The major barrier to health reform is the power of providers or at least their assumed power. Recently the Australian Pharmacy Guild told us that 665 pharmacies would close if the Government proceeded with its 60 day dispensing policy. It was all widely exaggerated doom. Fortunately the Minister for Health stood his ground. It was Continue reading »
Health
“There are a small number of people who believe that Covid is no big deal anymore. That’s wrong," Doctors in Unite Covid lead Dr Jonathan Fluxman tells Byline Times
Each morning that I awake and feel OK, I feel glad to be still alive. Being 80 means we are slower in what we do; we also tire easily. That may be why many of us reaching 80 readily concede we have arrived at our final departure lounge. We are conscious that much of our Continue reading »
You have only to walk into Canberra’s fixed-site pill testing site to have one of the chief criticisms of such schemes palpably refuted. The criticism is that permitting drug testing sends a message that illicit drug use is not only OK, but safe as well. The messages at the city-centre site – in text on Continue reading »
Australia’s primary health care (PHC) nurses are one of our health system’s biggest assets – but they aren’t working to their full potential. A recent APNA survey tells us that despite the widespread under-utilisation of PHC nurses, recent progress in using nurses effectively has virtually stalled. If we can’t get more of our nurses working Continue reading »
Francoise Barre-Sinoussi on her Nobel Prize-winning discovery of the viral origins of AIDS, the emotional toll of her work, and her relationship with doubt.
The post Why a Scientist Must Always Doubt appeared first on Nautilus.
Contraceptive rights has become the new front in the far-right's attack on women
Age 65 is no longer relevant to define older people in a new Aged Care Act. It was introduced by Bismarck in Prussia in the 19th century at a time when life expectancy was less than 50 and few people lived past 65. It was reinforced by the US Social Security Act under Roosevelt in Continue reading »
The Albanese government is tiptoeing as if it has all the time in the world. Intergenerational reports make for great politics, but hardly ever great policy. Modern governments are bipartisan in not being big on the vision thing, long-term thinking, or even the planning thing. Reports and forecasts are good for several days of pontifications Continue reading »
The Australian Public Service Commission released the second capability review of the Department of Health and Aged Care on 18 August. While the review is not as scathing as the first review in 2014, it still sets out a challenging internal reform agenda for new Secretary Blair Comley. The 2014 capability review was highly critical Continue reading »