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Seegene's Seeplex(R) RV Multiplex PCR Tests Prove Effective For The Identification Of The New Influenza A H1N1
Building on its widely distributed multiplex PCR technology platform, Seegene is now providing healthcare systems worldwide with a powerful diagnostic test for effective identification of the new influenza A virus (swine H1N1).

NPR Program Features Discussions On Several Topics Related To Abortion Rights
NPR"s "Talk of the Nation" on Tuesday included a discussion with NPR health policy correspondent Julie Rovner regarding abortion-rights policies and other reproductive health-related issues under the Obama administration. Rovner also discussed a recent Gallup poll that found more U.S. residents described themselves as "pro-life" rather than "pro-choice" for the first time. Rovner noted that public opinion on abortion "tends to be countercyclical to who"s in charge." For example, when the president and the majority in Congress both oppose abortion rights, supporters of those rights "tend to get kind of riled up," she said. Similarly, abortion-rights opponents often are more vocal when abortion-rights supporters occupy the White House and control the majority in Congress, "[s]o it wouldn"t be surprising that you would see ... more of a pro-life push in opinion polls." Rovner noted that the percentage of people who believe abortion should be always illegal or always legal has not changed significantly since 1975. The discussion included Obama"s nomination of Judge Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court, and his administration"s proposal to repeal the Bush administration"s HHS "conscience" rule, which expanded the ability health care workers now have to refuse to provide services they find morally or religiously objectionable. Rovner said that a finalization of the Obama administration"s proposal on the refusal rule is expected in July, although she added that repealing the rule would "likely have little practical effect" because existing statutes already protect workers with moral and religious objections. When asked about whether Obama has lived up to the expectations of abortion-rights supporters who endorsed him as a candidate, Rovner said that the president has "tried very hard to steer middle ground on this issue, to say, really, there should be a way to find peace" (Conan [1], "Talk of the Nation," NPR, 6/9).Tuesday"s program also included a discussion on how some physicians decide whether they will perform abortions and how that decision affects their lives. Guests included Suzanne Poppema, board chair of Physicians for Reproductive Choice and Health, and John Kelly, a retired surgeon who opposes abortion rights (Conan [2], "Talk of the Nation," NPR, 6/9).
News of the day
The Formula For Sustainable Healthcare Reform
A new report, released by the Manhattan Institute"s Center for Medical Progress and authored Douglas Holtz-Eakin, the former Director of the Congressional Budget Office, makes the fiscal and political case for bipartisan healthcare reform. Holtz-Eakin addresses dysfunctions in the existing healthcare delivery system; provides solutions to expanding access to affordable private health insurance in an incremental and fiscally responsible manner; and shows how improving market-based options will lead to better consumer access to information on healthcare quality. He argues that the only way to fix our broken healthcare system is through reforms that incentivize competition and pay for quality care.
Diagnostics

National Health And Medical Research Council Funding For UQ Brain Injury Research, Australia

University of Queensland researchers will use a $2.5 million grant to help people who have suffered an acquired brain injury communicate with the world. The recent National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) funding will establish a new Centre for Clinical Research Excellence (CCRE) in Aphasia Rehabilitation at UQ, led by Professor Linda Worrall. Aphasia is the loss of communication following a stroke or traumatic brain injury. People with these communication difficulties struggle to find the words to express themselves, and may have difficulties in understanding what others say, as well as difficulties with reading and writing. The CCRE will unite two complementary, but independent, approaches in aphasia rehabilitation into a single combined approach that will optimise treatment outcomes. The centre aims to do this through the development of an Australian Aphasia Rehabilitation Pathway, working in close collaboration with speech pathologists and consumers. UQ researchers, Professor Worrall and Dr Bronwyn Davidson of the School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, will collaborate with Dr David Copland of the UQ Centre for Clinical Research and peers from the Universities of Sydney, Newcastle, Macquarie, La Trobe, Florida, Edith Cowan and Southeastern Louisiana. The centre will also be recruiting a number of postdoctoral fellows and PhD investigators over the next five-year period in order to increase research capacity in this area. Professor Worrall said the new centre provided a watershed moment in aphasia research. "This national research centre brings together for the first time, in Australia and internationally, researchers with specialist expertise in the two main approaches known to make a significant impact on recovery and rehabilitation," she said. "There is growing evidence that well-designed and focused communication activities result in significant changes in the brain and its ability to recover from injury, and that the capacity to improve continues long after the time of damage. "However, we also know that speech pathology services to people with acquired language impairment are very stretched. "For these reasons, it is imperative that the research evidence is applied in order to maximise the opportunities for effective rehabilitation in the everyday provision of services both while the person is in hospital and when they return home." UQ Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) Professor Max Lu congratulated Professor Worrall and the team on receiving a substantial grant which has the potential to improve the quality of life of people with aphasia and their families. "Like many other UQ researchers, this team will focus on the efficient translation of research evidence into clinical practice that has measurable benefits for patients and people with disabilities," Professor Lu said. The "cell to society" research program will integrate the perspective of people with aphasia, working closely with the Australian Aphasia Association (http://www.aphasia.org.au). University of Queensland, Australia


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