Australian health review : a publication of the Australian Hospital Association
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Handover of patient care has been an ongoing problem within the health care sector. The process remains highly variable and there is a threat to patient safety. Despite the general belief that handover transitions in patient care have become routine, not enough attention or research has been directed at improving this period of care. ⋯ The results suggested a need for process change. Results revealed a handover process which was unstructured, informal and error prone, with the majority of doctors noting that there was no standard or formal procedure for handover. The research found that the majority of hospital doctors recognised the potential benefits of formalising and computerising this process.
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To model the effectiveness of after-hours general practice (GP) in reducing metropolitan Perth emergency departments' (ED) low acuity patient (LAP) attendances and costs. ⋯ Low acuity patients form a relatively constant, inexpensive proportion of ED workloads. After-hours GP LAP services are unlikely to significantly reduce ED attendances or costs.
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Clinical Trial Controlled Clinical Trial
A transitional care service for elderly chronic disease patients at risk of readmission.
Multiple hospital admissions, especially those related to chronic disease, represent a particular challenge to the acute health care sector in Australia. ⋯ The outcomes of this study reflect the tension that exists between implementing multifaceted integrated health service programs and attempting to evaluate them within complex and changing environments using robust research methodologies.
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India has built a large pharmaceutical industry through an array of measures in support of domestic firms. The absence of product patents enabled Indian companies to become world leading producers of generic versions of patented drugs. ⋯ Key elements of the present shake-up include the return of 'big pharma' companies on a large scale and the emergence of several Indian firms that aim to become fully-fledged research-based multinationals. This article provides a description of the development and structure of the Indian pharmaceutical industry and explores questions and challenges arising from its integration into global markets.
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This article analyses the impact of the Department of Health and Ageing's brand price premium policy for some products listed on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme. The policy, introduced in 1990, allows pharmaceutical companies to charge patients an out-of-pocket expense for post-patent brands of pharmaceuticals. ⋯ This article looks at how the brand price premium policy can be exploited by global pharmaceutical giants to entrench big-name brands in the Australian pharmaceutical market and, in some cases, prevent 'true' competition from generic pharmaceuticals. This is being done through the establishment of 'pseudo-generics' that are sourced from the same factory floor as the original product.