Categories
Cardiovascular
Diagnostics
Endocrinology
Health Insurance
Medical Devices
Mental Health
Nutrition
Oncology
Public Health
Sexual Health
Popular Articles
Cellulite Cream

New Cases Of Alzheimer's And Dementia Continue To Rise, Even In The 'Oldest Old'
The number of people with Alzheimer"s and dementia - both new cases and
generic viagra online
Successful Neurosurgery With Transcranial MR-guided High-Intensity Focused Ultrasound
The Magnetic Resonance Center of the University Children"s Hospital Zurich has achieved a world first break through in MR-guided, non-invasive neurosurgery. Ten patients have been successfully treated by means of transcranial high-intensity focused ultrasound. This fully non-invasive procedure opens new horizons for neurosurgery and the treatment of different neurological brain disorders.
News of the day
Advocates Eager To Learn More About Supreme Court Nominee Sotomayor's Abortion-Rights Views
Abortion-rights groups on Wednesday offered their support for Supreme Court nominee Judge Sonia Sotomayor but said that they were eager to learn more about her views on abortion rights, an issue on which she has made few major rulings in her time as a judge, the New York Times reports. According to the Times, groups on both sides of the abortion-rights debate tend to believe that Sotomayor would uphold Roe v. Wade because she was nominated by President Obama, who supports abortion rights. However, when asked on Tuesday if Obama questioned Sotomayor about her views on abortion rights before the nomination, White House spokesperson Robert Gibbs said that the president "did not ask that specifically." In addition, none of her rulings has directly dealt with the underlying issues of constitutional privacy that are the foundation for the Roe decision, according to the Times. The abortion-related cases Sotomayor has handled in the past have "turned on other legal issues," rather than privacy, and they have resulted in rulings in favor of abortion-right opponents, the Times reports. For example, in 2002, she wrote an opinion upholding the Bush administration"s "global gag rule" policy banning federal funding of international groups that offer abortion information or services. "The Supreme Court has made clear that the government is free to favor the antiabortion position over the pro-choice position and can do so with public funds," Sotomayor wrote in the opinion. In 2004, she said that antiabortion-rights protesters were permitted to sue police who they claimed used excessive force in stopping a demonstration at a clinic. Sotomayor also has ruled on several immigration cases related to people fighting deportation orders to China over its family planning policies, the Times reports. Because of the limited information on Sotomayor"s abortion-rights views, advocates have stressed that senators ask questions about her views during her confirmation hearing. NARAL Pro-Choice America President Nancy Keenan in a letter to supporters urged them to press senators to ask Sotomayor about privacy rights. Keenan wrote, "Discussion about [Roe] will -- and must -- be part of this nomination process. As you know, choice hangs in the balance on the Supreme Court as the last two major choice-related cases were decided by a 5-to-4 margin" (Savage, New York Times, 5/28). Nancy Northup, president of the Center for Reproductive Rights, said that she would be surprised if an Obama nominee did not support abortion rights but added that "other presidents have been surprised before" when their nominees" views did not align with their assumptions. Northup said that "no one has been able to give us an assurance" of Sotomayor"s views on abortion rights, adding that she would be "very concerned if the question is not asked and answered during the Senate hearings." Feminist Majority Foundation President Eleanor Smeal said, "What we know about [Sotomayor] we like, but I don"t know that answer on abortion rights" (Savage/Nicholas, Los Angeles Times, 5/28). The New York Times reports that more about Sotomayor"s views on abortion rights could come to light if a past writing on the subject surfaces, as was the case during Justice Samuel Alito"s confirmation process. Steven Waldman, editor in chief of beliefnet.com, said, "Everyone is just assuming that because Obama appointed her, she must be a die-hard pro-choice activist, but it"s really quite amazing how little we know about her views on abortion" (Savage, New York Times, 5/28). Thomas Goldstein, a leading appellate attorney and founder of scotusblog.com, said that the "fact that she hasn"t gone off on these sorts of questions" on contentious topics like abortion rights and gay marriage, "I think shows that honestly she"s not a dyed in the wool liberal." He added that there are issues on which Sotomayor could prove to be more conservative than retiring Justice David Souter (Lerer, Politico, 5/27).According to the Washington Post, many antiabortion-rights supporters are critic
Diagnostics

3 Million Euros EU Grant For Research Into Hospital Quality And Safety, Europe

King"s Patient Safety & Service Quality Research Centre (King"s PSSQ) is taking the lead on a major new international research project on quality and safety in European hospitals. A grant of 3 million Euros has been secured for the work (subject to contract), which will also involve the PSSQ Research Centre at Imperial College and partners from Sweden, the Netherlands, Portugal and Norway*. The King"s PSSQ Centre (also part of King"s Health Partners Academic Health Sciences Centre, a collaboration between King"s College London and Guy"s and St Thomas", King"s College Hospital and South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trusts) aims to bring together NHS professionals with academic experts from a wide range of backgrounds, including management and the social sciences, to focus on investigating ways to improve the care of patients. This three-year study, starting in 2010, will explore the relationships between the organisational and cultural characteristics of hospitals and how these impact upon clinical effectiveness, patient safety and experience in European countries. Data will be collected in two hospitals in each of the five partner countries, with additional studies of two particular clinical areas in one hospital in each country. Whilst there is a good understanding of the types of quality improvement undertaken in healthcare, less is known of the organisational and cultural processes that determine the effectiveness of these methods. By examining the relationship between these processes and quality on different levels - from the national healthcare system through to the hospital, to the frontline clinical team - in each of the five partner countries, the study will unveil how the dynamics and interactions between these different levels impact on sustained quality of hospital care. Professor Naomi Fulop, Director of King"s PSSQ comments; "The project will provide invaluable information about which organisational systems in European hospitals work to improve patient safety and service quality, and which create barriers. It is the first time that partners across Europe have come together to investigate these issues in depth, and we share a commitment to use the research findings to improve the quality and safety of patient care on an ongoing basis." The research will enable the team to deliver effective solutions to hospital leaders, based on the realities of implementing quality improvement programmes. The findings will be used to design and disseminate an evidence-based Quality and Safety Guide for Hospitals to guide hospitals on implementing effective organisation-wide quality and safety improvement initiatives. In parallel, a Framework for Assessing Hospital Quality will also be compiled, enabling purchasers of hospital services and governments throughout the EU to monitor and assess the effectiveness, safety and patient experience of hospital care. Kate Moore King"s College London


Add your comment:
Name:
Site address: http://
Your message:
Enter today\\\\'s date, 2 digits
(spam protection):

© Copyright 2009