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CDC calls for blanket HIV testing
ATLANTA —
Updated guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention (CDC) announced in late September recommend
that doctors should test all patients ages 13 to 64
at least once for HIV. High-risk patients like IV-drug
users or sex workers should be tested once per year.
In addition, the CDC said mandatory written consent
for HIV testing should be abolished. The recommendations
are part of an attempt to identify the estimated 25%
of HIV-positive US patients who aren't aware they are
carriers.
UK
Muslim women demand better coverage
LANCASter, UK
— Ever thought hospital gowns were too revealing?
Then imagine how orthodox Muslim women must feel about
them. A Lancashire hospital linen services manager aware
of these concerns came up with the idea of making gowns
specially designed to protect Muslim women's modesty.
The resulting Inter-Faith Gown covers the entire body
save a slit for the eyes. The firm producing the gowns
sees a huge global market for the innovative new garment.
A
big shake-up for German healthcare
BERLIN —
Canada's healthcare funding problems have nothing on
Germany. On October 5, German lawmakers had to contend
with an $11.5 billion CDN shortfall in their health
services budget. After seven hours of gruelling negotiations,
Chancellor Angela Merkel and the Christian Democrats
reached a historic deal with their Social Democratic
"grand coalition" partners that should address the funding
gap. The new system will phase out the traditional hodgepodge
of compulsory public and private insurance that dates
back to the Bismarck regime. Starting in 2009, money
will be deducted from workers and their employers and
placed in a centralized insurance fund. After the United
States and Switzerland, Germany has the costliest healthcare
system in the world.
CPR-savvy
spectators save soccer dad
AKRON, OH —
A man has, against all odds, survived a direct hit from
a lightning blast that was powerful enough to blow off
his pants and shoes. Russell Clevenger was attending
his 12-year-old son's soccer match when the lightning
struck. Doctors say swift cardiopulmonary resuscitation
on the part of fellow spectators is the only reason
he survived the charge, which stopped his heart. Mr
Clevenger sustained burns on 8% of his body and lay
in a coma until the following day. He awoke with no
recollection of the lightning strike, which witnesses
say also charred his hat and wallet and appeared to
exit his body through his thighs.
Moviegoers
shocked into CPR awareness
TORONTO —
In more cardiopulmonary resuscitation news, the Red
Cross placed life-size decals of collapsed men and women
at the bottom of stairwells in two Toronto theatres
last month, to raise awareness of the importance of
first aid and CPR training. The surprisingly realistic
"victims" — created by the ad agency Downtown Partners
— were labelled with a message imploring people
to "know what to do." First-aid instructors were also
posted nearby, demonstrating CPR and signing rattled
moviegoers up for classes. "The power of this idea lies
in the visceral reaction it generates within people,"
said Dan Pawych, creative director of the ad agency.
Pssst,
try our meds — first time's free
WASHINGTON —
One in three US ob/gyns admit their loyalty can be won
over with drug samples, according to a small survey
in the October issue of the Journal of Medical Ethics.
But while they admit their prescribing practices may
be swayed by the freebies, most also think their colleagues
are even more bewitched by the booty. However, the majority
of respondents said they liked to give samples away
to help out cash-strapped patients, and that their opinions
on drug efficacy weren't swayed by handouts.
Restaurants
livid over NYC fat ban
NEW YORK —
The New York City Board of Health is proposing to all
but do away with trans fats — but many of the 20,000-odd
restaurants in the city are incensed. The Board of Health
says reducing trans fats in restaurants to no more than
half a gram per menu item will reduce New York's heart
attack death toll. Greasy spoon proprietors protest
that the proposed fat ban is a clear violation of interstate
commerce regulations, and they're already threatening
to challenge the Board of Health in court.
September
11th slowed flu
BOSTON —
Researchers studying the spread of flu have come across
a "natural experiment" that demonstrates a central culprit
in the spread of the disease — the air travel restrictions
that followed the September 11, 2001 attacks. In a paper
to be published in PLoS-Medicine, the Children's
Hospital Boston scientists found that the 27% reduction
in air traffic correlated to a 53-day delay in the peak
of flu season in the US, but the spread of flu returned
to normal the following years as travel restrictions
were lifted. The authors argued that halting air travel
may be an effective first defence against a potential
bird flu pandemic.
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