Safety concerns prompt calls for detox product regulation
A LEADING consumer group has called on the Therapeutic Goods Administration to crack down on regulation of detox products in the interest of quality control, efficacy and consumer safety.
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safety
The following articles have the tag safety
Are you an easy target?
New figures show GP registrars are at greater risk of patient aggression than their more experienced colleagues, prompting calls for better training.
GP groups need to prioritise practice safety
DOCTOR groups should be working harder to help GPs make their practices safer, academics have argued, following research showing not enough proactive measures are being taken to address patient violence. A study from the Australian Primary Health Care Research Institute at the Australian National University revealed that only a small number of professional GP bodies offered members proactive measures or practical support in managing violent or difficult patients – despite the fact that nearly two-thirds of Australian GPs experienced some form of patient aggression every year. “Talking to the different stakeholder organisations, they really do not engage ...
PPI-clopidogrel death risk fear ‘premature’
DRUG regulatory authorities may have over-reacted in warning about the safety of concomitant use of proton pump inhibitors and clopidogrel use, a leading specialist says. Gastroenterological Society of Australia council member Associate Professor Geoff Hebbard said a recent meta-analysis showing no overall increased mortality in patients on PPI plus clopidogrel was reassuring. Researchers from the Univers-ity of East Anglia in the UK reviewed 23 studies covering more than 93,000 patients, finding pooled estimates that suggested clopidogrel/PPI use might be associated with adverse cardiovascular events and myocardial infarction, but no statistically significant all-cause mortality rise. ...
Vertebroplasty: the debate for and against
Vertebroplasty’s five-year interim MBS funding is up for review. Chris Brooker looks at the controversy over the procedure’s efficacy. EXPERT opinion on the merits of vertebroplasty as a treatment for vertebral fracture is as divided as ever, following the 2009 publication of trials questioning its efficacy and safety. While these findings have led to calls for its public funding status to be reconsidered by the Australian Government, proponents remain convinced vertebroplasty is a procedure that brings relief to patients suffering acute pain. Vertebroplasty involves the injection of polymethylmethacrylate (acrylic cement) directly ...
In the dark on safety
No-one seems to know whether Australia’s health system is any safer today than it was more than a decade ago. Rosemarie Milsom examines why. WHILE collecting data for the landmark Quality in Australian Healthcare Study back in 1992, researchers reviewing the medical records of more than 14,000 admissions to 28 hospitals thought they had made a mistake. The data, which was being collected on a scale never before seen in Australia, was shocking: 16.6% of admissions were associated with an adverse event, and 3% of people admitted to hospital died or had permanent disability. Half ...
Swine flu vax may need signed consent
GPs will be required to obtain written consent from patients before administering the swine flu vaccine if the Government starts the vaccination program before the registration process is complete. Dr Greg Rowles, AGPN representative on the National Immunisation Committee, last week called for clarification on the issue following concerns that GP indemnity was in limbo with an unlicensed vaccine. Immunisation expert Dr Peter Eizenberg has also raised concerns that critical questions about the vaccine’s safety and handling are yet to be resolved. The indemnity issue appeared resolved this week after major insurers, including Avant, announced ...
GP stabbing victim recovering at home
SYDNEY GP Dr Theodore Rothonis has been released from hospital after surviving a brutal attack by a patient. Dr Rothonis was stabbed several times in the back and chest during a consultation with a 65-year-old patient at Waterloo Medical Centre, Redfern. He underwent surgery for his injuries at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, and is now recovering at home with his family. The attack has prompted colleagues to take stock of their practice safety. Nearby Redfern GP Dr Andrew Byrne said his practice, the Byrne Surgery, held a practice meeting to discuss safety issues. “It’s ...
Safety concerns spark GP innovation
A NSW GP has harnessed computer technology to develop a simplified panic button to assist doctors faced with threatening patients. The GPSafety system, created by Dr Hamish Steiner, consists of a small panic button which is plugged into the USB port of the doctor’s computer. The button is illuminated and, when pressed, is undetectable to the patient, but activates a program which sends a duress signal to other practice computers. “It didn’t take a long time to come up with the idea... but it took a longer time to implement it. Writing the software was quite easy, and it’s idiot proof,” he said. ...
Complementary medicine providers welcome scrutiny
MANY complementary medicine practitioners want tighter regulation of the industry, a survey of naturopaths reveals. Researchers from the University of Queensland interviewed around 350 naturopaths and found they overwhelmingly (88%) supported moves to fully regulate complementary and alternative medicine practitioners and products. Lead researcher and naturopath Jon Wardle, of the University of Queensland School of Population Health, said the findings showed many CAM practitioners wanted the “dodgy elements out of the profession”, and believed product shelves were currently “full of junk that doesn’t work”. He believed opposition to regulatory moves came from a “small but vocal ...