March 16, 2010
The medicalization of life
Here’s a question that’s not being asked in the healthcare debate: How much medical care do we want in our lives? It’s something we should be discussing. (Los Angeles Times)
Monthly Archives: March 2010
March 16, 2010
What would you do to save your dying child?
To save her son Henry, Laurie Strongin received 353 IVF injections, but couldn’t conceive a genetic match. Today, she supports controversial stem-cell technology. (The Globe and Mail)
March 16, 2010
New Issue of Trends in Pharmacological Sciences is Now Available
Trends in Pharmacological Sciences (Volume 3, Issue 3, March 2010) is now available by subscription only. Articles include: “Impact of Poor-quality Medicines in the ‘Developing World’” by Paul N. Newton, Michael D. Green, and Facundo M. Fernández; 99-101.
March 16, 2010
New Issue of Journal of the American Medical Association is Now Available
JAMA (Vol. 303; No. 9; March 3, 2010) is now available by subscription only. Articles include: “The Healthcare Innovation Zone: A Platform for True Reform” by Darrell G. Kirch, 874-875. “Treatment Given High Priority in New White House Drug Control … Read More
March 16, 2010
Event: Conference on Life and Choice in the Abortion Debate
Event: Open Hearts, Open Minds, and Fair Minded Words- A Conference on Life and Choice in the Abortion Debate October 15 & 16, 2010 at Princeton University This event is sponsored by the University Center for Human Values & James … Read More
March 16, 2010
Event: Assisted Suicide Seminar
The White Rose Campaign Assisted Suicide Seminar Saturday, June 5, 2010 at the Radisson Hotel Gateway- Seattle-Tacoma, Washington 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. Cost: $99.00 Regular, $69.00 for Students or People with disabilities Room rate: $99.00 per night by calling … Read More
March 15, 2010
Healthcare overhaul will pass: Axelrod
A senior White House adviser said on Sunday that President Barack Obama would get the votes necessary to pass a sweeping overhaul of the healthcare system. (Reuters)
March 15, 2010
Embryonic stem cell research stalled despite Obama’s try at lifting restrictions
One year after President Obama announced he was lifting his predecessor’s controversial restrictions on federal funding for human embryonic stem cell research, some scientists are complaining that so far the new policy is — ironically — more of a burden … Read More
March 15, 2010
Project to get transplant organs from ER patients raises ethics questions
In the hope of expanding a controversial form of organ donation into emergency rooms around the United States, a federally funded project has begun trying to obtain kidneys, livers and possibly other body parts from car-accident victims, heart-attack fatalities and … Read More
March 15, 2010
British fertility clinic raffling human egg
A British fertility clinic said Sunday it was raffling off a human egg this week to promote its “baby profiling” service, which it insists is legal under UK law. (AFP)
March 15, 2010
Scots close to medicine’s Holy Grail … a true blood substitute
An artificial substitute for human blood – the Holy Grail for A&E departments and battlefield surgeons – could soon be a reality, thanks to the pioneering work of Scottish laboratories. (Herald Scotland)
March 15, 2010
When DNA means do not ask
When the human genome was first sequenced back in 2001, certainly we all hoped that it might lead to a transformation in healthcare. Actually, what it’s really led to is shopping: Close’s celebrity endorsement is the latest mutation in an … Read More
March 15, 2010
IVF clinics told to clamp down on test tube multiple births
IVF clinics are facing an official clampdown on creating test-tube twins and triplets because of growing fears about their health and the cost to the NHS of caring for them. (Telegraph)
March 15, 2010
More than Sparrows, Less than Angels
Respect for intrinsic human dignity encompasses an acknowledgment that while we human beings are of inestimable value, we are not of infinite value. We are worth more than sparrows but less than the angels. We are made in the image … Read More
March 14, 2010
New Issue of Cell Stem Cell is Now Available
Cell Stem Cell (Volume 6, Issue 3, March 2010) is now available by subscription only. Articles include: “NOTCHing an Arrow at Cord Blood: Translating Stem Cell Knowledge into Clinical Practice” by Trista E. North and Wolfram Goessling, 186. “Stem Cell … Read More
March 12, 2010
Promise of work that led to kidney theft
The thick scar on Mohammad Salim’s side is a permanent reminder of the kidney stolen from his body. But deeper wounds show in his eyes. Salim, a poor labourer from the northern Indian town of Meerut, was lured to Delhi … Read More
March 12, 2010
BioSecurity: How synthetic biology is changing the way we look at biology and biological threats
Synthetic biology is ushering in a new era of biology that is no longer contained within the walls of laboratories in universities and private companies. This movement is known as do-it-yourself bio (DIYbio) and has been compared with models familiar … Read More
March 12, 2010
What happens when modern reproductive technology meets son preference?
In the United States, “missing girls” usually refers to runaways or kidnap victims. In the Asia-Pacific region – especially China and India – the phrase takes on a different meaning. There, tens of millions of girls have died as young … Read More
March 12, 2010
Medicine’s Future Could Lie in Each Patient’s Genome
Two separate scientific teams announced this week that they had successfully sequenced individual genomes to pinpoint precise genetic causes of illness — breakthroughs that open the door to a future of individualized, genomics-based medicine. (US News and World Report)
March 12, 2010
Quebec to provide free fertility treatments
Free fertility treatments for Quebecers who want a test-tube baby are to be delivered just in time for this year’s St. Jean Baptiste celebrations. (Montreal Gazette)
March 11, 2010
A patient’s death prompts a doctor to assess ‘Do Not Resuscitate’ orders
The emergency department is always noisy, but sudden screams from a staffer still get attention. The triage nurse is yelling, “Not breathing, had vitals at triage and just croaked,” as she runs toward us pushing a wheelchair. In it, a … Read More
March 11, 2010
Physicians click their way to better prescriptions
Is it time for all community-based doctors to turn to e-prescribing to cut down on the number of medication errors? According to Rainu Kaushal and colleagues from the Weill Cornell Medical College in New York, electronic prescriptions can dramatically reduce … Read More
March 11, 2010
Q&A: Electronic medical records
The doctors’ union claims that England’s medical records database is being pushed through too fast, with details sometimes being uploaded without patients’ knowledge. But those behind the new system say many patients are astonished that hospital doctors still do not … Read More
March 11, 2010
Russia: Human Cloning Ban Extended
The State Duma has renewed a temporary ban on human cloning in Russia, Interfax reported Wednesday. The bill, approved in a third and final reading Wednesday, sets a ban on cloning until a federal law can be enacted to regulate … Read More
March 11, 2010
Possible end to ethics network ‘a real mistake’
A provincial network that has helped patients, health-care workers and health regions with difficult medical ethics questions could fold because of funding cuts. Supporters say Alberta Health should reinstate funding to the Provincial Health Ethics Network. They say the loss … Read More
