January 18, 2013
A roundup of news on drug resistance and other topics in global health.
At a roundtable event on lowering the cost and improving the quality of US health care, there seemed to be consensus that tackling the challenge of healthcare spending has to be done by re-aligning incentives and ensuring that market forces can work to patients advantage. A compendium of stakeholder interviews and case studies to which Extending the Cure (ETC) contributed was also released during the event. [CDDEP]
This week, the Disease Control Priorities Network, a research project that CDDEP runs in collaboration with the University of Washington, launched a new website. [CDDEP]
In a new report, the World Health Organization (WHO) states that owing to a global strategy initiated in 2010, remarkable progress is being made towards eliminating 17 neglected tropical diseases. [VOA News]
A commentary published in the journal Antimicrobial Resistance and Infection Control argues for an urgent need for an international, integrated, multi-level action to preserve antibiotics.
Results from a survey of US health departments reveal that 81 percent of the departments surveyed reported difficulties in obtaining the drugs to treat multidrug-resistant tuberculosis. [Reuters]
Presentations made by speakers, including representatives from the Global Fund and the World Health Organization (WHO), at the Artemisinin Conference 2013 held in Nairobi, Kenya are available here.
In an interview published in the Huffington Post, Dr. Rory Gosling, a leader of the Malaria Elimination Initiative, talks about malaria elimination, its importance, and why the Global Fund is critical to achieving that goal worldwide. [Huffington Post]
In research published in the Journal of Fish Diseases, scientists find the presence of high levels of antibiotic resistance to a wide range of antibiotic classes in imported ornamental fish. [Oregon State Press Release]
A new study published in the Journal of The Royal Society uses a theoretical model and experiments to quantify the mechanisms of death of Gram-positive cells via enzymatically mediated lysis. [Futurity]
An article in Forbes describes the challenges and impact of using big data to encourage consumers to make healthier choices. [Forbes]
Findings from a national survey of 156 hospital trusts in England show that the country s surgical site infection (SSI) surveillance service underestimates the prevalence of SSIs and penalizes hospitals conducting high-quality SSI surveillance. [Science Codex]
Research (published in the journal PLoS One) investigating the impact of subsidizing artemisinin-based combination therapies (ACTs) in rural Kenya concludes that a successful ACT subsidy intervention consists of regular retailer training, affordable pricing, a reliable supply chain and community mobilization emphasizing patient adherence and when to seek further care.
Image via oregonstateuniversity/Flickr
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