Community Health Program Success Formula-Sustaining Successful Business Relationships Part 4 – Video

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Community Health Program Success Formula-Sustaining Successful Business Relationships Part 4
Community health program http://communitywellnessday.com/google-hangout-special.html In this video Community Health Program expert Dr. Randi Ross shared the ...

By: Dr Randi Ross

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Community Health Program Success Formula-Sustaining Successful Business Relationships Part 4 - Video

Health care must protect everyone, 'born and unborn,' say bishops

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Richmond, Va.

Virginia's two Catholic bishops have urged the state's lawmakers to enact health care reforms "that cover everyone and protect everyone, born and unborn."

A statement issued Friday by Bishops Francis DiLorenzo of Richmond and Paul Loverde of Arlington was prompted by the Virginia General Assembly's ongoing debate over health care reform during a special session on the state budget.

According to the Associated Press, one of the issues facing law makers is what to do about Medicaid expansion, which has resulted in an impasse, delaying passage of a state budget.

Democratic Gov. Terry McAuliffe and the Democrat majority in the Senate, with the support of three Republicans, want to expand Medicaid eligibility to about 400,000 low-income residents. House Republicans oppose the Senate's proposal.

"The current debate over health care and the state budget is, at its heart, about Virginia's poorest and most vulnerable people," DiLorenzo and Loverde said. "For this reason, it is one we bishops care about deeply, and are actively engaged in through our Virginia Catholic Conference."

The conference, which released their statement, is the public policy arm of the Catholic church in Virginia.

The bishops said their advocacy on the issue of health care "is informed by the church's teaching that, first, everyone has the right to life, and second, health care is a right -- not a privilege -- that flows from the right to life itself.

"This understanding transcends the categories of left and right, liberal and conservative, Democrat and Republican," they said. "It applies to all members of the human family -- born and unborn, affluent and poor, insured and uninsured."

To reach the goal of covering and protecting everyone with decent health care, the bishops described "two gaps" they said must be closed.

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Health care must protect everyone, 'born and unborn,' say bishops

Health Care REIT's Chapman retires

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Published: 4/14/2014 - Updated: 1 minute ago

BLADE STAFF

George L. Chapman, the chairman, president, and chief executive officer since 1996 of Health Care REIT, Inc., today announced his retirement from the Toledo-based real estate investment trust, effective immediately.

The company said Thomas J. DeRosa, 56, a director of the company, is the new chief executive officer, replacing Mr. Chapman, 66, who said he is stepping down to focus on his health and personal and civic commitments.

Mr. Chapman will continue to serve as a senior advisor to the company. Jeffrey Donahue, who was the companys lead independent director of the board, will become Health Care REITs board chairman.

The company, which acquires, plans, develops, and manages real estate properties in the healthcare field, including senior living communities, medical office buildings, inpatient and outpatient medical centers, and life science facilities, said the succession process for Mr. Chapmans eventual retirement had been in the planning stages for more than a year.

Earlier this year, Mr. Chapman signed a new three-year contract to continue to guide the company.

But Health Care REIT said the plans for his retirement were accelerated when the CEO and chairman recently informed the board of his intentions to step down this spring.

Health Care REIT, which was founded in 1970 and in 2013 had revenues of $2.88 billion, added that it had created a new Management Committee made up of company executives to work with Mr. DeRosa to help oversee day-to-day operations.

Mr. DeRosa currently resides in Aspen, Colo., but is in the process of relocating to Toledo.

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Health Care REIT's Chapman retires

Tanzania: Cost Effective Health Care Innovations to Improve Sector

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AS the country strives to reduce the cost of health care while maintaining quality and safety of services, efforts are underway to have guidelines that promote health workers to be innovative.

Acting Assistant Director for Health Service Inspectorate and Quality Assurance in the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, Dr Eliudi Eliakimu, said recently that what is needed today is innovations that will improve value while minimising costs for care provided.

"The global focus now is towards improving the value of services provided to clients. This takes into account the challenges of resource availability and the impact of economic downturn (recession)," he explained.

Dr Eliakimu cited that in the 2007 National Health Policy document, one of the goals is to provide essential health services that are geographically equitable, of acceptable quality standards, affordable and sustainable.

