Medical Forum WA

The Senate has tabled its report on concussions and repeated head trauma in sport, including 13 recommendations for addressing the issue, including improvements to data collection on sports injuries, additional research pathways, and increased education for the community and healthcare practitioners.

Read the full article here:

Senate report on concussion released - Medical Forum The Senate has tabled its report on concussions and repeated head trauma in sport, including 13 recommendations for addressing the issue, including improvements to data collection on sports injuries, additional research pathways, and increased education for the community and healthcare practitioners...

Between 1990 and 2019 the global number of cancer cases in under 50s increased by 79%, and the number of cancer deaths in under 50s increased by 28%, according to an international team of Chinese, American and British researchers.

Find out more:

Global surge in early-onset cancers - Medical Forum Between 1990 and 2019 the global number of cancer cases in under 50s increased by 79%, and the number of cancer deaths in under 50s increased by 28%, according to an international team of Chinese, American and British researchers.

The need to wear a mask emerged as one of the most controversial and politicised aspects of the pandemic and new research from South Korea has rekindled debate about the safety of wearing the universally recommended N95.

Read the full article here:

Korean mask study reignites debate - Medical Forum The need to wear a mask emerged as one of the most controversial and politicised aspects of the pandemic and new research from South Korea has rekindled debate, as the new COVID variant spreads, about the safety of wearing the universally recommended N95.

Researchers from the US have found that after treatment with a drug typically used for Type 2 diabetes, newly diagnosed Type 1 diabetes patients required little to no insulin.
Find out more here:

No insulin needed - Medical Forum Researchers from the US have found that after treatment with a drug typically used for Type 2 diabetes, newly diagnosed Type 1 diabetes patients required little to no insulin.

The launch of OpenAI’s ChatGPT in November 2022 propelled technology to the forefront of the collective consciousness, and the impact of the statements issued earlier this year by experts and industry leaders – one signed by none other than Elon Musk – asking for development to be put on hold, has ensured that AI is one of the hottest issues of our times.

Read more:

AI: to boldly go… - Medical Forum AI is the next frontier facing doctors. Is it a friend or foe?

Have you listened to the latest episode of the Medical Forum Podcast?

Medical Forum’s journalist, Eric Martin, sits down for a discussion about the impact of values and life experience on the creation of a new model for the delivery of pathology services with Dr Jonathan Grasko, the managing director of Saturn Pathology.

Podcast: Reinventing the service model with Saturn Pathology - Medical Forum Medical Forum's journalist, Eric Martin, sits down for a discussion about the impact of values and life experience on the creation of a new model for the delivery of pathology services with Dr Jonathan Grasko, the managing director of Saturn Pathology.

WA Health is warning residents and travellers that Ross River virus (RRV) has been detected in mosquitoes collected from the South West for the first time in two years.

Medical Entomologist Dr Jay Nicholson said that virus activity had been detected at multiple trapping sites by the department’s mosquito surveillance program, indicating that RRV is active again in the region.

Read more:

Ross River Virus warning for the South West - Medical Forum WA Health is warning residents and travellers that Ross River virus (RRV) has been detected in mosquitoes collected from the South West for the first time in two years.

Communities with poor access to mental health services are eight times more likely to be youth su***de hotspots, according to new research by the Telethon Kids Institute.

Read the full article here:

WA’s youth su***de hotspots - Medical Forum Communities with poor access to mental health services are eight times more likely to be youth su***de hotspots, according to new research by the Telethon Kids Institute.

Over the next 40 years as the population ages, real total health spending on those aged over 65 years is expected to increase around six-fold, while spending on those aged over 85 years is expected to increase around nine-fold, according to the Intergenerational Report 2023.

Find out more:

Intergenerational report 2023 - Medical Forum Over the next 40 years as the population ages, real total health spending on those aged over 65 years is expected to increase around six-fold, while spending on those aged over 85 years is expected to increase around nine-fold, according to the Intergenerational Report 2023, released last week.

Breathing is fundamental to life, so it stands to reason, our lungs are pretty important organs. This issue of Medical Forum is about keeping them healthy.
https://mforum.com.au/emagazines/

Clarkson Medicare Urgent Care Clinic has opened its doors, with much fanfare and in the presence of the Federal Minister for Health, Mr Mark Butler.

Located in Ebb Way, Clarkson, the clinic will bulk bill, be open seven days a week and accept walk in patients from the wider Joondalup area.

Read the full article here:

Urgent care pulls pollies to Clarkson - Medical Forum Clarkson Medicare Urgent Care Clinic has opened its doors, with much fanfare and in the presence of the Federal Minister for Health, Mr Mark Butler.

Researchers are calling for FIFO workers to take part in an online survey, and/or wear a sleep tracker to bed, with a light/temperature data logger placed nearby to record the conditions of their ‘sleep environment.’

Read more here:

Sleepy FIFOs - Medical Forum Previous research has found FIFO shift workers are particularly sleep-deprived and at risk of developing sleep disorders, and a new study by ECU will look at where remote workers in the resources industry are sleeping to see how it impacts their quality of sleep.

Two teams of international scientists, working independently, have successfully mapped the human male’s Y chromosome.

Read the full story here:

Male chromosome mapped - Medical Forum Two teams of international scientists, working independently, have successfully mapped the human male’s Y chromosome.

A world-class, multi-million-dollar mental health unit has opened at Joondalup Health Campus, effectively doubling the capacity for additional mental health services for people living in Perth’s northern suburbs.

