104 results
Posted on 17.02.2011
Who wants to save €5.6 billion? Telemonitoring and eHealth: more than fancy gadgetry
Eucomed has recently submitted remote monitoring of implantable cardiac devices as one of its four proposals to the Active and Healthy Ageing Innovation Partnership under the European Commission’s Innovation Union Strategy. Such an initiative is exactly what Europe is in need of to ensure its place at the top of the innovation ladder. Eucomed selected […]
The ‘New Approach’ – making standards even better
There are some who are claiming that the EU Commission’s formal objection to eleven standards raised at the end of last year shows that the ‘New Approach’ has shortcomings and that the whole system is ripe for overhaul. I would argue far from it. The New Approach is a very clever system of product regulation, […]
Posted on 11.01.2011
2011 Outlook: Innovate or Fail
The turn of the year brings all manner of analysis of the events of one year and predictions for the year ahead. 2010 will not be fondly remembered by many as it heralded the impact of the 2008 banking crisis on the real world of citizens and business. For those in the public sector and […]
Posted on 08.12.2010
The potential role of home monitoring devices in active and healthy ageing
As one of the baby boomers and firmly fingered with responsibility for both the healthcare funding and pensions crises, it is with a very personal interest that I look at emerging trends in care of the chronically sick and ageing. Age unfortunately means collecting co-morbidities, hopefully minor ones, and dealing with them in a way […]
Posted on 19.11.2010
Throwing the baby out with the bathwater
Health and Consumer Affairs Commissioner, John Dalli, made a typically balanced speech about his vision for health on the European agenda at a meeting organised by Friends of Europe. The high-level summit entitled ‘An Innovative Healthcare Agenda for Europe’, was held this week in the magnificent setting of the Bibliotheque Solvay, in the heart of […]
Fall leaves are dropping and hopes of reform too?
A year on and the mood music in Washington is very different. My return to this beautiful city, where fall colours are emerging in their full majesty, has seen a very different atmosphere from a year ago when the Obama health reforms were on their way and universal coverage seemed a very real probability. The […]
Can we move global harmonisation to the next level?
Proponents of greater regulatory harmonisation and cooperation will have been heartened by FDA chief Peggy Hamburg’s comments at the Advamed 2010 conference on Wednesday 20 October. She was quick to acknowledge that, in a changing world with vastly increased trade, the FDA could not continue to operate on an old-fashioned model designed for a time […]
The potential of IT to transform healthcare
Sitting on the tram this morning, flicking through my e-mails and preparing for the busy day ahead, I began to muse on the incredible impact that information technology has had on my life. Doing this sort of communication was inconceivable even when I had my first management role. My own personal secretary was highly skilled […]
Posted on 11.03.2010
Today is World Kidney Day
The prominence of World Kidney Day (11th March) brings into sharp focus the changing epidemiology of our times and the impact of modern life styles of the developed world on the demands placed on healthcare systems. The surge in incidence of diabetes coupled with extending life expectancy are producing a parallel rise in the incidence […]