ViiV Healthcare announces HIVAIDS initiatives to improve access to medicines

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To address the evolving treatment needs of people living with HIV/AIDS in the poorest and most vulnerable countries, ViiV Healthcare has announced a new series of initiatives, including:

Improving access to medicines by granting generic manufacturers royalty free licenses to the whole portfolio of ViiV Healthcare antiretroviral medicinesExpanding the number of countries that can benefit from this arrangement to include all least developed countries, all low income countries and all of sub-Saharan Africa – that is 80% of all people currently living with HIV

Extending the Not For Profit Price commitment of Viiv’s ARV portfolio with governments and international procurement agencies to all of these 69 countries

Making all patents available to generic manufacturers in these countries for all future pipeline developments, such as the novel integrase inhibitor jointly under development Shionogi – ViiVHealthcare, LLC.

-At ViiV Healthcare we wanted to go one step further in addressing the HIV/AIDS crisis and supporting access for people living with HIV in the worst affected countries. As a company totally focused and dedicated to tackling this epidemic we are passionately committed to thinking and acting differently and taking new steps to expand access to medicines,- said Dr Dominique Limet, CEO of ViiV Healthcare. -This is why we have taken steps to make our entire portfolio and our pipeline available through our royalty-free voluntary licensing and not-for-profit initiatives.- ViiVHealthcare acknowledges the contribution of Shire Pharmaceuticals Group plc, which has a Master Licence agreement with ViiVHealthcare, for products containing lamivudine; and of Shionogi co-developer of the integrase inhibitor with ViiVHealthcare that have also agreed to waive its rights to royalty payments in order to improve access for these products.

Global Health Progress supports raised awareness and mobilized resources to address health challenges in the developing world, including access to drugs, by bringing local leaders together with international health experts, policymakers, donor governments, and the private sector.

Britons Go Abroad For Healthcare

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Britons go abroad for healthcare.

While Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards was out marching to protest against NHS plans to downgrade his local hospital in Chichester a few weekends ago aptly named St. Richards record numbers of Britons continue to fly abroad for medical treatment.

Last year Britons spent 60m on overseas treatments. Main reasons were lower prices, NHS waiting lists, a better choice of alternative medical treatments and cosmetic surgery clinics such as those in Marbella where many patients choose to combine procedures with a break in the sun to return home looking better on the outside and feeling better on the inside. With many increasingly concerned about the rise in hospital superbugs, more people are also choosing to recuperate overseas in a warmer climate following surgery.

Market researchers Mintel recently reported money spent by Britons going abroad for treatments will increase 150% by 2011. According to the survey a quarter of Britons would seriously consider recuperating abroad after an operation and one in eight would go overseas for surgery.

“This sector (medical tourism) is a thriving industry as a growing number of well-off baby boomers take their health needs into their own hands and pursue the elixir of eternal youth,” said Richard Cope, senior Mintel analyst.

But what happens when you fall ill abroad? One of the largest holiday resort companies on the Costa del Sol, Club La Costa, offers onsite medical care at its California Beach Resort near Mijas. Now, thanks to a new contract negotiated between the modern, high tech Xanit Hospital in Benalmadena which opened in 2006, and Club La Costa, the hospitals state-of-the-art facilities and highly trained medical staff are available to both CLC members and staff in Spain.

Richard Fletcher, Resort Director at Club La Costa Resorts & Hotels, said: Weve always made it a priority to have medical provision on site, but our new agreement with Xanit means that should any of our members need medical treatment while on holiday, not only do we have access to one of the top hospitals in southern Spain, its literally minutes away.

As for alternative therapies and keep-fit, Britons seem to be increasingly looking overseas for a better deal. Last year, Britons spent about 25m on going abroad for yoga holidays, holistic healing, health farms beauty treatments and spa visits, according to the Mintel report.

Spain is one of the most visited destinations in Europe for surgery, especially for patients who want to combine medical treatment with a wellness holiday; also popular are Hungary, Turkey, Germany and Poland.

The Role Of Mobile Technology In Healthcare

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The latest ongoing trend is seeing hospitals and healthcare providers join forces to build mobile solutions. All this is to help enhance patient care and fill in the bridges between doctors and patients in regards to medical help and guidance per se.

What is the use of mobile healthcare solutions?

Mobile healthcare solutions in the form of mobile apps provide patients with frequent information related to the disease they are tackling through their very own mobile device. This ensures that the patient is able to communicate with and get a health status check up with his/ her provider.

Mobile apps are intelligent and help provide an overall health status to the patient, simultaneously giving the care provider or medical professional an opportunity to advise disciplinary actions, keeping in mind the health of the patient.

What are the beneficial features that stand out for patients?

Thanks to healthcare IT services, healthcare providers can now create a quality checklist for each patient, this ensures that as and when the patient overshoots a vaccine schedule, it will be flagged with a due date. In other words, a notification indicating youve missed out on one your vaccinations will appear. Not only this, medicine reminders, doctors appointments, and other health related reminders.

What are the beneficial features that stand out for medical professionals?

Mobile apps like these help healthcare professionals, as they also maintain a health-record book that stores all the information regards the past, clinical tests, its results, notes from the doctors visit, contact details and a lot more of vital details. This saves the doctor a whole lot of time that he/she could now use to provide nothing less than quality healthcare.