He said that a renowned expert in competitive strategy and principles from Harvard University Business School Professor Michael Porter in an article published together with Dr Thomas Lee, Professor of Medicine and Health Policy and Management at Harvard gives insight to strategies that will fix health care published in the Harvard Business Review October 2013.

"In the article, they recommend shifting focus to value of health care provided which is defined as health outcomes that matter to patients divided by costs of delivering the outcome," he elaborated.

In a recent article that was ran by the Times of India, a common paper clip was used by Dr Pushkar Waknis, a Punebased maxillofacial surgeon, to keep the skin flap in place while operating.

Not only is it effective, but also more easily accessible than the textbook prescribed Raney clips, which are hard to find in India and, at Rs 40,000 (approximately 1m/-) a box.

"The paper clip can drastically bring down the cost of the surgery," says Dr Waknis who works at Dr D Y Patil College of Dentistry and Nursing in Pune. He co-wrote a paper on this innovation, which was published in the Journal of Maxillofacial and Oral Surgery last year.

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Tanzania: Cost Effective Health Care Innovations to Improve Sector

Sebelius: Health Care Launch 'Terribly Flawed'

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Outgoing Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius says the administration's own predictions that the new health care law's online sign-up system would be ready by Oct. 1 were "just flat out wrong."

Sebelius told NBC's "Meet the Press" in an interview airing Sunday the health care website's launch was "terribly flawed and terribly difficult."

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She says that eight-week period was her low point of her tenure. Sebelius last week announced her resignation. She says she wanted to give President Barack Obama enough time to bring in a new health chief.

Sebelius' resignation comes just a week after sign-ups for insurance coverage ended, enrolling 7.1 million people and exceeding initial expectations.

Enrollment has since increased to 7.5 million as people were given extra time to complete applications.

Sebelius also defended the law's impact and said millions of Americans now have access to health care because of it.

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"People have competitive choices and real information for the first time ever in this insurance market," said Sebelius, who last week announced her resignation.

Yet she acknowledged the rocky rollout for the online sign-up system fraught with technical problems that left Americans frustrated.

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Sebelius: Health Care Launch 'Terribly Flawed'

Health Care REIT CEO, Chairman Chapman Retires

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By Dow Jones Business News, April 14, 2014, 08:37:00 AM EDT

By Michael Calia

Health Care REIT Inc. on Monday said George L. Chapman has retired as chairman and chief executive, and the company appointed two men to fill the roles.

Thomas J. DeRosa took over as chief executive, effective immediately, the company said, while Jeffrey H. Donahue was appointed chairman.

Health Care REIT said it also created a management committee comprised of several top company executives to assist DeRosa, 56 years old, in running the company's day-to-day operations.

Mr. DeRosa is a Health Care REIT director and former chief financial officer of real estate development and operations firm the Rouse Company. Mr. Donahue, also a former Rouse Company finance chief, had been serving as Health Care REIT's independent lead director.

Mr. Chapman, 66, will continue to act as a senior adviser to the company, according to a release.

Health Care REIT--one of the biggest owners of senior housing in the world--has broadened its property portfolio with acquisitions in recent periods. The company made 12 property buys totaling $277.5 million occurring during the fourth quarter, while it made more than $500 million in gross new investments during the first quarter.

Shares of Health Care REIT, which affirmed its full-year guidance, were inactive premarket.

Write to Michael Calia at michael.calia@wsj.com

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Health Care REIT CEO, Chairman Chapman Retires

Gene panels may be useful, cheaper alternative to whole-genome sequencing, study finds

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PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

14-Apr-2014

Contact: Krista Conger kristac@stanford.edu 650-725-5371 Stanford University Medical Center

STANFORD, Calif. As many as 10 percent of women with a personal or family history of breast or ovarian cancer have at least one genetic mutation that, if known, would prompt their doctors to recommend changes in their care, according to a new study by researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine.

The women in the study did not have mutations in BRCA1 or BRCA2 (mutations in these genes are strongly associated with hereditary breast and ovarian cancer), but they did have mutations in other cancer-associated genes.

