Monthly Archive for May 2007
May 31, 2007
Using School based Clinic to Battle Disparities in Canada
From the Star Phoenix:
A new clinic at St. Mary Community School is bringing pediatricians into one of Saskatoon's poorest neighbourhoods.
The community-based clinic in Pleasant Hill -- the first of its kind in Canada -- is being touted as an innovative approach to addressing health disparities where the need is the greatest.
And later in the story:
It was tough for families before the clinic opened because children would wait three or four months to see a pediatrician once they had been referred by a family doctor, she said.
The clinic not only delivers expedient health-care services, but it does so at an accessible location that addresses transportation barriers to health care.
Here in Cleveland, a recent Plain Dealer story talked about the rise of mini-clinics in the area.
MinuteClinic began seeing patients inside the Chagrin Falls CVS drugstore earlier this month.
It's the third MinuteClinic in Northeast Ohio, joining a growing number of miniclinics operating in drug and grocery stores around the region.
MinuteClinics offer limited medical services, such as strep throat tests, flu shots and poison ivy treatment, usually performed within a half-hour.
Most of the services cost $49 or an insurance co-payment.
Staffed by nurse practitioners and physicians assistants, the clinics are open 12 hours on weekdays, and six hours on Saturdays and Sundays.
Posted by: Staff on May 31, 2007
Category: Health Disparities
May 30, 2007
Health Disparities and its Impact on the Homeless and Public Housing Communities
The Center for Reducing Health Disparities is glad to announce the next in our Works in Progress Series.
"Health Disparities and its Impact on the Homeless and Public Housing Communities."
Presented by Calvin Robinson, MHA, BS, of Care Alliance.
Date: Friday, June 8, 2007
Time 3:00-4:00 pm
Location: Case Western Reserve University- Medical School- T503. 2109 Adelbert Avenue.
Please RSVP your attendance to Sharon Lowstetter at slowstetter@metrohealth.org or by phone at 778-8484.
We look forward to seeing you there!
Posted by: Staff on May 30, 2007
Category: Health Disparities
May 25, 2007
Akron to Study Black-White Differences
From the Beacon Journal:
The battle against black-white health disparities is about to get official backing, as the Akron Health Department plans to open an office dedicated to the issue.
Akron is one of seven Ohio cities to be awarded a planning grant from the Ohio Commission on Minority Health.
With this $37,750 grant, the Akron Health Department will hire a consultant to put together a proposal urging the statewide commission to support the local office long term. Four of the seven cities will be awarded $100,000 grants (with a $25,000 local match) for staff and supplies.
The office will not create new programs, said Akron Health Department epidemiologist Tom Quade, but it will help new or existing community-based programs flourish.
Posted by: Staff on May 25, 2007
Category: Health Disparities
May 21, 2007
Why Women Get Less Heart Care
From US News & World Report:
More women die each year of heart disease than men, yet they're less likely than men to get screening tests and treatment to prevent the disease. That's the finding of a new study from Rand, which examined the medical records of 50,000 men and women enrolled in either Medicare or a private managed-care plan. Study author Chloe Bird, a sociologist at Rand,spoke to U.S. News about the implications for women.
Posted by: Staff on May 21, 2007
Category: Health Disparities
May 14, 2007
Drug Access Inequalities in World Cancer Patients
From HealthDay:
"Progress in medical treatments has meant that over half of the patients diagnosed with cancer will now be 'cured' or die from other causes. However, these benefits are only realized once the drugs get to the patients," study co-author Dr. Bengt Jonsson, director of the Center for Health Economics at the Stockholm School of Economics, said in a prepared statement.
"Our report highlights that in many countries new drugs are not reaching patients quickly enough and that this is having an adverse impact on patient survival. Where you live can determine whether you receive the best available treatment or not. To some extent, this is determined by economic factors, but much of the variation between countries remains unexplained," Jonsson said.
Posted by: Staff on May 14, 2007
Category: Access to Care; Cancer Drugs; Health Disparities
May 08, 2007
U.S. Hospitals Charge Uninsured More
From Reuters:
U.S. hospitals are charging uninsured patients about two-and-a-half times more than those with health insurance, a mark-up that has been steadily rising despite pressure to level prices, a study released on Tuesday found.
In 2004, the most recent year for which data was available, hospital patients without health insurance and others who pay for medical care out of their own pockets were charged an average 2.57 times more than those with health insurance, according to the study published in the May-June issue of the journal Health Affairs.
We mentioned this overcharging back in January when a hospital chain settled their over-charging lawsuit.
Posted by: Staff on May 08, 2007
Category: Health Disparities
May 03, 2007
Community Based Participatory Research
The Case Center for Reducing Health Disparities is happy to announce the next in our Works in Progress Series:
"Theoretical and Operational Consideration on Community Based Participatory Research."
Presented by Mieko K. Smith, Ph.D., Professor, Director, Biomedical and Health Institute at Cleveland State University.
Date: Friday, May 11, 2007
Time: 3-4 pm
Location: Case Western Reserve University- Medical School- T503 2109 Adelbert Avenue.
Please RSVP your attendance to Sharon Lowstetter at slowstetter@metrohealth.org or by phone 778-8484. We look forward to seeing you there!
Posted by: Staff on May 03, 2007
Category: Works in Progress
May 01, 2007
Many U.S. Immigrants Can't Read Prescription Labels
From HealthDay:
"Imagine, as an English speaker, picking up a prescription with a label in Chinese -- you have no idea what it says. Many New York immigrants face such high-risk gaps in our health-care services when presented with a medication bottle in English," lead author Linda Weiss, a senior research associate at the a New York Academy of Medicine, said in prepared statement.
Her team randomly surveyed 200 of the 2,186 licensed pharmacies in New York City in 2006 and found that 88 percent reported serving "limited English proficient" (LEP) customers daily. However, only 34 percent reported translating prescription labels daily, even though 80 percent said they could do it. Another 26 percent of the pharmacies said they never translate labels.
The study authors noted that about 25 percent of New Yorkers cannot speak or read English well, and 46 percent speak a language other than English.
Posted by: Staff on May 01, 2007
Category: Health Disparities