Category Archives: consumer health information

Has cancer screening been oversold? Cancer Council responds

October 22, 2009 – 6:56 pm

The New York Times, as previously mentioned, is reporting a shift in screening policy at the the American Cancer Society, which is now saying that the benefits of early detection of  many cancers, especially breast and prostate, have been “overstated”.
“We don’t want people to panic,” Dr Otis Brawley, the Society’s chief medical officer told the [...]

By Croakey | Also posted in Media-related issues, cancer, screening | Tagged , , | Comments (2)

Where does the TGA stand on Pfizer campaign?

October 13, 2009 – 9:04 pm

As mentioned recently, Pfizer is hitting the consumer and medical media in the interests of its combination heart pill, Caduet.
Regular readers may remember that earlier this year Michele Kosky, executive director of the Health Consumers’ Council in WA, asked the TGA and Medicines Australia to investigate whether the consumer advertisement breaches the ban on direct-to-consumer [...]

By Croakey | Also posted in Media-related issues, TGA, adverse events, health & medical marketing | Tagged , , , , | Comments (3)

Medicare Select: the best option for consumers

October 13, 2009 – 7:03 pm

And the debate about Medicare Select continues…
Vern Hughes, the Secretary of the National Federation of Parents Families and Carers, has joined the discussion which has been going on here, here, here, and here at Croakey and also at Inside Story.
He writes:
“The National Federation of Parents, Families and Carers was one of just two organisations out [...]

By Croakey | Also posted in health reform | Tagged , , | Comments (4)

Hospital staff harness new media for public protest

October 9, 2009 – 12:37 pm

The staff at Katoomba Hospital (in the Blue Mountains, west of Sydney) – or at least some of them – have clearly had enough. In the cyberworld equivalent of taking to the streets, they’ve launched an anonymous blog to tell the public what their bosses won’t let them speak about in public.
You could see it [...]

By Croakey | Also posted in Hospitals, Media-related issues | Comments (5)

A message for the Feds on bowel cancer screening…

October 7, 2009 – 8:24 am

Further to the recent Croakey posts on a new study evaluating the initial impact of bowel cancer screening, one of the study’s authors has sent in her take on the results.
Dr Sumitra Ananda, a cancer specialist in Melbourne, is hoping the Federal Government acts on the new findings.
She writes:

“The recent report in the MJA [...]

By Croakey | Also posted in Health inequalities, Journal articles, cancer, screening | Comments (0)

Are ginkgo enthusiasts being conned?

October 5, 2009 – 12:56 pm

The Ginkgo biloba or Maidenhair tree is a beautiful creature, and I’ve several growing myself.
But the gardener’s delight may be a patient’s peril – recent tests suggest some ginkgo products in Australia have been adulterated and that consumers are being conned.

Dr Ken Harvey, Adjunct Senior Research Fellow in the School of Public Health at [...]

By Croakey | Also posted in TGA, complementary medicines | Tagged , , | Comments (8)

Is your health care safe and up to scratch? How would you know?

September 30, 2009 – 11:50 am

How do we know if our general practice/hospital/dentist/aged care service is providing safe and quality care?  At the moment, it’s almost impossible to answer this question in any objective manner.
But at least we now have some idea of what sort of questions we should be asking, thanks to a report released this week by [...]

By Croakey | Also posted in Hospitals, adverse events, mental health, primary health care, quality and safety of health care, surgery | Tagged , , | Comments (1)

More on Pfizer’s consumer advertising campaign “that isn’t”

September 28, 2009 – 3:38 pm

The medical magazines, Australian Doctor and Medical Observer, have been carrying bright red, full-page advertisements from Pfizer, advising doctors that “patients will soon be asking about their suitability for combination heart medications”.
The advertisement includes a sample from a consumer advertising campaign that advises readers to talk to their doctor about a combination heart pill if [...]

By Croakey | Also posted in Media-related issues, health & medical marketing, health regulation, pharmaceutical industry | Comments (1)

Some more questions about swine flu and influenza vaccination – from the Cochrane Collaboration

September 25, 2009 – 1:17 pm

For those who would like to dig deeper into the issues surrounding swine flu and vaccination, it’s worth having a read of this interview with Dr Tom Jefferson, a medically trained epidemiologist who has long experience as a reviewer for the Cochrane Collaboration, examining the evidence around seasonal influenza vaccines.
The interview, conducted by Maryann [...]

By Croakey | Also posted in Cochrane Collaboration, influenza, pharmaceutical industry, swine flu | Tagged , , , | Comments (5)

Why you should talk to your doctor about swine flu vaccination: consumer group

September 25, 2009 – 11:32 am

Following the previous post about informed consent and swine flu vaccination, I thought it might be useful to have a consumer organisation’s view on the issues.
Carol Bennett, executive director of the Consumers Health Forum, is encouraging the public to discuss the pros and cons of vaccination with their health provider, rather than relying on [...]

By Croakey | Also posted in adverse events, influenza, quality and safety of health care, swine flu | Tagged , , , | Comments (1)