Aged care providers should be required to report staff-to-patient ratios for their facilities each quarter, a committee investigating the move has told parliament. In a new report, the Standing Committee on Health, Aged Care and Sport recommended the passage of ...
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Formula-fed infants sicker than other babies after natural disaster
Bushfires and floods have hit Australian towns this week, and those who use formula in their aftermath may be more likely to have a sick child, a new study suggests. Category 5 cyclone Yasi, which hit in the summer of ...
More »Economic value of healthcare workforce vs support out of balance: WA report
The health sector is making a considerable contribution to WA’s coffers, but this value may not be reflected in support for its workforce, according to a new report. To Health and Happiness: WA’s Health Industry Future, released by the Bankwest ...
More »Real Bodies exhibition reveals gaps in fight against human organ trafficking: report
A controversial exhibition featuring plastinated human cadavers, organs, embryos and foetuses is “illustrative of an apparent gap in the current legislation", a parliamentary inquiry says. Details of the exhibition were included as a case study in the inquiry's final report ...
More »Evidence behind diverting patients to ease ED overcrowding shaky: Canadian study
It would seemingly make sense that diverting low need patients from emergency departments would curb overcrowding, but does it actually meet its aim? Canadian research suggests there’s no clear evidence that it does – or that it’s safe. Research published ...
More »Nurses react: aged care watchdog legislation, quality standards overhaul
Nurses have welcomed the new aged care quality standards that will take effect mid next year, following a function held in Parliament House to thank those involved in their development. The Aged Care Quality Standards will replace the existing four sets of standards and ...
More »Nurses don’t expect to be thanked but deserve to be: campaign
Dear nurse, Thank you. That’s the message at the heart of a new video tribute created by the Queensland University of Technology. Released to coincide with the 40-year anniversary of QUT’s School of Nursing, the video thanks the nurses it ...
More »Euthanasia reforms to reach across Australia in coming years: experts
When it comes to changing the law to permit voluntary assisted dying Australia-wide, it’s a case of when, not if, say Queensland law experts. QUT’s Professor Lindy Willmott and Professor Ben White detailed the growing international trend to permit voluntary ...
More »Half of ICU patients face psychological disorders after discharge: UK study
Patients discharged from the ICU frequently report symptoms of anxiety, PTSD or depression – and it could have major implications for risk of death. The authors of the study, from the University of Oxford, asked a total of 4,943 ICU ...
More »Disability documentation issues linked to deaths in residential care
Information that could affect the quality of care for people with disability living in residential care is being overlooked, ignored or isn’t being shared with providers – putting people at risk of death. That’s one of the key findings from ...
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