Read the full article here:

World-class mental health unit opens in Joondalup - Medical Forum A world-class, multi-million-dollar mental health unit has opened at Joondalup Health Campus, effectively doubling the capacity for additional mental health services for people living in Perth's northern suburbs.

Australia will take part in an international study into community-based health care that will explore the outcomes, experiences, and satisfaction of patients with chronic diseases who are treated in GP practices.

Australia is one of 20 countries participating in the inaugural Patient-Reported Indicator Survey (PaRIS) Health Survey, an initiative of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

Find out more:

Australia joins first global chronic health survey - Medical Forum Australia will take part in an international study into community-based health care that will explore the outcomes, experiences, and satisfaction of patients with chronic diseases who are treated in GP practices.

Australia’s Heart Research Institute (HRI) has made a breakthrough 25 years in the making, identifying, and developing a new anti-clotting drug that shows great promise in the treatment of stroke.

Read the full article here:

Stroke breakthrough - Medical Forum Australia’s Heart Research Institute (HRI) has made a breakthrough 25 years in the making, identifying, and developing a new anti-clotting drug that shows great promise in the treatment of stroke.

A surge in invasive group A streptococcal reports in Australia has prompted Telethon Kids Institute researchers to call for a unified national public health response, as researchers work on developing a vaccine.

Find out more here:

Strep A’s southern surge - Medical Forum A surge in invasive group A streptococcal reports in Australia has prompted Telethon Kids Institute researchers to call for a unified national public health response, as researchers work on developing a vaccine.

WA police officers have added a new lifesaving tool to their kit, in the form of the rapid opioid overdose treatment, naloxone.

The move comes after a year-long trial, from 1 July 2021 to 30 June 2022, which saw 365 WA Officers become the first police in the southern hemisphere to carry naloxone and during that time, the nasal spray was successfully used to treat 20 drug-affected people in the Perth and Bunbury regions.

Read the full article here:

Naloxone for WA Police - Medical Forum WA police officers have added a new lifesaving tool to their kit, in the form of the rapid opioid overdose treatment, naloxone.

A Curtin University-led meta-analysis has confirmed there is a significant link between a father’s depression and an increased risk of mental health issues in their children.
Read the full article here:

Dad’s mental impact - Medical Forum A Curtin University-led meta-analysis has confirmed there is a significant link between a father’s depression and an increased risk of mental health issues in their children.

West Australian researchers from the Harry Perkins Institute have made groundbreaking progress in reprograming human stem cells.

Find out more here:

WA stem cell breakthrough - Medical Forum West Australian researchers from the Harry Perkins Institute have made groundbreaking progress in reprograming human stem cells.

Pharmacists are turning to digital technology in response to an anticipated decrease in profit with the advent of 60-day dispensing, according to the Commonwealth Bank’s 2023 CommBank Pharmacy Insights report.

Read the full article here:

Commbank’s pharmacy report 2023 - Medical Forum Pharmacists are turning to digital technology in response to an anticipated decrease in profit with the advent of 60-day dispensing, according to the Commonwealth Bank’s 2023 CommBank Pharmacy Insights report.

A chain of medical clinics in NSW, Queensland and Victoria have been singled out by Australia’s leading consumer group, CHOICE, for refusing to bulk-bill patients who did not sign up to their app-based rewards program.

Read more here:

Personal data in exchange for bulk billing? - Medical Forum A chain of medical clinics in NSW, Queensland and Victoria have been singled out by Australia’s leading consumer group, CHOICE, for refusing to bulk-bill patients who did not sign up to their app-based rewards program.

The Australian General Practice Alliance (AGPA) has called out the Federal Government for backing a decision that could potentially facilitate a commercial monopoly on prescription exchanges under the National Digital Prescribing Service (NDPS).

Read the full article here:

Government mandates prescription exchange monopoly - Medical Forum The Australian General Practice Alliance (AGPA) has called out the federal government for backing a decision that could potentially facilitate a commercial monopoly on prescription exchanges under the National Digital Prescribing Service (NDPS).

The latest State of the Nation Report, Social Connection in Australia 2023, has revealed that more Australians than ever are being impacted by social isolation and loneliness.

Concerningly, the national survey also found that despite nearly one in three Australians feeling lonely, community misconceptions and stigma are preventing people from talking about it – and in turn seeking the connections and support they need.

Find out more:

More lonely Aussies - Medical Forum The latest State of the Nation Report, Social Connection in Australia 2023, has revealed that more Australians than ever are being impacted by social isolation and loneliness.

The Pharmacy Guild of Australia has ramped up its campaign to ditch 60-day dispensing following a decision by the Government to bring forward the eighth Community Pharmacy Agreement (CPA).

Read the full article here:

60-day dispensing denial - Medical Forum The Pharmacy Guild of Australia has ramped up its campaign to ditch 60-day dispensing following a decision by the Government to bring forward the eighth Community Pharmacy Agreement (CPA).

WA has joined QLD and NSW in the UTI pharmacy prescribing ‘trial’, though there is no sense of a temporary nature on WA Health website, where it lays down the legal and clinical requirements for local pharmacies taking part, as well as patient elimination criteria.
Read more:

WA doctors fight for safer UTI pharmacy trial - Medical Forum On August 4, WA joined QLD and NSW in the UTI pharmacy prescribing ‘trial’ though there is no sense of a temporary nature on WA Health website, where it lays down the legal and clinical requirements for local pharmacies taking part, as well as patient elimination criteria.