Five priorities for primary care IT
Grassroots GP Dr Neil Paul outlines the five priorities for NHS IT that have been identified in his area.
Feature
QoF closes a deprivation gap
The gap between the least and most deprived areas of England for blood pressure monitoring and control has almost disappeared since the introduction of the Quality and Outcomes Framework, according to new research. A paper published in the British Medical Journal shows that the achievement of blood pressure targets in a range of conditions, including diabetes, coronary […]
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Graphnet supports Trafford diabetes centre
A web-based diabetes system from Graphnet has been installed in a dedicated diabetes centre in Trafford. The Diabetes Centre at Trafford General Hospital will be the hub for diabetes care in the borough, offering specialist medical and nursing care, nutritional advice, patient education, and retinal screening and podiatry services under one roof. It employs two […]
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Message board for patients with diabetes
A volunteer with the charity Diabetes UK has launched a message board for patients with the long term condition. The message board, Diabetes Support: talking blood sugars, has received financial support from Diabetes UK. It enables people with diabetes to exchange knowledge and experiences with other people with the condition, their family and carers. It […]
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Local IT solutions for Vascular Checks
Primary care trusts will need to develop their own informatics solutions for the national Vascular Checks programme that will begin next year, the Department of Health has said. From April 2009, PCTs must start offering preventative vascular checks to all those aged 40-74 as part of a rolling programme that should be complete by 2012/13. PCTs […]
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Silent Assassin in Second Life
Diabetes UK poster ad in the virtual world of Second Life Diabetes UK has taken its Silent Assassin campaign into Second Life. Virtual posters have been put up around the 3D virtual world to inform its 15 million “residents” about the campaign, which seeks to raise awareness of how diabetes can cause a range of […]
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UK group urges rethink on drug advertising
An alliance of nine groups representing UK consumers, patients and medical professionals has urged the European Commission to ditch plans to change the rules on the information that drug companies can provide to patients. Spearheaded by consumer lobbyist Which?, the group has sent a letter to the Commission asking it to reconsider its plans to […]
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Telemedicine supports patients on warfarin
A clinical study has shown that telemedicine can be used to effectively support patients in the self-management of oral anticoagulation therapy. The study of 1,300 patients showed that one year of telemonitoring led to good results and increased patient self-confidence. Patients on oral anticoagulation therapy with warfarin need to regularly check their INR levels to […]
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German diabetes risk management study begins
A new collaborative research project has been launched in Germany to examine how computer technology can be used to help predict risk factors associated with diabetes. Called ‘computer assisted diabetes risk management (CDRM)’ will examine how different e-health solutions can improve diabetes care. The study, which will be at medium scale, will focus on people […]
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Intellect calls for more IT in diabetes care
The trade association Intellect has expressed disappointment that the Department of Health’s latest policy statement on diabetes fails to give a role to telehealth and telecare. The DH issued a five-year update on its National Service Framework for diabetes care last week, and argued that it had made significant strides in identifying people at risk […]
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