Primary Care News and Research

Latest Primary Care News and Research

Roundup: Building more Texas medical schools; Calif. mental health care for children

Recommendations in a new draft report on Texas undergraduate medical education caution against rushing to build any new medical schools, which may irk those that are pushing to do exactly that. The report was prepared by the staff of the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board and posted on the agency's website on Monday in preparation for an upcoming meeting of their Task Force on Graduate Health Professions.

5 Dec 2012

Study explores osteoporosis racial differences in women

About 30 million women in the U.S. have osteoporosis, with low bone mass and deteriorating bone structure that increases their risk for fractures. Racial differences in the rates of detection and management of osteoporosis were explored in a study of African American and white women published in Journal of Women's Health, a peer-reviewed publication from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers.

5 Dec 2012

Intervention helps postmenopausal women relax

Applied relaxation techniques could help postmenopausal women significantly reduce the number of hot flashes they experience each day, research suggests.

4 Dec 2012

Scheduled Medicare doctor pay cut could be just a few weeks away

Medscape and The Connecticut Mirror covered the looming 26.5 percent cut, mandated by the SGR law.

4 Dec 2012

Structured hypertension care: VIPER lacks real bite

An intensive structured care program for hypertension management in primary care leads to some improvements in blood pressure control, results from the VIPER-BP trial show.

3 Dec 2012

Men should see a doctor and be proactive about their health, say UAB experts

Experts at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) say a man's tendency to wait until the onset of sickness to see his doctor is a major detriment to health because key screenings are missed.

1 Dec 2012

Retail clinics could undermine primary care patient-physician relationships

Using retail walk-in health clinics, often located inside pharmacies or big-box stores, for simple acute care problems can interfere with establishing and maintaining a relationship with a primary care provider, finds a new study in the Journal of General Internal Medicine.

1 Dec 2012

Collaborative care significantly improves depression and anxiety outcomes

Collaborative care, a model that involves multiple clinicians working with a patient, significantly improves depression and anxiety outcomes compared to standard primary care treatment for up to two years, finds a new review by The Cochrane Library.

1 Dec 2012

NCQA accredits Jefferson Medical Care - South Philadelphia as Patient-Centered Medical Home

Jefferson Medical Care - South Philadelphia, a primary care practice, has received accreditation from the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) as a Patient-Centered Medical Home, showing its commitment to evidence-based, patient-centered care that focuses on coordinated and long-term collaborative patient-physician partnerships.

1 Dec 2012

New Weill Cornell campaign to improve hypertension prevention, detection and control

The Weill Cornell Physician Organization at Weill Cornell Medical College has joined more than 120 medical groups and health systems nationwide to launch the new health campaign Measure Up, Pressure Down aimed to improve high blood pressure prevention, detection and control.

1 Dec 2012

Rural cancer survivors more likely to have poor health outcomes

Cancer survivors who live in rural areas are more likely to say they are in poor health than those who live in urban areas, according to a study in the journal Cancer. They are also more likely to have other health disorders, more psychological distress, and be unemployed due to health reasons than city dwellers.

30 Nov 2012

State highlights: Ruling on privatizing Fla. prison care expected soon; 7-year antitrust suit settled in Fla.; Calif. insurers seek rate hikes

A Florida judge quoted from Sherlock Holmes and conservative U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia on Thursday as he questioned the state's plan to privatize prison health care services.

30 Nov 2012

Infrared therapy could help prevent anal cancer in HIV-positive population

Infrared coagulopathy treatment of a potential precursor of anal cancer is effective and warrants further study as a way to reduce anal cancer incidence and mortality among HIV-infected people, report researchers.

30 Nov 2012

EHS reports addition of 78,000 new members to Central Valley operations

EHS Medical Group reported today the addition of 78,000 new members to their Central Valley operations. The growth makes Central Valley the company's single largest region by membership outside of Los Angeles County.

30 Nov 2012

Michigan State University, DWCHA receive teaching health center grant from HRSA

The Detroit Wayne County Health Authority (Health Authority) and Michigan State University College of Osteopathic Medicine (MSU) have been funded by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) to establish a teaching health center in Wayne County.

30 Nov 2012

States confront menu of Medicaid changes

A two-year payment hike for primary care doctors who treat Medicaid patients, called for by the health care law, might not happen without a struggle in Florida. Meanwhile, Kansas waits to hear back from the feds on its proposal to change Medicaid, and New Hampshire officials seek more money for their program.

29 Nov 2012

Doctors' pay growth lags behind other health care professionals

A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association takes a look at how physicians are faring financially, while a second study, this one appearing in the Archives of Internal Medicine, examines how they are doing emotionally.

29 Nov 2012

Structured hypertension care: VIPER lacks real bite

An intensive structured care program for hypertension management in primary care leads to some improvements in blood pressure control, results from the VIPER-BP trial show.

29 Nov 2012

Mental health amongst top reasons why young people attend GPs in Mid West Ireland

A recent study of primary care support for youth mental health in the Mid West was undertaken by researchers at the Centre for Interventions in Infection, Inflammation & Immunity (4i), Graduate Entry Medical School, UL (www.4i.ie). The researchers surveyed physicians in Limerick, Clare, and North Tipperary and found mental health and family conflict represented the most frequent reasons why young people attended GPs.

29 Nov 2012

Prevalence of mental health diagnoses increases with long duration of opioid use

Most patients taking opioids for low back pain or other pain syndromes are prescribed low-to moderate doses, but a substantial number are given higher doses. Although there is no consensus on an absolute limit because tolerance varies over time among individual patients, what is known, however, is higher does are associated with elevated risks for side effects, addiction, overdoses and death.

28 Nov 2012