EH 3_2015

© Copyright 2015 Beckman Coulter, Inc. Beckman Coulter, the stylized logo and AU are registered trademarks of Beckman Coulter, Inc. and are registered with the USPTO. Learn how at Clinical Lab Expo Booth #2409 Wearedevotedtohelpinglabsdeliverbetterpatientcare by giving clinical professionals the accurate diagnostic information they need, when they need it. The combination of our scalable diagnostic systems and tests, along with our clinical business intelligence tools can help laboratories achieve standardization, physician and patient satisfaction and meet critical key performance metrics throughout an entire laboratory network. Supporting a clinical lab's goal to deliver excellent patient care effectively is at the heart of all we do. Moving healthcare forward MOVING HEALTHCARE FORWARD beckmancoulter.com AD-50364 European Hospital Ad 2015 Final.indd 1 6/12/15 9:43 AM www.healthcare-in-europe.com 5NEWS & MANAGEMENT histication he edical fair Dr Aseem Malhotra trained in interven tional cardiology at Harefield Hospital, the Royal Free Hospital and Croydon University Hospital, London, and is a consultant clinical associate of the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges many foreign companies showed interest in partnerships. Part of the rationale for combin- ing the three events was the interest by pharma distributors, with hos- pital presidents in tow, in branch- ing out beyond pharma and big ticket imaging products (CT and MRI). Competitive pricing and con- trols over abuse of prescriptions and exams are having an impact on sales, and new opportunities are opening for IVD and some other equipment. Many manufacturers used the venue to hold distributor meetings with their partners from China, Southeast Asia and the Middle East. Raphael Ravet, sales manager for Cefaly Technology, maker of migraine headache relief headgear, found many attendees eager to take a break on the relaxation chairs. The autumn CMEF – 18-21 October, Wuhan International Expo Centre – will focus solely on medical equip- ment, accessories and reagents, and include the International Component Manufacturing and Design show. In spring, the 2016 CMEF will be in Shanghai again, and the organ- isers are considering staggering days for pharma and devices to relieve transportation issues to this, the world’s largest medical prod- uct show. Meanwhile, the Shanghai government will continue to extend the infrastructure to ease coming and going, as well as to find lodging and entertainment nearby. For any medical device company considering entry into the Chinese market, this is where it happens. cut non-essential medical carepiled into lists, and in the autumn the top five interventions for each specialty that should not be used routinely, or at all, will be published. An AMRC paper published in the British Medical Journal has indicated that a culture of more is better, where the onus is on doctors to ‘do something’ at each consultation, has bred unbalanced decision making. The authors added: ‘This has resulted in patients sometimes being offered treatments that have only minor ben- efit and minimal evidence despite the potential for substantial harm and expense.’ Cardiologist Dr Aseem Malhotra, from the AMRC, points out that this culture stems from defensive medi- cine, patient pressures, biased report- ing in medical journals, commer- cial conflicts of interest, and lack of understanding of health statistics and risk. ‘Over-diagnosis and over-treat- ment are the products of a broken system. For the sake of our patients there needs to be a radical overhaul in culture.’ Rather than focusing on a system of payment by results – which encour- ages doctors and hospitals to do more – the AMRC report suggests that guideline committees ‘should increas- ingly turn their efforts towards the production of tools that help clini- cians to understand and share deci- sions on the basis of best evidence’. They say it is time for action ‘to translate the evidence into clinical practice and truly wind back the harms of too much medicine’. The AMRC hopes the campaign will change the way medicine and medical treatments are prescribed and believe it could potentially have far-reaching implications for the nature of health- care in the UK. as it has in the USA, Canada and Australia. In Canada, for example, the Choosing Wisely pro- ject has already identified treatments whose value should be questioned with patients. They include exercis- ing restraint when ordering X-rays for lower back pain; avoiding the use of antipsychotics as a first choice to treat behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia; and not pre- scribing antibiotics for patients with upper-respiratory infections that are likely to be viral in origin. ‘This requires a culture change within the NHS but it is a real opportunity to truly put patients first,’ Malhotra believes. ‘I also believe it has the potential to improve health outcomes for our patients in a rela- tively short space of time. But it is an opportunity for us as medical profes- sionals to really make an impact to improve health and reduce demand on the service.’ AMRC chair, Professor Dame Sue Bailey: ‘The whole point of Choosing Wisely is to encourage doctors to have conversations with their patients and explain honestly what the value of a treatment is. It’s not, and will never be, about refusing treatment or in any way jeopardising safety. It’s just about taking a grown-up approach to healthcare and being good stewards of the resources we have.” AD-50364 European Hospital Ad 2015 Final.indd 16/12/159:43 AM

EH 3_2015

Seitenübersicht