Discover the Science of Health
The St. Vincent de Paul (SVDP) Charitable Pharmacy in Cincinnati, Ohio, announced last week that it surpassed $5.1 million dollars worth of medication dispensed to help people in need since it opened in September 2006 [1]. The Charitable Pharmacy is the only pharmacy in southwest Ohio that provides free, professional pharmaceutical care to people in need.
The water we drink comes from lakes, streams, rivers and underground aquifers. Thus, it’s very important that everyone do their part to reduce the pollution entering waterways that carry our drinking water. This is particularly important with respect to disposal of prescription and over-the-counter medications.
Most people throw out of their unused, unneeded or expired medicines by flushing or pouring them down the drain. Since wastewater treatment facilities aren’t designed to remove pharmaceuticals, the disposed compounds end up in our lakes and streams, and ultimately in our drinking water. Indeed, a 2002 U.S. Geological Survey identified a broad rand of chemicals, including antibiotics and non-prescription drugs, at low concentrations downstream from areas of intense urbanization and animal production [1].
As you or perhaps your parents get older, would you want to be at home when recovering from an illness? Would the choice between home rehabilitation or visits to a day hospital make a difference to your recovery and health? Which is cheaper for the healthcare services? A recent study published in the journal Health Technology Assessment (HTA) shows that home-based care in the United Kingdom is no worse than attendance at a day hospital for older adults [1].
In May, we wrote about the Spectrum Health Value Study, an ongoing national online survey where Americans are asked what they value when it comes to healthcare products and services. The survey evaluates 27 programs, products and services categories used by the U.S. government for measuring economic activity in various sectors of the economy. Every three months, Spectrum, a public relations and public affairs firm based in Washington DC, interviews 1,000 people and asks them to identify from the 27 healthcare products, programs and services those ever used and how satisfied they were with each. The ongoing study can be used to identify the relative value Americans place in healthcare programs, products and services, and how the value changes over time.
The most recent Spectrum Health Value Study data was used to compare answers from insured and uninsured respondents. As Congress recesses for the month of August to talk with their constituents about the current healthcare legislation under consideration in the U.S. House and Senate, these data offer a glimpse into what insured and uninsured Americans value in healthcare.
According to a new survey called the Spectrum Health Value Study, when Americans were asked to value their most important health product and/or service as they consider spending their own money, they chose access to care over everything else [1]. Respondents indicated that access to physician services, medical services at a hospital and emergency care services are their most essential and highest valued health priorities.
The Institute of Medicine Roundtable on Evidence-Based Medicine brings together leaders from key healthcare sectors to accelerate the collaborative work necessary to drive improvements in the effectiveness and efficiency of medical care. According to a Roundtable issue brief published earlier this year [2]:
While the U.S. has the highest per capita spending on health care of any industrialized nation, health outcomes lag those achieved elsewhere. The increasing costs of care are reducing access to care and constitute an ever heavier burden on employers and consumers. To address both the costs and the performance of the health care system, greater consensus will be required on what constitutes value in health care, and how to measure and increase that value.
Indeed, value is a relative term — what’s valuable to me may not be valuable to you. With policymakers looking to overhaul the U.S. healthcare system, one way to quantify and compare the value of health programs, products and services is to ask consumers and taxpayers.
