Gaming – the future of health: August 2, 2015
Who are Australia’s biggest gamers? Perhaps 18-25 year old men, or teenage boys? According to Nick Bowditch, Founder of The Mentoring Club, and the only Australian to have worked for both Twitter and Facebook, our nation’s biggest gamers are mothers! Although somewhat surprising, an IGEA Digital Australia report released in 2014 revealed 81 per cent…
A mother’s renewed appeal to the government to save her young daughter’s life – July 31, 2015
On December 1, 2014, the small aHUS Australian community celebrated with the PBS listing of Soliris (eculizumab) through Section 100: Highly Specialised Drugs Program for those who meet certain criteria, and the earmarking of $63 million in treatment funding over the next four years. Since then, our celebrations have begun to sour, as aHUS patients currently accessing…
HIV patient reportedly in remission more than a decade post- treatment – July 31, 2015
In what has been dubbed the “world’s first report of long-term remission from HIV in a child,” an 18-year old French woman is now in remission from HIV, despite ceasing anti-viral medicines 12 years ago, when six years of age. Born with HIV transmitted by her mother in 1996, she was placed on four anti-viral…
New research reveals more than 95 per cent of the world’s population is ill: The Lancet – Thurs, July 9, 2015
New research published in the prestigious medical journal, The Lancet reveals that each year, more than 95 per cent of world’s population is ill. The Global Burden of Disease study, which examined 301 acute and chronic diseases and injuries across 188 countries from 1990 to 2013, found that as we are living longer and surviving…
Sloppy data entry putting childcare benefits for vaccinated kids at risk – Wednesday, July 8, 2015
Simple data entry errors by GP practice staff may be compromising the integrity of Australian Childhood Immunisation Register, according to a recent audit performed by the Department of Human Services Although generally well-managed, with Register data accuracy rates nudging 98 per cent, clerical errors could be putting families who choose to vaccinate their children, at…
Australians returning & disposing 600 tonnes of unwanted medicines each year – June 5, 2015
A study published in Australian Prescriber on June 1, 2015 has found more than $2 million of public money is wasted each year with the return of more than 600 tonnes of medicines, many of which are still within their expiry dates, through the National Return and Disposal of Unwanted Medicines Program, since its inception…
Redefining market access success with Reimbursography – June 5, 2015
There’s no better feeling when running a strategic health + wellness communications agency than to identify a need, and be able to deliver a solution. We get to do that today with the introduction of Reimbursography – a strategic communications programme that leverages country-specific access insights to shape the value context for reimbursement success. Reimbursography…
Melanoma patients not attending recommended check-ups – June 4, 2015
New study data released by Australia’s largest melanoma research and treatment centre, Melanoma Institute Australia, reveals many early-stage melanoma patients are not fulfilling the recommended medical check-ups within the first year post- diagnosis. According to an article published in Australian Doctor (June 3, 2015), “only 34 per cent of stage I patients and 14 per…
PBAC advises biosimilar medicines suitable for substitution at pharmacy level – June 2, 2015
In late April, 2015, The Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee (PBAC) pledged to consider marking biosimilar medicines equivalent to originator medicines, to which they are referenced against in Australia. This process would involve “a flagging”, whereby the biosimilar would be compared to the originator, in order to identify any significant differences in clinical efficacy or safety.…