States & territories continuing to lower age for pharmacy flu vaccination
Victorian Health Minister, Jenny Mikakos, yesterday announced that children as young as 10 years of age will now be able to receive in-pharmacy flu vaccinations Victoria-wide. Victoria is the latest state to decrease the age of in-pharmacy flu vaccination this year, with the Tasmanian Government’s Winter Management Plan and Western Australia’s McGownan Government also extending…
Eating disorders first mental illness to be assigned a MBS diagnostic category
Healthcare professionals urged to upskill on ED evidence-based care In an Australian first, eating disorders (ED) represent the first mental health disorder to be assigned specific item numbers under the revised Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) scheme, commencing November 1, 2019. This development has sparked an urgent call by ED experts to the Australian health workforce…
New MBS items to improve regional & rural access to primary healthcare services
The Department of Health announced earlier this week the details of 12 new telehealth item numbers on the Medicare Benefits Scheme (MBS). From November 1, 2019 residents in rural and regional Australia will be able to access GP and allied health professional consultations through video conferencing with no out-of-pocket expense. Patients living in Modified Monash…
Improving access to treatment for Australia’s leading cause of cancer death
VIVA! Communications is delighted to have partnered with the Prime Minister, The Hon. Scott Morrison MP, Federal Health Minister, The Hon. Greg Hunt MP, medical oncologist, Professor Stephen Clarke OAM, CEO of Lung Foundation Australia, Mark Brooke, General Manager of Roche Australia, Stuart Knight and lung cancer patient, Pernille at the Northern Cancer Institute yesterday…
VIVA! Communications announced a finalist in 3 categories of annual PRIA Golden Target Awards
We are thrilled to announce that our health + wellness agency, VIVA! Communications, has been named a finalist in three categories at the prestigious 2019 Public Relations Institute of Australia (PRIA) Golden Target Awards (GTA), to be awarded next month. Since 2002, our Australian-owned, owner-led agency has coordinated a plethora of highly successful strategic communication…
NSANZ secures charity status and appoints new President
VIVA! Communications is delighted to be teaming with the Neuromodulation Society of Australia and New Zealand (NSANZ) today (Tuesday, July 30, 2019) to announce their approved charity status, and appointment of their new President. The peak professional body for the practice of neuromodulation has been recognised for its invaluable role in striving to uphold the…
New blood cancer therapy granted TGA approval
There was some promising news for the Australian multiple myeloma community this month with the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) approval of a new triplet therapy. Myeloma is a life-threatening blood cancer, not to be confused with the skin cancer, melanoma. It develops from plasma cells typically found in the bone marrow and can affect multiple…
VIVA! Communications is celebrating 17 successful years
VIVA! is celebrating 17 years in business today, reinforcing our commitment to excellence and innovation in the healthcare arena. The birthday celebrations follow VIVA!s recent office expansion of our existing headquarters in Mosman, Sydney, following an influx of new healthcare clientele. Established in 2002 by Principal, Fellow of the Public Relations Institute of Australia (PRIA)…
A pharmacist’s perspective on pneumococcal pneumonia
Pneumococcal pneumonia results in more than 77,000 hospitalisations and 4,000 deaths8 in Australia each year. Many of us carry pneumonia-causing bacteria in the back of our throats, which can take hold when the immune system becomes compromised or due to a viral infection such as the flu. Australians aged over 65 years are at significantly…
Dermatologists issuing urgent community plea to safeguard young Aussie lives
Given melanoma is our nation’s leading cancer affecting women (aged 20-to-24) and men (aged 35-to-50),1 the Australasian College of Dermatologists is today calling for early detection of skin cancer to save young Australian lives. The College’s plea is coinciding with an article just published in MJA Insight, in which the two co-authors, leading Queensland-based skin…