Webhealth
Webhealth has been specifically developed to provide access for people to
connect with Health and Social Services. This web-based approach builds on
the strengths of people and families to determine their support needs. Within the Webhealth website is Linkage. Linkage is a
partnership between an NGO, Pathways; primary health care, Pinnacle; and a
secondary provider/hospital, Health Waikato. It offers early intervention
services with a “one stop shop” in central Hamilton and New Plymouth.
Friday, October 31, 2003
Medicating Young Minds
Time magazine feature article on the increasing use of behavioral drugs for children - "according to PhRMA, a pharmaceutical trade group, up to 10% of all American kids may suffer from some mental illness. Perhaps twice that many have exhibited some symptoms of depression. Up to a million others may suffer from the alternately depressive and manic mood swings of bipolar disorder (BPD), one more condition that was thought until recently to be an affliction of adults alone. ADHD rates are exploding too. According to a Mayo Clinic study, children between 5 and 19 have at least a 7.5% chance of being found to have ADHD, which amounts to nearly 5 million kids. Other children are receiving diagnoses and medication for obsessive-compulsive disorder, social-anxiety disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), pathological impulsiveness, sleeplessness, phobias and more." See also Exploring the Long-Term Effects of Behavioral Drugs on Youth at JoinTogether.
comment []
Time magazine feature article on the increasing use of behavioral drugs for children - "according to PhRMA, a pharmaceutical trade group, up to 10% of all American kids may suffer from some mental illness. Perhaps twice that many have exhibited some symptoms of depression. Up to a million others may suffer from the alternately depressive and manic mood swings of bipolar disorder (BPD), one more condition that was thought until recently to be an affliction of adults alone. ADHD rates are exploding too. According to a Mayo Clinic study, children between 5 and 19 have at least a 7.5% chance of being found to have ADHD, which amounts to nearly 5 million kids. Other children are receiving diagnoses and medication for obsessive-compulsive disorder, social-anxiety disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), pathological impulsiveness, sleeplessness, phobias and more." See also Exploring the Long-Term Effects of Behavioral Drugs on Youth at JoinTogether.
comment []
Mandated Treatment in the Community for People with Mental Disorders
Health Affairs article reprinted at Medscape that "explores the context within which coerced community treatment has arisen and seeks to break the impasse between advocates and opponents by placing mandated treatment within the larger conceptual framework of health care quality. The authors are all part of the Research Network on Mandated Community Treatment, a MacArthur Foundation funded project designed to evaluate programs in which mentally ill patients are instructed by the courts to get community-based treatment." [Viewing Medscape resources requires registration, which is free].
comment []
Health Affairs article reprinted at Medscape that "explores the context within which coerced community treatment has arisen and seeks to break the impasse between advocates and opponents by placing mandated treatment within the larger conceptual framework of health care quality. The authors are all part of the Research Network on Mandated Community Treatment, a MacArthur Foundation funded project designed to evaluate programs in which mentally ill patients are instructed by the courts to get community-based treatment." [Viewing Medscape resources requires registration, which is free].
comment []
Managing Psychotropic Drug Costs: Will Formularies Work?
Health Affairs story reprinted at Medscape - " Spending for prescription drugs - once the fastest-growing component of health care spending in the United States - has taken second place to hospital costs but still continues to increase rapidly. In 2002, for example, prescription drug spending rose 13.2 percent over its 2001 level, down from a high of 18.4 percent in 1999. Within the broader category of prescription drugs, however, some of the fastest-growing drugs are psychotropic medications, especially new classes such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) and atypical antipsychotics. Formularies, or lists of prescription drugs, are one of many tools that insurance companies and other payers use to control spending for prescription drugs..." [Viewing Medscape resources requires registration, which is free].
comment []
Health Affairs story reprinted at Medscape - " Spending for prescription drugs - once the fastest-growing component of health care spending in the United States - has taken second place to hospital costs but still continues to increase rapidly. In 2002, for example, prescription drug spending rose 13.2 percent over its 2001 level, down from a high of 18.4 percent in 1999. Within the broader category of prescription drugs, however, some of the fastest-growing drugs are psychotropic medications, especially new classes such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) and atypical antipsychotics. Formularies, or lists of prescription drugs, are one of many tools that insurance companies and other payers use to control spending for prescription drugs..." [Viewing Medscape resources requires registration, which is free].
comment []
FDA Approves Long-Lasting Schizophrenia Drug
Reuters Health story at Medscape - "Drug makers Johnson & Johnson and Alkermes Inc. on Wednesday said the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved sales of a long-acting injected form of its atypical antipsychotic Risperdal (risperidone) for schizophrenia. The drug, called Risperdal Consta, is the first long-lasting, newer-generation antipsychotic to be approved by the FDA, according to the companies. A patient given the new drug will receive an injection of Risperdal Consta at a doctor's office every two weeks. Risperdal Consta, which is already sold in 43 other countries, employs Alkermes' Medisorb technology, which involves encapsulating a drug in a polymer so it is released into the body slowly over time." [Viewing Medscape resources requires registration, which is free].
comment []
Reuters Health story at Medscape - "Drug makers Johnson & Johnson and Alkermes Inc. on Wednesday said the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved sales of a long-acting injected form of its atypical antipsychotic Risperdal (risperidone) for schizophrenia. The drug, called Risperdal Consta, is the first long-lasting, newer-generation antipsychotic to be approved by the FDA, according to the companies. A patient given the new drug will receive an injection of Risperdal Consta at a doctor's office every two weeks. Risperdal Consta, which is already sold in 43 other countries, employs Alkermes' Medisorb technology, which involves encapsulating a drug in a polymer so it is released into the body slowly over time." [Viewing Medscape resources requires registration, which is free].
comment []
Bill seeks to preserve families
Mental Health Weekly article reprinted at the NAMI web site - "Recent reports from the General Accounting Office (GAO) and the President's New Freedom Commission on Mental Health depicted bleak options for families seeking mental health services for a child. A bill introduced in Congress last week would use a relatively modest federal contribution to start building a family-friendly system of child services. Advocates immediately embraced the Keeping Families Together Act as offering hope to the thousands of parents who feel compelled to relinquish custody of their children in order to get them mental health care that is inaccessible in conventional systems..."
comment []
Mental Health Weekly article reprinted at the NAMI web site - "Recent reports from the General Accounting Office (GAO) and the President's New Freedom Commission on Mental Health depicted bleak options for families seeking mental health services for a child. A bill introduced in Congress last week would use a relatively modest federal contribution to start building a family-friendly system of child services. Advocates immediately embraced the Keeping Families Together Act as offering hope to the thousands of parents who feel compelled to relinquish custody of their children in order to get them mental health care that is inaccessible in conventional systems..."
comment []
Copyright 2003 © Bill Davis.
IIMHL Update is a project done in collaboration with MHCA and the Centre for Community Change International. IIMHL Update is powered by Radio Userland.