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Broken Bones Heal Faster With Drugs
Bone fractures might heal faster if the patient is injected with medications. This is the outcome of a unique study of 102 women with wrist fractures.

Coventry University First In UK To Appoint Australian Paramedic As Visiting Professor In Pre-hospital Care
Dr Peter O"Meara, Associate Professor in Pre-hospital Care at Charles Sturt University in Australia, is the first non-UK paramedic to be appointed to a three year visiting Professor post in the UK in the subject of Pre-Hospital Care.
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Calif. Budget Cuts Threaten Prenatal Health Program For Women, Teens
County public health officials in California say proposed budget cuts could hurt or end the state"s Maternal, Child and Adolescent Health Program, which provides care for high-risk women and teenagers during pregnancy and up to one year after giving birth, the Riverside Press-Enterprise reports. County health departments operate the program with oversight from the state Department of Public Health. Sarah Mack, a spokesperson for the Riverside County Department of Public Health, said the program provides a safety net for women who are uncertain about how to obtain prenatal care. The program"s nurses and social workers work to identify vulnerable groups with the goal of initiating care within the first trimester of pregnancy. The program aims to reduce incidences of low birthweight, premature delivery, maternal and infant mortality, preventable childhood diseases and disabling conditions.Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) has proposed eliminating more than $20 million in funding from the program to help reduce California"s estimated $24 billion budget deficit. Last week, the state Legislature"s joint budget conference introduced a counterproposal that would lower cuts to the program to $8 million.The most recent statistics from the state public health department show that nearly 16,000 California women who gave birth in 2006 had late or no prenatal care. More than 38,500 low-birthweight infants were born that year. Jim Lindley, director of the San Bernardino County Department of Public Health, said that Schwarzenegger"s proposal would amount to the elimination of "the bulk of funding" for the program. Mack said that Riverside County officials have identified scenarios to continue providing services if the state funding is eliminated. However, without the funding, "[m]ore people could fall through the safety net," Mack said, adding, "Those who need the program the most would be the most likely to fall through."Schwarzenegger spokesperson Lisa Page has said that the governor believes the state"s budget situation leaves him with little choice about making cuts (Hines, Riverside Press-Enterprise, 6/22).
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WHO Approves Second HPV Vaccine

The WHO announced Thursday it had approved a second cervical cancer vaccine, opening "U.N. agencies and partners [to] now officially buy millions of doses of the vaccine for poor countries worldwide," where an estimated 80 percent of the 280,000 annual deaths from cervical cancer occur each year, the AP/Google.com reports (7/9). Cervarix, produced by GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), prevents HPV infection, which can cause cervical cancer. Cervarix, joins Merck"s Gardasil, in receiving the "green light" from the WHO, Reuters reports. "WHO "prequalification" is necessary for U.N. agencies and the non-profit GAVI Alliance to purchase the vaccine, and Glaxo said on Thursday it hoped the move would help speed access to Cervarix globally," Reuters writes (Hirschler, 7/9) - which officials say will save "tens of thousands of lives," according to AP/Google.com (7/9). "We"re very eager to offer women in developing countries these vaccines because without early screening, they are arguably more vulnerable to cervical cancer," Dan Thomas, a spokesman for GAVI, said, according to Reuters (7/9). However, cost arrangements have yet to be settled, Dow Jones Newswires/Wall Street Journal reports (Stovall, 7/9). Reuters reports that GAVI is in talks with GSK and Merck in hopes of bringing the cost of the vaccine down for developing countries (7/9). AP/Google.com writes: "In the West, the vaccines typically cost about $360 for a three-shot dose - which is far too expensive for poor countries, Thomas said" (7/9). This information was reprinted from globalhealth.kff.org with kind permission from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Global Health Policy Report, search the archives and sign up for email delivery at globalhealth.kff.org. © Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.


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