Health policy

Children’s voices must be included in policy development to mitigate society’s betrayal of children – Susan dosReis et al.

2024-04-12T12:00:43+10:00Climate change, Health policy, Mental Health, Publications|

Abbasi’s assertion of “society’s betrayal of children, their health, and our future” and the appalling decline in child health is sobering. The International Network for Epidemiology in Policy (INEP) represents 24 epidemiology societies across the globe and works to tackle policies that have global public [...]

‘Integrating Ethics and Equity with Economics and Effectiveness for newborn screening in the genomic age: A qualitative study protocol of stakeholder perspectives – Didu S. Kariyawasam et al.

2024-04-05T14:50:00+11:00Ethical considerations, Genetic testing, Genomics, Health policy, Publications, Risk, Screening|

Newborn bloodspot screening is a well-established population health initiative that detects serious, childhood-onset, treatable conditions to improve health outcomes. With genomic technologies advancing rapidly, many countries are actively discussing the introduction of genomic assays into newborn screening programs. While adding genomic testing to Australia’s newborn [...]

Can evidence drive health equity in the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond? – Katy Bell et al.

2024-02-11T15:23:27+11:00COVID-19, Health policy, Health system, Patient-led surveillance, Policy, Publications, Risk|

Using scoping review methods, we systematically searched multiple online databases for publications in the first year of the pandemic that proposed pragmatic population or health system-level solutions to health inequities. We found 77 publications with proposed solutions to pandemic-related health inequities. Most were commentaries, letters, [...]

Changes in opioid agonist treatment initiation among people prescribed opioids for pain following voluntary and mandatory prescription drug monitoring program implementation: A time series analysis – Louisa Picco et al.

2023-12-04T14:13:26+11:00Health policy, Mental Health, Opioids, Pain, Prescribing, Publications, Risk|

Prescription drug monitoring programs (PDMP) are increasingly used to identify people prescribed high-dose opioids. However, little is known about whether PDMPs impact opioid agonist treatment (OAT) uptake, the gold standard for opioid use disorder. This study examined the impact of PDMP implementation on OAT initiation [...]

“It’s not a one operation fits all”: A qualitative study exploring fee setting and participation in price transparency initiatives amongst medical specialists in the Australian private healthcare sector – Hana Sabanovic et al.

2023-12-04T12:53:51+11:00Ethical considerations, Health policy, Health professionals, Health system, Insurance, Low-value care, Publications|

The Australian government, through Medicare, defines the type of medical specialist services it covers and subsidizes, but it does not regulate prices. Specialists in private practice can charge more than the fee listed by Medicare depending on what they feel ‘the market will bear’. This [...]

Determining the Impact of Opioid Policy on Substance Use and Mental Health–Related Harms: Protocol for a Data Linkage Study Determining the Impact of Opioid Policy on Substance Use and Mental Health–Related Harms: Protocol for a Data Linkage Study – Ting Xia et al.

2023-12-04T12:35:25+11:00Health policy, Mental Health, Opioids, Prescribing, Primary Care, Publications|

Increasing harms related to prescription opioids over the past decade have led to the introduction of a range of key national and state policy initiatives across Australia. These include introducing a mandatory real-time prescription drug–monitoring program in the state of Victoria from April 2020 and [...]

Telehealth follow-up consultations for melanoma patients during the COVID-19 pandemic: Patient and clinician satisfaction – Ali Al-Rikaby et al.

2024-04-06T14:51:33+11:00Cancer, COVID-19, Health policy, Health professionals, Insurance, Melanoma, Publications, Virtual Care/Telehealth|

The COVID-19 pandemic caused rapid implementation of telehealth for melanoma follow-up care in Australia. This study explores Australian melanoma patients and clinicians' level of satisfaction with telehealth.

Childhood vaccine refusal and what to do about it: a systematic review of the ethical literature – Kerrie Wiley et al.

2023-12-01T13:50:01+11:00Big pharma, Ethical considerations, Health policy, Publications, Risk|

Parental refusal of routine childhood vaccination remains an ethically contested area. This systematic review sought to explore and characterise the normative arguments made about parental refusal of routine vaccination, with the aim of providing researchers, practitioners, and policymakers with a synthesis of current normative literature.

Commentary on Kraiss et al.: Read the label – improving the applicability of systematic reviews by coding and analysis of intervention elements – Paul P. Glasziou & Nicholas A. Zwar

2023-12-01T13:13:43+11:00Health policy, Publications, Randomised Control Trial (RCT), Research|

While controlled trials establish an intervention's effectiveness, poor intervention descriptions can obscure substantial variation. To address this problem, Kraiss and colleagues extend the systematic review process with several additional steps. Although important for clinical and policymaking in addiction, the considerable effort needed will be a [...]

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