The economics and the politics behind the major healthcare problems affecting men, such as cardiovascular disease, cancer, obesity and depression, aren't receiving the attention they deserve. It has been the rule that women make health decisions for themselves and also for their male partners and their children. In contrast, most men have a more casual attitude toward their care: "if it ain't broke, don't fix it."
Grace seems an unlikely acronym for a study of acute coronary events, but given the findings of the Global Registry of Acute Coronary Events published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, the name may be apropos.
Worldwide, 388 million people will die from chronic diseases in the next 10 years. Chronic diseases account for about 75% of all healthcare costs. Clearly, disease management and prevention is sorely needed, but it's been a struggle to change the behaviors of large groups of people. A number of programs are finding success using non-traditional methods.
LOW-PREVALENCE rheumatoid arthritis (RA) has not gained attention equal to that of more common chronic diseases, but it has earned a spot on the list of complex diseases ripe for disease management.
LOW-PREVALENCE rheumatoid arthritis (RA) has not gained attention equal to that of more common chronic diseases, but it has earned a spot on the list of complex diseases ripe for disease management.
Disease management as we now define it may be on its last legs, though no one knows it yet. The Disease Management Purchasing Consortium has noticed that the savings in all but a few diseases doesn't offset the costs, and nowhere does it generate the level of return on investment (ROI) that some people think they are getting.
The centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) says that 23% of Medicare beneficiaries have five or more chronic conditions but account for 68% of costs-not quite the 80/20 rule. And they tend to see many different doctors-about 14 a year with almost 40 office visits-and take as many as 10 medications at a time, according to Partnership for Solutions.
Last year acknowledged the 25th year since AIDS was first recognized, and to coincide with that anniversary, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) revised its recommendations for HIV testing for adults, adolescents and pregnant women in healthcare settings. The new guidelines remove the onus of determining who is at high risk for HIV infection and makes testing a routine part of medical care for all patients between ages 13 and 64 years.
Last year acknowledged the 25th year since AIDS was first recognized, and to coincide with that anniversary, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) revised its recommendations for HIV testing for adults, adolescents and pregnant women in healthcare settings. The new guidelines remove the onus of determining who is at high risk for HIV infection and makes testing a routine part of medical care for all patients between ages 13 and 64 years.
CDC's revised HIV recommendations that all people aged 13 to 64 should have routine HIV testing may be effective in the public health setting, but might not be as effective in the privat setting, according to one expert.