Not only this, doctors also benefit as such apps maintain articles, manuals, videos and aid in providing education on specific chronic diseases, aiding doctors to help patients more effectively, improving the quality of life for patients that need it the most.

Conclusion:

Though mobile healthcare is catching up well, electronic healthcare software systems too are being installed and made use of globally. Both of these are crucial tools that are responsible for making health care more self-sufficient and less time consuming. Therefore, if you are a doctor and own a clinic or a hospital, be sure to collaborate with technology teams to help create a better future not only for your stream of work, but also to improve the quality of patient care. Healthcare IT services have come a long way.

Critical Health Care Regimens and Support for Pets

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Regular health care for pets is a crucial part of their ongoing development, health and well-being. Outside regular exercise and a healthy diet, your pet needs routine health care to ensure it has a long and happy life. Regular, routine health care should include proper grooming, good dental care, parasite prevention and regular visits to the veterinarian’s office. To learn more, read on.

Ongoing Veterinarian Visits

Your adult cat or dog should see the veterinarian at least annually. Puppies and kittens should have a vet visit at least once a month for the first 4 months and then as needed until they’re ready for annual check-ups. Cats and dogs over 7 or 8 years old should see the veterinarian every six months.

Your veterinarian may recommend an ongoing wellness program for your pet, including routine blood work to monitor for problems such as early kidney or liver disease. They will also look for signs of illness, possibly prescribe medication and may administer disease vaccinations.

Prevention of Parasites

Cats and dogs are both susceptible to internal parasites like tapeworm, hookworm, whipworm, and roundworm. Worms will not only cause irreparable damage to the digestive tract, they can leave your pet feeling fatigued and undernourished since they deplete the digestive tract of nutrients.

Fecal samples should be tested periodically – this is typically done at your annual veterinarian checkup or on an as-needed basis.

Heartworm is another type of internal parasite that is almost always deadly. The worms are contracted by mosquito bites, then the eggs later hatch and live in the blood vessels around the lungs and heart. It is painful and deadly, but also preventable. During mosquito season and sometimes year-round, your veterinarian will prescribe preventive heartworm health care for pets in the form of a pill.

Other external parasites include mites, ticks and fleas. These pests cannot only irritate your pet, but also cause infection. So, check your animal regularly for signs of flea bites, and treat for it accordingly.

Regular Tooth Maintenance

Just like humans, dogs and cats are vulnerable to tooth decay and gum disease. You can prevent this common problem by brushing your pet’s teeth regularly. While dogs may need daily brushing, cats are usually fine with an occasional sweep.

Another way to keep your dog’s gums and teeth healthy is by purchasing dental chews or bones designed to keep their teeth clean.

Good Grooming

Matted hair can be a major problem for pets – causing hair balls, inflamed hot spots and general irritation and stress. To avoid mats, be sure to groom your pet on a regular basis.

Remember, health care for pets goes beyond treating a disease or health problem once it occurs – it’s also about preventive action and ongoing health maintenance. So, provide your pet with a long and healthy life through ongoing grooming, good dental care, parasite prevention and regular veterinarian visits.

Mba In Healthcare Management Opens Up New Career Opportunities

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The healthcare industry is growing in every country of the world to provide customers with good quality healthcare amenities at all times. Having a certified degree in this arena can fetch you managerial positions in private hospitals. The pay is good from the beginning and you will have all the administrative responsibilities. MBA in healthcare management can be done if you are a graduate of nursing, life sciences, medicine, pharmaceutical, biotechnology and biomedical engineering. This full time course teaches you in four semesters and you will get to learn every part of the course in a detailed manner.

You can feel free to send the resume and the objectives of learning to the institution offering MBA healthcare management. They will have a look at that and send you a selection letter with the fee structure required for such education. The students will gain confidence in developing managerial skills in all the possible managerial departments and have a complete idea of management modules. Both practical and theoretical knowledge will be provided for the students to become adapted to the special environment of the hospitals and clinics. Analytical skills have to be incorporated in the students for making critical decisions and handling serious problems coming up while running the hospital in a full fledged manner. The institute will make sure to take the students in real hospitals for case studies and project work. This will increase their potential to react in real surroundings without getting shy or frightened.

MBA in healthcare management is a nice arena for specialization as plenty of hospitals are coming up every day. These hospitals look for technical experts and personnel possessing soft skills to act in the competitive market of healthcare business. The fast moving world likes to recruit personnel having immense self confidence and idea of present business scenario. The managerial skills will crop up in the students with continuous input of wide range of subjects in healthcare management in the institute. You will get an opportunity to interact with professionals already doing well in this sector of the profession. Real study environment will make you capable of utilizing your theoretical knowledge to practical use.

MBA healthcare management course generally lasts for 24 months. You can take classroom learning in renowned institutes for the wonderful experience. Fully equipped libraries with journals, ebooks and other important books will help you grasp more of this course in your short term study. Wi-fi connection is always supplied in the campus for project work and research work needed for submission of homework given to you. You will surely enjoy learning this subject and increase your chances of getting a nice job in the end. Career opportunities and placements are also provided at the end of the training.