Independent think tank Reform says a healthy society will be an essential component of a swift recovery from the recession.
Both government and the private sector acknowledge the need to tackle public health issues and this report reveals a number of examples of best practice in commitment to employee wellness.
Reform’s paper looks at how more of this activity can be encouraged and its success built on to improve Read more »
The All-Party Parliamentary Group on Primary Care and Public Health says that not enough is being done to promote public health, even though this is a key responsibility of government.
Legislation and initiatives across the public sector are needed to improve the way people look after their health, according to a report by the group.
The group suggests that local authorities should be supported by regulations enabling them Read more »
Jade Goody is 27-year old British reality TV star who is dying from cervical cancer.
As part of an ongoing reality show, her last days will be filmed and broadcast.
In this day and age of the Pap smear, cervical cancer should be all but eradicated. And Ms. Goody did have Pap smears. Several, in fact. However, as gynecologist Margaret Polaneczky observes, she ignored letters to come in for followup and treatment.
When undergoing a procedure in the hospital, the last thing most patients suspect would be sustaining burns from medical equipment or carelessness of the medical staff.
Thankfully, such instances are rare, but they do occur. As the WSJ reports, the oxygen-rich environment of an operating room can increase the risk of flames, from say, a stray spark of an electrocautery device.
Furthermore, medication patches, like nicotine or Read more »
The FDA is about to get serious on inappropriate prescribing of narcotic pain medications.
What exactly they’re going to do is unclear, but as reported in the NY Times, it “will result in further restrictions on the prescribing, dispensing and distribution of extended-release opioids like OxyContin, fentanyl patches, methadone tablets and some morphine tablets.”
Part of the problem is that some patients who present with musculoskeletal Read more »
Cosmo Magazine, that bastion of reliable medical advice, declares, “An orgasm almost killed her.”
Intrigued, gynecologist Amy Tuteur reads further, and finds its about case where a woman developed stroke-like symptoms after intercourse, and was diagnosed with an embolic stroke.
The patient was taking the birth control pill, which can raise the risk of blood clots. In this case, it was also combined with the presence of a patent Read more »
That’s a question this case in the UK is trying the answer.
As Dr. Crippen, the crusty blogger who notes the inanities of the UK medical system, notes, extra-martial affairs are commonplace.
But should a physician be censured, effectively ending his medical career, for having a dangerous liaison?
“If every man and women in Britain who had an extra-marital affair were to be prevented from working,” writes Dr. Crippen, Read more »
Most patients think that more testing equates to better medicine, and companies are profiting from that myth.
Some offer non-invasive screening tests (via Schwitzer), often times performed in church basements, screening the healthy, general population for carotid artery disease, peripheral vascular disease, or abdominal aortic aneurysms.
The typical cost is $50 per test, or five tests for $159. The price transparency is welcome, Read more »
by Marcus C. Evans
The South American acai berry is a small, round fruit, not so unlike our purple grapes. They grow deep in the Amazon rain forests and natives climb the tall trees to harvest these delicate berries by hand.
The berries taste is absolutely delicious; a delicate blend of mixed berries and dark chocolate. Acai berries are only an inch or so in size with little pulp to the berries since the seeds are large and account Read more »
I’ve always wondered how much more staff would be needed to compensate for restricting resident work-hours and mandating naps.
The NEJM provides the answer in their perspective piece on the issue.
Two researchers how studied that exact question, using models based on various work-hour restriction scenarios. They found that “nationally the health care system would need to create and fill new full-time–equivalent positions Read more »
