo-free" human embryonic stem cells from ordinary skin cells.

Germany: Assisted suicide OK if patient consents

26 June 2010: Germany's top criminal court issued a landmark ruling Friday legalizing assisted suicide in cases where it is carried out based on a patient's prior request. Germany took political steps to clarify the legal situation surrounding assisted suicide late last year. Parliament passed a law that made people's declarations on whether they wanted treatment to prolong their life following an accident or when terminally ill binding for doctors. But the court ruling now makes it legal to end a person's life by halting medical treatment, if it is their wish.

Kindy kids to be tracked for mental health

25 June 2010: Every kindergarten student currently enrolled in NSW will be tracked for the next 20 years in an attempt to find clues on mental illness. Using the data, which includes birth and education records, researchers from the University of NSW hope to identify early markers that may be associated with the development of schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, depression and other mental and social disorders.

ANF: Health identifiers a good start on e-health

25 June 2010: ANF Federal Secretary elect Lee Thomas welcomes the introduction of the Healthcare Identifiers Act saying it will improve patient safety and care by giving nurses and midwives access to electronic health records.