The study was conducted using what's known as a multiple-gene panel to quickly and cheaply sequence just a few possible genetic culprits selected by researchers based on what is known about a disease. Although such panels are becoming widely clinically available, it's not been clear whether their use can help patients or affect medical recommendations.

"Although whole-genome sequencing can clearly be useful under the right conditions, it may be premature to consider doing on everyone," said James Ford, MD, who directs Stanford's Clinical Cancer Genetics Program. "Gene panels offer a middle ground between sequencing just a single gene like BRCA1 that we are certain is involved in disease risk, and sequencing every gene in the genome. It's a focused approach that should allow us to capture the most relevant information."

Ford, an associate professor of medicine and of genetics, is the senior author of the study, which will be published April 14 in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. Allison Kurian, MD, assistant professor of medicine and of health research and policy, and associate director of the Clinical Cancer Genetics Program, is the study's lead author.

Ford was a co-author on a recent paper in the in The Journal of the American Medical Association that highlighted the challenges and opportunities of making whole-genome sequencing clinically available for seemingly healthy people. Although that study showed that whole-genome sequencing can be potentially life-saving, the challenges involved in sequencing the billions of nucleotides that make up all of a person's DNA, and then translating the results into clinical care recommendations, is significant.

"This study indicates that using gene panels to screen for potentially harmful variants can be clinically useful in certain groups of patients," said Kurian. "It also shows that patients, some of whom had given blood samples for research as many as 10 years earlier, are willing and interested to receive this type of follow-up information and to incorporate it into their health care plans."

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Gene panels may be useful, cheaper alternative to whole-genome sequencing, study finds

Five fears about GM corn

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Health risks, environmental damage and placards featuring corn cobs grimacing menacingly: the discussion about genetic engineering is ridden above all with anxieties. In a poll from environmental organization Greenpeace, the majority of German consumers strongly opposed the cultivation of the genetically modified (GM) corn variety 1507. This maize has been approved to be grown Europe-wide. DW gets to the bottom of the possible anxieties which regularly arise when it comes to this controversial crop.

No, it doesn't. One of the biggest concerns about the introduction of genetically modified corn is that consuming it could cause illness. But agricultural scientist Friedhelm Taube asserts that, to his knowledge "there are no scientific studies which have documented a danger to health." Furthermore, the vast majority of the corn under the German Farmers' Association ("Deutscher Bauernverband") would be produced as feed for dairy cows; the remainder would be used for the generation of energy in biogas plants. Therefore, the corn cultivated on a large-scale would not end up on the plates of consumers.

What about the cows' milk, though? The TUM Technical University in Munich ("Technische Universitt Mnchen") proved in 2008 that the genetically modified material in corn could be excluded from being passed on to consumers through milk. In a two-year study, cattle were fed with the genetically modified maize MON810, which like the currently-discussed GM corn variety 1507 has the gene of the naturally occurring bacteria bacillus thuringensis (Bt) introduced into its genetic makeup. The researchers detected neither illness in the cows, nor could they find traces of the genetically-modified material from the corn in the cows' milk.

Yes, it could be dangerous for vermin and other animals. The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) examined the maize variety 1507 amongst others to see whether the protection from insects, for which it had been genetically modified, also endangered other animals apart from those which posed a danger to corn. The EU body based its statement on expert advice received from member states, for example the German Federal Office of Consumer Protection and Food Safety (BVL). According to that, the pollen of the maize had the highest concentrations of the self-produced insecticide. This successfully killed the damaging European corn borer, but also a related butterfly, the wax moth, which poses no threat to the maize. Greenpeace accused the EFSA of not adequately investigating the negative consequences of the Bt-protein on other types of insects.

For bees, researchers currently see no threat from the GM maize. Animal ecologists from the University of Wrzburg have probed the possible effects of Bt-maize pollen on honeybees and their larvae. They could not determine any negative consequences. However, this pollen can end up in the honey which the bees produce. Honey which has been gathered from the flowers of genetically modified plants is no longer allowed to be marketed as organic.

There's no definite answer yet. Corn is a cultivated plant and grows mainly in sunny and warm regions of the world. It originated from Mexico. In Germany, maize, no matter whether it is genetically modified or not, cannot by itself spread out from the land on which it is cultivated. There are no plants native to Germany with which the maize plants can successfully cross-breed. Furthermore, the corn is not able to survive a German winter.

