As the use of Twitter and other social media by physicians and patients rises, more and more physicians seem to forget to do what many consider crucial for building doctor-patient trust: disclose potential conflicts of interest.
Procedures, financing and cultural philosophies can shape the difference, Michael Reiter, Mark Nicholls, Eduardo de la Sota, Jane MacDougall report
Germany hopes for better research conditions as revision of the EU Clinical Trials Directive is nigh
Statistics show significant increase in scans and left heart catheterisations, Susanne Werner reports
With growing bed shortages and increased demand on clinical services, the Royal College of Physicians (RCP) says that the country’s National Health Service (NHS) is approaching the point where acute care cannot keep pace in its current form, Mark Nicholls reports
COCIR applauds the Commission’s courageous move to harmonise the EU’s legal framework on data protection through the adoption of a EU Regulation, as proposed earlier this year. COCIR has today published its position paper on the proposal.
Over the last few decades healthcare costs have been skyrocketing, something often discussed on this blog as it has become a considerable problem for many different countries.
Demand for health services in China is on the surge, and democracy pre-empts an upward trajectory.
Rumour had it for a while, and many found out when the bomb was finally dropped at, of all places, the Congress of the International Transplantation Society, held in Berlin this July – the waiting list for donor organs in the database of the Eurotransplant Foundation had been manipulated.
For the first time, a EU agency recommends a gene therapy drug for commercial release in Europe. The European Medicine's Agency announced in late July 2012 that its Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) recommends Glybera for commercial release in the European Union
The United Nations Special Rapporteur on the right to health, Anand Grover, praised the European Parliament’s rejection of the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) on July 4 as a step in the right direction to ensure continued access to affordable and essential drugs and medication essential for the fulfillment of the right to health
Integrated care in Europe is primarily offered in regional networks. An international symposium in Berlin showed that new forms of care require innovative ideas and a tenacious team, Susanne Werner reports
Under a new health delivery Act only seriously ill in-patients will receive out-patient treatment at the same hospital. The rest will have to go to a new ‘medical specialist service’. The new system can only cause problems say medical workers. Report: Susanne Werner.
Italian healthcare is still hitting the headlines. Although Prime Minister Mario Monti announced plans for healthcare reform at the end of 2011 – effectively cutting healthcare spend by €2.5 billion, as well as increasing the retirement age – the on-going exposure of hospitals and emergency care failures is drawing huge attention and has even prompted investigations by state prosecutors.…
There are many ways in which hospitals could improve efficiency and reduce the need for cutbacks in services for patients, according to a major review of hospital efficiency published today (Thursday) by the UK based health think tank Nuffield Trust.
Does France provide the world’s best health service? How is a good healthcare system defined? Who decides that one healthcare system is better than another? What do we expect from a healthcare system? The answers depend on your perspective, says EH Paris Correspondent Jane MacDougall
Whilst the benefits of teleradiology as a diagnostic tool continue to grow, concerns have been raised about the lack of uniformity in reporting protocols across Europe. Mark Nicholls reports
Step by step, the Helsinki Declaration is being implemented: Great Britain and the Netherlands have made it law. In Germany, it is voluntary. Report: Susanne Werner
Directed by the Gesellschaft Deutscher Krankenhaustag (GDK) the EHC will open with an examination of and debate on the current European health policy and the impact of the EU patients’ rights directive. Passed by the European Council of Ministers in February, these guidelines envisage patients having cross-border access to healthcare services, inclusive of a free choice of doctors and…
In an interview with Daniela Zimmermann, Professor Jerzy Walecki explained the implications of that role and the state of radiology in Poland today.
For 100% safety, medical products should be better labelled. While legislators, regulatory authorities and certification bodies stipulate that manufacturers should provide clear information, in reality this is not always the case, as explained by orthopaedic surgeon Jan A de Lint MD, of the Amphia Hospital in Breda and Kliniek Zestienhoven in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
As a referral neuroradiologist for paediatric tumour studies, Professor Monika Warmuth-Metz, Consultant at the Neuroradiology Department at University Hospital Würzburg, daily evaluates MRI images of different origin and colour. Her resume states: ‘All too often the standard protocols set out in the guidelines are not adhered to, which makes evaluation and follow-up significantly more…
Expert warns that breast screening across the country needs to undergo a dramatic transformation over the next 15 years, Mark Nicholls reports.
Gathering in Austria, plastic surgeons proclaim the need for clarification and standards. Michael Krassnitzer reports
‘We are all aware of the importance of early diagnosis and rapid appropriate treatment of patients with severe sepsis. Yet, many patients still do not receive satisfactory early management and the application of recent guidelines for sepsis management is still inadequate,’ writes Jean-Louis Vincent MD PhD, from the Intensive Care Department, Erasme Hospital, Université Libre de Bruxelles,…
