Quesso

Mental health warning for UK prisons

Que — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 10:12:16 +0000

Out of Sight, Out of Mind from centre-right thinktank Policy Exchange raises sweeping concerns about the standard of mental healthcare in the prison system.

It says coordination is poor, not enough staff are being employed and that current training is insufficient “or in some cases not even compulsory”.

And the report blames low public awareness for the gap between mental healthcare in the wider community and its provision in prisons.

Value Health Plans to Buy Diagnostek In Stock Swap

Que — Sat, 07 Jun 2008 10:07:31 +0000

Value Health Inc. said today that it had agreed to buy Diagnostek Inc., a prescription drug benefits manager, for stock currently valued at about $500 million.

By buying Diagnostek, which is based in Albuquerque, N.M., Value Health expects to reduce costs and increase sales in order to better compete in the increasingly aggressive market for pharmaceutical benefits managers. The managers negotiate lower drug prices with drug manufacturers for health insurance plans.

Gum disease link to cancer

Que — Thu, 29 May 2008 12:08:07 +0000

According to a new study from the U.K. which included data on nearly 50,000 men. Researchers say those with a history of gum disease had small, but significant increased risks for cancers of the lung, kidney, pancreas, and white blood cells. Experts say this needs to be confirmed with further research, but suggest gum disease might be either an indication of a weakened immune system or directly affect cancer risk.

Finding a proper balance between complementary and traditional medicine for cancer treatment has been a topic of debate for decades. Now a new study is shedding light on how antioxidants treatment impacts chemo and radiation. Researchers at the Naval Medical Center in San Diego analyzed several studies that looked at antioxidant use during cancer treatment.

Robin Hood Foundation Raises More Than $56.5 Million

Que — Wed, 28 May 2008 12:49:28 +0000

The Robin Hood Foundation’s annual gala, which collects millions of dollars from hedge-fund managers and gives it to New York charities, raised more than $56.5 million, the organizers estimated last night.

Support for Private Education in Rwanda

Que — Fri, 23 May 2008 15:38:48 +0000

IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, will support lending to schools and education services providers in Rwanda, in partnership with Banque Rwandaise de Développement. This is the first initiative of its kind in Rwanda, which is designed to help improve the business environment for private education.

IFC will invest up to 2.6 billion Rwanda francs (about $ 4.8 million) in a risk-sharing facility, which will enable the bank to increase its education portfolio to 7 billion francs (about $ 13 million). IFC is also designing a comprehensive advisory program to help strengthen the financial, management, and educational capacities of private schools and develop an independent provider of education services. IFC will also provide advisory services to help the bank build capacity to conduct due diligence of educational institutions and monitor its portfolio.

MyCareTeam Announces Diabetes Software Integration with Google Health

Que — Fri, 23 May 2008 15:35:25 +0000

MyCareTeam, Inc., a leading vendor of Internet-based diabetes management software, has announced an integrated service on the Google Health platform. Google launched Google Health today at a media event at its headquarters in Mountain View, CA. The new product allows users to store, organize, and manage their medical records online. MyCareTeam’s diabetes management software, MCT-Diabetes, integrated with Google Health, will allow consumers to securely transfer diabetes related information to and from their Google Health accounts.

“We are very excited about the opportunity to integrate our diabetes product with Google Health.” said Jim Mingle, CEO of MyCareTeam. “Our users can now safely transfer their glucose readings, lab values, medication, and other information from our software into their Google Health accounts.”

Emissions auctions to cost billions

Que — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 14:51:00 +0000

Forcing German industry and energy companies to buy permits for their greenhouse gas emissions from 2013 at auction will drive up energy prices and burden power customers, energy users’ group VIK said on Tuesday.

VIK put the possible cost to German industry of auctioning permits to emit carbon dioxide, the most prevalent greenhouse gas, at well over 100 billion euros ($155.8 billion) in the years between 2012 and 2020.

“There will not be one more tonne of CO2 emissions saved through such an auction,” it said in a statement. “But power prices would be rising further for consumers.”

UN sets up food crisis task force

Que — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 10:12:23 +0000

The United Nations is to set up a task force to tackle the global food crisis.

The UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon, said the rise in food prices around the world had turned into a challenge of global proportions.

The task force, chaired by Mr Ban, will be made up of the heads of UN agencies and the World Bank.

It will explore both emergency and long-term measures to tackle the crisis caused by the recent sharp rise in the price of staple foods such as wheat.

Antioxidant Therapy Shows Early Promise Against Alzheimer’s Disease

Que — Sun, 27 Apr 2008 10:50:49 +0000

New research demonstrates that curbing harmful antioxidant processes in the brain’s vasculature can reverse some of the cognitive decline associated with Alzheimer’s disease. A natural enzyme of the immune system — NADPH oxidase — has been found to have toxic side effects, producing free radicals in the brains of mice. Identification of the enzyme’s role in dementia might translate into a new drug target for Alzheimer’s disease in humans, according to new findings published in a recent issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. After the offending enzyme was genetically “switched off,” mice with a type of dementia mimicking Alzheimer’s regained important cognitive abilities, even though the amount of Alzheimer’s-linked amyloid plaques in their brains remained unchanged. These results suggest that the enzyme independently influences the progression of dementia.

The researchers, led by Dr. Costantino Iadecola, the George C. Cotzias Distinguished Professor of Neurology and Neuroscience at Weill Cornell Medical College and chief of the Division of Neurobiology at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center, also genetically engineered mice that produced a mutated form of NADPH enzyme that did not produce the toxic free radicals.

The result: The formerly “demented” mice regained their healthy, exploratory behaviors, just as non-demented mice do. According to the authors, the findings suggest that neurological damage from Alzheimer’s may not be permanent and might even be reversed through antioxidant treatment.

Fuel poverty initiative will only scratch the surface, says Help the Aged

Que — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 14:42:17 +0000

Responding to the announcement of a deal between the Government and energy providers to help households with fuel bills, Kate Jopling, Head of Public Affairs at Help the Aged, says:
‘While it is promising that the Government and energy providers are working together to try to alleviate fuel poverty, this initiative will only just begin to scratch the surface. We cannot ignore the fact that fuel poverty is actually increasing and nearly three million households in England are struggling to heat their homes.
‘The Government cannot shirk its own responsibility to tackle this serious and growing problem. It must stop relying on ‘quick wins’ to resolve a long-term problem. It must develop a far more effective and comprehensive programme of domestic energy efficiency, to simultaneously end suffering from fuel poverty and tackle climate change.
‘Help the Aged has joined forces with Friends of the Earth to launch a legal challenge to the Government to ensure it is held to its legal obligation to eradicate fuel poverty by 2016.’
www.helptheaged.org.uk