Research into best models of palliative care

The project is one of two new projects that will look at how to best organise and deliver healthcare services in palliative care and epilepsy.

‘Each of these projects aims to provide solid evidence that will support the development of the best models of care in their respective areas’, says Graham Love, the Chief Executive of the HRB.  ‘Over the past few years, the HRB, HSE and Royal College of Physicians in Ireland have made a focussed, coordinated effort to increase the level of funding available for quality and patient safety research that addresses knowledge gaps of national priority. These two projects are the latest ones to come through that process’.  

According to Professor Charles Normand, Trinity College Dublin, who will be conducting detailed research into what are the best models of palliative care in an Irish context; 

‘We do not know enough about the extent to which better provision of palliative care takes pressure off other health and social care. Nor do we know enough about the effects of different models of palliative care on the burden on families and informal care givers.  There are a lot of important and as yet unanswered questions regarding the strengths and weaknesses of different models of care, the extent to which those that cost more achieve more, and the differences in experiences and outcomes.'

 Dr Mary Fitzsimons, from Beaumont Hospital will lead the project on patient-centred epilepsy care.

These latest awards will join two ongoing projects in Emergency medicine and Rheumatology care that have been funded under this partnership scheme, the RCQPS (the Research Collaboration on Quality andPatient Safety). To date over €1.5 million has been committed to research under this specific scheme.  

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Irish Physicians Weigh In On Sugar Debate

The Royal College of Physicians Ireland has weighed in on the sugar and obesity debate in its recently published policy paper, 'The Race We Don't Want to Win'.

The paper states that two out of three adults are obese and one in four children are obese. It cites predictions that 90 per cent of the Irish population will be overweight or obese by 2030 - which would be the highest rate in Europe - unless there is a policy change. The paper makes recommendations of how this obesity tide can be stemmed.

Similar to suggestions by other lobby groups throughout the EU, the paper draws particular attention to sugary drinks and calls for a 20 per cent tax on such drinks in next month's budget. It claims that this tax could cut cut the numbers of obese and overweight adults by 14,380, generate €57.5 million in revenue and only cost households between €35-€43 a year.

The RCPI has also called for a 9pm watershed for television advertising of food and drinks which are high in fat, salt and sugar, as children must be "protected from slick marketing campaigns for food and drink that contribute to obesity."

Coming in for the most criticism was Coca-Cola's "Share a Coke" campaign, where names are printed on bottles. The group said that although Coca-Cola committed not to market products to under-12s, almost all of the 100 most popular names of seven to eight-year-olds are included in the campaign. The group believes that this prompts children to search for their names and does not meet "Coca-Cola's own standards for responsible marketing."

Donal O'Shea, co-chair of the policy group and a consultant endocrinologist, said that, "obesity costs the state billions every year. Can we afford not to ban irresponsible and harmful advertising to children? We cannot expect that industry will take this responsibility on itself."

However, the Food and Drink Industry of Ireland said that Ireland's advertising laws were already restrictive and that "a discriminatory tax on certain food and drink products would have no health benefits and would further hit already hard pressed Irish consumers. It was tried in Denmark but was reversed as it did not change costumer behaviour."

Catherine Hayes, co-chair of the RCPI group and public health specialist, added that, "in addition to adopting a stricter stance in relation to marketing of food to children there is a need to prioritise healthy eating and physical activity, particularly in education settings."

A greater number of Irish doctors are receiving weight management training as part of their education and Hayes called on all health professionals to offer consistent, clear and helpful advice on diet and exercise from before conception, through pregnancy and in the infancy period.

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Alcohol therapy: medicinal drinking through the ages

For hundreds of years alcohol claimed a prize place among the pills, potions and healing herbs of British pharmaceutical history.

A drop of gin was once advised to ward off the plague, a glug of wine to "defend the body from corruption" and a sip of absinthe to cure the body of roundworms.

Of course all this has changed.

As our understanding of the harms of alcohol on society and the individual has grown, it has given up its place on prescription pads - instead to be superseded by advice to refrain from all but cautious use.

An exhibition at the Royal College of Physicians in London traces its use and sometimes fatal misuse by medical men and women of the past, up to the calls for greater regulation today.

Read more here on the BBC News/Health page

Doctors group labels 'Arthur's Day' irresponsible

 

 

 

The Royal College of Physicians has criticised "Arthur's Day", an event organised by drinks manufacturer Diageo, saying it promotes heavy drinking and is irresponsible.

Doctors are due to discuss the marketing initiative at a public meeting in Dublin later today.

• The criticism comes after singer Christy Moore wrote a song describing the event as an "alcoholiday".
• Diageo said it is a unique music event and the company discourages alcohol misuse all year round.

 

 http://www.rte.ie/news/2013/0923/475856-diageo-arthurs-day/