PLANS TO save up to 450 lives a year through the reorganisation of the treatment of chronic diseases that account for 80 per cent of healthcare costs, have been unveiled at a HSE briefing in Dublin yesterday. Prof Peter Kelly,…
Novus Medica
Medical news service from Penhire
Monthly Archives: October 2010
People’s health would vastly improve if clocks didn’t go back
Dr Mayer Hillman, senior fellow emeritus at the Policy Studies Institute: “Many chronic illnesses are caused by a lack of physical activity and extending the hours of daylight would lead to an increased opportunity for outdoor leisure activities and more…
Posted in Public health
Heart surgery tool wins top design award
THE DESIGNER of a medical device for use on heart patients won the grand prix in the Irish design awards last night. Martin Bruggemann of Dolmen received the top award at the 12th Institute of Designers in Ireland Awards for…
Promised changes not made at Cork hospitals
A NUMBER of commitments made in advance of the transfer of breast cancer services from the South Infirmary Victoria University Hospital in Cork to Cork University Hospital (CUH) had not been met six months after the transfer took place, according…
Mother fails in action against HSE on death of son
In his judgment yesterday, Mr Justice Iarfhlaith O’Neill ruled neither the senior psychiatric officer on duty on the night of Mr Orpen’s admission nor the consultant psychiatrist involved in his care, had failed in their duty in relation to assessment…
Device helps with chemo drugs
Co-inventor, Dr Declan Soden of the Cork Cancer Research Centre said the device allows for chemotherapeutic drugs to be administered in a more localised way which will lead to shorter stays in hospitals. “The first clinical trial of our device…
Taken off the market
A reported 3,000 diabetics took Avandia in Ireland and Dr Anna Clarke of the Diabetes Federation of Ireland has this advice for them. “People who are currently taking the drug are being highly monitored because of the known risks. I…
January and July ‘riskiest months to have surgery’
A new report reveals how nearly one in four of the negligence claims taken by patients in the past six-and-a-half years have to do with accidents in those months. The risk posed to patients, who have operations in these months,…
Biggest hospitals top the superbug infection league
Two of the country’s busiest hospitals have topped the league for MRSA infections in the last four and a half years, it emerged yesterday. St James’s Hospital in Dublin headed the table, with 204 infections, followed by Beaumont Hospital with…
Season of mists, mellow fruitfulness and the jab
Pat Harrold: “But it is never as simple as just giving an injection. These woolly dartboards are people, with their oddities and pathologies. And these others are GPs, who by training and nature are holistic and opportunistic.” >>>
Has the regulator overstepped its powers?
Mark Ryan is a partner in Whitney Moore Solicitors, specialising in pharmaceutical regulation: “The regulator has argued that these products must be kept out of view to ensure that they are not accessible. It has also indicated that displaying them…
Posted in Medicolegal, Pharmaceutical
Should your doctor do all the talking?
Muiris Houston: In theory, a patient- orientated approach is already the norm. Much training time is spent erasing any paternalistic tendencies in favour of a patient-centred approach, in which the healthcare professional acts as facilitator rather than dictator. But it’s…
Don’t leave these graduates nursing a grudge
Seamus Cowman, professor of nursing at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, agrees the problems of the past could repeat themselves unless nurses we train now are used to greater effect. He suggests they could run the national bowel…
Operations officer post to cost HSE €190,000
THE Health Service Executive’s new chief operations officer will be paid a salary of about €190,000, it has emerged. (Times) >>>
Pharmacy guidelines halve sales of codeine drugs
“Sales are half of previous levels,” said Darragh O’Loughlin, president of the IPU. “There’s almost a stigma attached to asking for these products now. The legislation is supposed to be about stopping addiction, not stopping sales altogether.” Rory O’Donnell, vice…
Posted in Pharmaceutical
Grow yourself a new knee
Last week, a man in his 30s underwent matrix-induced chondrocyte implantation (MACI) surgery to repair a damaged knee joint at the UPMC Beacon hospital in Sandyford, Dublin. The new treatment is especially useful for younger people, according to Mr Maurice…
Drogheda acute care in danger of ‘collapse’
Dr Michael Staunton, lead clinician in the department of anaesthesia, has told management that out of 14 anaesthetic non-consultant hospital doctor (NCHD) or junior doctor posts in the hospital, up to 13 could remain unfilled in January when junior doctors…
Depression linked to pregnancy stress
Stress occurring during the last months of pregnancy could actually alter normal foetal brain growth, in turn leading to the increased risk of psychological disorders, according to Dr Áine Behan of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland. This was…
Chronic pain sufferers forced to wait two years for diagnosis, says report
Dr Liam Conroy, director of the department of pain medicine at the Mercy Hospital in Cork, said the fact that patients face unnecessary delays not only increases healthcare costs, but also costs to the social welfare system, insurance companies and…
Cutting the health budget
And while non-core pay such as allowances and overtime will be targeted in an “aggressive fashion”, according to the Minister for Health, it means we still face significant cuts in the availability of items such as drugs and medical appliances.…
Temple St warns of missed opportunity
Consultants expressed concern at some of the facilities. ‘‘Many parts are just not fit for purpose,” said Dr Peter Keenan, a consultant in emergency medicine at Temple Street. ‘‘Some facilities are embarrassing,” said another consultant, who said it was not…
Children face three year waiting lists
While the row rages over the location of an all-singing, all dancing new hospital, Ireland’s existing paediatric services are struggling to cope – and the outpatient system is bursting at the seams. Hospital consultants said children had to wait up…
Junior doctors to go to LRC over hospital overtime issue
The continuing refusal of hospitals to pay thousands of junior doctors for overtime has led to the Irish Medical Organisation (IMO) referring the matter to the Labour Relations Commission (LRC), writes Susan Mitchell. (Times) >>>
Hospital bed shortage — will we ever find a solution?
Eilish O’Regan: Many doctors have reservations. Some have cited cases where a patient is admitted on the morning of an operation only to find they should have stopped taking medication weeks earlier so the operation is postponed. Other cases which…
Blood type ‘influences chances of getting pregnant’
The study found that women who were blood type O were twice as likely to have an FSH level greater than 10 as those in any other blood group. (Indo) >>>
Mater site
Madam, – It is necessary to correct any public perception that there is overall professional support for the proposal to locate the national children’s hospital on the Mater hospital site. The provenance of the recent press release from the Faculty…
Breast screen benefits need to be revisited
Interesting to hear the new director of the Cancer Control Programme, Dr Susan O’Reilly, say that breast cancer centres here are now attracting healthy women who do not need screening. Have we overstimulated public anxiety about the disease? Perhaps we…
€140,000 overtime for doctor
ONE JUNIOR doctor received more than €140,000 in overtime payments last year, as junior doctors accounted for the top 30 recipients of overtime pay in the Health Service Executive (HSE). According to member of the Irish Medical Organisation’s (IMO’s) Non-Consultant-Hospital…
