Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme updates to start 2020 The safety net threshold has been lowered, while a new drug that provides a treatment option for patients with advanced breast cancer has been added.
Targeting disadvantage in smoking cessation A program being trialled in Adelaide will take a new approach to an old, intractable problem – high smoking rates in low socioeconomic areas.
Consistency in power of attorney laws could help prevent elder abuse The Council of Attorneys-General has agreed to work toward reforms designed to strengthen protections for older people.
Keeping Christmas safe As rates of family violence increase over the holidays, it is important to remember that Christmas is not a happy occasion for all.
Is it time for a lung cancer screening program in Australia? Cancer Australia is seeking answers about the possibility of implementing screening for the nation’s deadliest cancer.
New website to support doctors’ health and wellbeing DRS4DRS helps practitioners and medical students easily connect with health services and programs specifically designed for their needs.
GPs’ role in navigating the NDIS continues to be overlooked The NDIS planning interim report makes some useful recommendations for improvements to the scheme in future – but fails to recognise the key part GPs play in the process.
Starting the conversation about eating disorders The new MBS item numbers for eating disorders involve an assessment tool that helps GPs and patients examine a disease that is often hard to discuss.
Why do people with intellectual disability have lower life expectancy? An Australian study has delved into the reasons, and found systemic and social barriers to ‘appropriate and effective healthcare’.
New MBS item numbers for eating disorders: What GPs need to know The new items, designed to help patients with these debilitating and hard-to-treat disorders, may also draw the map for treatment of other complex health problems.