New report reveals inefficient management of chronic pain costs Europe billions of Euros each year

A new report launched today in the European Parliament shows inefficiencies in the treatment of chronic pain result in increasing healthcare costs and prolonged patient suffering.[1] Chronic pain costs Europe billions of Euros every year, with national costs ranging from €1.1 billion to nearly €50 billion.2,3 21% of Europeans with chronic pain are unable to work at all as a result of their…

EU expertise on health policy of interest to countries in Balkans and CIS

Expert knowledge in health policy from the EU is in demand outside the Union. The European Health Forum Gastein is a vital hub for the future development of European health policy. This year’s Forum will be the thirteenth so far and will be held from October 6 to 9 in Bad Hofgastein, Austria. For the first time, high-ranking health policy-makers from the Balkan countries and CIS countries will…

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The Global E-Health Forum 2010

The Global E-Health Forum, which will take place on October 25-26, 2010, in Hamburg, Germany, will address the main challenges healthcare systems all over the world are facing: demographic shifts, the impact of globalization and an increased burden of chronic diseases and expensive treatments.

War on NHS reform

A Government White Paper on healthcare reform has caused Unison, Britain’s biggest public sector trade union (over 1.3 million members), to launch legal action against the Government ‘as a matter of urgency’. The day after the paper was presented in July, NHS CEOs were instructed by NHS CEO Sir David Nicholson to implement the proposals ‘immediately’ - without being given time to…

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Predicting future admissions

The aim of the predictive modelling systems being trialled in the UK are to identify which people in a given population are the most likely to be admitted to hospital in the next 12 months and then focus preventive measures on them to try to avoid hospital admission. Primary Care Trusts (PCTs), which commission hospital services in the UK, are favouring the model as they try to cut costs during a…

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The European Health Forum Gastein

More than 600 distinguished guests from 40 countries are expected at this year’s European Health Forum Gastein (EHFG). ‘Since its foundation in 1998, the EHFG has developed into an international meeting point for the highest-ranking healthcare politicians, managers and scientists from all over the world,’ said EHFG President Professor Günther Leiner.

Reuse of single-use devices - Safety and Ethics not so clear

Eucomed, the European Medical Technology Industry association, welcomes the European Commission's (EC) report on the reprocessing of medical devices. While remaining typically neutral in terms of action at this stage of the debate, the EC report confirmed that even with all the evidence and scientific opinion available "...it is not possible to quantify the risk associated with the use of…

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Ethianum in Heidelberg with future proof infrastructure

The Ethianum in Heidelberg is one of the first clinics in Germany to align itself consistently according to sustainability criteria, thus making it a hospital in keeping with the spirit of Siemens' Green+ Hospital Program. Working in partnership with the Ethianum, Siemens has developed and implemented comprehensive solutions: These include energy management, patient care, and the communications…

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Urology Week calls for attention for prostate diseases

The European Association of Urology (EAU), the European knowledge centre of urology, and the national urological societies in Europe organise Urology Week annually – this year from 13 to 17 September - to inform people, especially men over 50, about urological diseases, their treatments and the work of the urologist.

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Coming soon: MEDICA 2010

Looking ahead to MEDICA 2010 (17 to 20 November) the signs are good. The high number of registrations is a sign of optimism in the medical technology industry and the number of exhibitors has already seen a significant increase in comparison to last year. With six months left to go until the fair begins, some 115,000 square metres of exhibition space had already been booked.

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Meiko Innovation:Top Cut B

Avoiding and reducing waste in the clinical environment not only has highly scalable effects in economic terms, but also marks a key milestone on the path towards a ‘green hospital’. The latest innovation from the company MEIKO makes a major contribution towards reducing waste while simultaneously making nursing staff’s work both safer and easier.

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US health care lags rest of world in EPR systems

The well established, universal health care structures of EU countries with most specialty practices located within hospitals has led to a more advanced electronic patient record environment. Globally, 2/3 of Health Care Professionals have already implemented Electronic Patient Record systems but the US lags with less than half.

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Voilà! French e-health goes online in 2010

The hosting service has been selected, software standards have been published, and on 11 December 2010 any French citizen will be able to open a file and begin creating a secure, personal electronic health record (EHR). If the agency charged with this ambitious programme meets the deadline, France will suddenly jump to the leading edge of e-health worldwide, rivalling advanced national programmes…

EPRs dramatically speed up Chlamydia treatment cycle

The introduction of electronic patient records (EPRs) can ‘dramatically’ speed up the Chlamydia treatment cycle, more than doubling the number of people treated within two weeks of a test result, according to research led by Dr Gary Brook at the Patrick Clements Clinic, Central Middlesex Hospital, London, and published in the journal Sexually Transmitted Infections.

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Semiconductors

During the Forum MedTech Pharma (30 June to 1 July, Nuremberg, Germany)Texas Instruments discusses the impact of semiconductor innovation on the development of medical equipment. ‘As an integrated circuit (IC) provider we sell both analogue and digital solutions to system houses, which then integrate the product,’ explained Dr Karthik Vasanth, Medical Business Unit Product Line Manager at…

German hospitals fare well despite the economic crisis

In its sixth issue, the Hospital Rating Report, first introduced to the public in Berlin during the 2010 Capital City Congress for Medicine and Health, again examined the financial situation of German hospitals. The study shows financial improvement during 2009 and 2010, despite the economic crisis, but forecasts that it will deteriorate again from 2011.

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The sustainable hospital

‘Sustainability’ is more than a buzz word. The original meaning – to limit the use of natural resources so they will be available for future generations – has been expanded to encompass an economic as well as a social dimension. Companies – including hospitals – are increasingly integrating the concept of sustainability in their corporate strategies.

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Should specialist medical training be more flexible?

Specialist medical training programmes should retain some flexibility to help trainee doctors make the right career choices, according to a study published on bmj.com. Some UK medical graduates choose a specialty as soon as they qualify and others after a few years of postgraduate work. But changes to postgraduate medical training mean that junior doctors will generally have to make choices…

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Self-monitoring of blood glucose

Around 75% of adult type 1 and type 2 diabetics say they believe they know what their blood sugar levels are, without testing, according to data presented at the American Diabetes Association 70th Scientific Sessions. These results are important to consider because self-monitoring with a blood glucose meter is essential for people with diabetes to obtain accurate blood glucose results that guide…

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Surgical site infections

Post-operative wound infection occurs after an estimated 17% of surgical operations – sometimes with devastating consequences for the patient. The list of preventive measures is manifold and long. However, one strategy is increasingly moving into the spotlight: the use of antibacterial coated sutures. Ethicon Products is at the cutting edge in this field. Sandra Rasche, head of this Business…

Infection outbreaks to be published weekly

A change in political control naturally creates change in the way things are run, and the jaw-jutting ‘Get tough’ nature of the UK’s new coalition Government is palpable. For hospitals, one early change relates to data reporting on MRSA bloodstream infections and C. Difficile. Up to now, these were published monthly by the National Health Service (NHS) Trust; soon they will be published…

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