However, agricultural ecologist Rdiger Gra from the University of Kassel gives some food for thought: "If like this year we have a very mild winter, or the maize becomes ploughed into the earth, the plants could germinate afresh."

All plants have an effect on their environment and the soil, and here genetically modified maize is neither an exception nor a larger danger, adds Gra. "Maize pollen, which is blown into streams and rivers, does however serve as basic nourishment for smaller animals." All possible impacts of the GM corn have not yet been conclusively examined.

Possibly. In Germany about 2.5 million hectares of maize will be cultivated, that covers about a fifth of the country's total arable land. Europe-wide there are more than 500 maize varieties and hybrids. So, is it possible to prevent genetically modified maize from mixing with other maize types?

Wild pigs, bees and other animals could have a hand in mixing up maize varieties, says plant researcher Rdiger Gra, who believes, however, that the flight of pollen is the biggest contamination risk: "In areas of law relating to genetic modification technology there is talk about different minimum distances between the fields. At the same time, no-one can seriously answer how much of a gap is safe." Whether maize pollen can travel for 100 or 1000 meters, the agricultural scientist says, depends among other things on the wind strength and air temperature - and has nothing to do with the type of maize.

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Five fears about GM corn

News : LIVE: Julian Casablancas and The Voidz Showcase New Material at The Roxy

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Last time Julian Casablancas debuted new solo material in Los Angeles, he played a four-night residency at the Palace Theatre downtown complete with resplendent moving backdrops and costume changes. This time around, he went a little simpler. Casablancas and his new band The Voidz announced Friday night's show at West Hollywood's 500-capacity Roxy Theatre just two days prior, and it sold out in minutes. Needless to say, those in attendance came ready to party.

What you heard (mostly new material) and what you saw (fuzzy-signal televisions, torn leather and black, stringy hair) carried the motif of post-apocalyptic retro-futurismsimilar to Julian's Phrazes for the Young but with a bit more bite. "Ize of the World"one of only two Strokes songs on the setis a good tonal touchstone for the new material. All this made for a pleasant surprise when Julian announced they'd have a go at an "old classic" and the band strung the opening chords of "Take It or Leave It," a song that has proven to retain its power and relevance over the years (the video of The Strokes performing it on Letterman for their network television debut is worth a Google).

Some may say that the golden age of The Strokes is behind us, but regardless of how you feel about the most recent output from the once (and future?) kings of rock, their commander-in-chief has always been more concerned with a different age, and what this new endeavor shows is that Casablancas, unlike so many others, refuses to repeat himself. His tireless pursuit of the Next and the New may not be popular, but he's pushing the ball forward, and for that we should be grateful.

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News : LIVE: Julian Casablancas and The Voidz Showcase New Material at The Roxy

It's Utopia Week at Gizmodo

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Utopia is one of the most loaded words in the English language. Utopia is perfection; utopia is unachievable; utopia is no place. Which is precisely what makes it so interesting. And why this week Gizmodo is taking a look at all things utopian.

Utopian thinking also happens to be the backbone of futurism. Why bother with half-measures? Why aspire to anything less than an ideal society? You may never achieve it on Earth, but that shouldn't stop you from trying, right? It's one of the most dismissive words we have at our disposal, and yet earnest utopian thinking is alive and well. It's a sign that people still have some kind of hope; some degree of faith that things can be better.

Cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin are believed to be a stepping stone to a free-market utopia. Some people think driverless cars are the key to a transportation utopia. Asteroid mining, building cities at sea, the prospect of living forever; these ideas are not new, but they're as popular as ever. And they all spring from this utopian drive to improve things in whatever special way we see as most crucial to our health and happiness on Earth. Sometimes people even advocate leaving Earth to find it.

From technological utopias to architectural ones; from yesterday's utopias to tomorrow's, this week we'll be exploring utopia in its many forms. Don't be surprised if they don't all seem like your idea of heaven; one person's utopia is almost always another person's dystopia.

You can find all of our Utopia Week posts here.

Image: 1975 illustration of a futuristic space colony for NASA by Don Davis

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It's Utopia Week at Gizmodo