People often think about health in terms of physical well-being. But what about the mind and spirit? Spirituality plays a big role in how people cope with life's challenges. Yet, spiritual care in everyday healthcare settings is still catching up. Chaplains are stepping in to bridge this gap. They are specialists in spiritual care and are now working in places like ...
In the Philippines, a big push for better healthcare access led to a test run of digital health records in local clinics. From 2020 to 2022, two different electronic health record (EHR) systems were tried out in various places. These ranged from busy city clinics to quiet rural health centers and even remote areas. The goal? To see if these digital systems could hel...
Heart problems are serious, and everyone should have the same chance to get help. But does where you live and how much money you have change that? A study looked into this by checking how often family doctors send patients to heart specialists in different areas. The idea was to see if money and location play a role in who gets seen by a heart doctor. The study focu...
Opioid addiction is a serious problem in the United States. Many people die from overdoses every year. Doctors have medicines like buprenorphine and methadone to help. These medicines work well, but many people stop taking them. This is where digital health tools might help. Digital tools can make it easier for clinics to manage treatments. They can also help people...
In many wealthy nations, doctors use avoidable hospitalizations (AHs) as a way to check how good primary care is. But in places like China, this method isn't used much. The COVID-19 pandemic brought big changes to healthcare. Yet, there's not much research on how AHs shifted before and during the pandemic. This makes it hard to say if AHs are a good way to measure pr...
Migraines are a common and debilitating condition. Most people with migraines see their regular doctors for help. These doctors need to know about the latest treatments. One new type of medicine is called gepants. They target a specific protein involved in migraines. This makes them different from older medicines. Older medicines were made for other conditions but we...
Living with multiple long-term health problems is a growing concern. This situation, known as multimorbidity, affects both patients and the healthcare system. It is a significant challenge for primary care providers. They need customized solutions that work well and are affordable. In Ireland, two small tests have shown positive outcomes. The first test, MyComrade, ...
In the United States, there's a big problem with not enough mental health experts for kids. This has led to family doctors taking on a larger role in managing young patients' mental health. This shift has been happening since 2015. The focus is on how often kids are prescribed antidepressants and anti-anxiety meds. The number of kids needing mental health support h...
In Japan, the medical community is trying to figure out who is providing unnecessary care. This is a big deal because it affects how well patients are treated and how much healthcare costs. Most of the research on this topic has been done in the US. So, Japan is a bit of a mystery. First, let's talk about what low-value care is. It's medical treatment that doesn...
Some people are left out of society's main benefits. These folks, often called socially excluded people, struggle to meet basic needs. They face big hurdles in getting regular healthcare. This leads to small health issues becoming big problems. These problems often end up costing a lot more to fix later on. A study in Ireland looked at a special clinic. This clinic ...