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So far bsbh has created 248 blog entries.

Early Bird: Diagnosed but not treated? Prioritizing timely care in Europe’s cancer plans

13 October, 2021

Timely access to optimal treatment has great promise for significantly improving outcomes for cancer patients. For instance, the early diagnosis and treatment of skin cancer provides a 99% chance of 5-year survival – yet in later stages, the odds drop to just 27%. As well, the length of time it takes for cancer treatments to reach patients is vitally important to European and national cancer policies, including Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan.

Current political debates around access cancer medicines often overlook the interplay of factors that cause suboptimal treatment rates. Ineligibility requirements, late diagnostic testing, treatment delays, poorly defined clinical guidelines, and resource constraints worsen a patient’s access to timely and adequate treatments.

How can we ensure that patients are diagnosed promptly and can access treatment in a timely manner? Why does reimbursement not always correlate to access to innovative treatments across Europe? How should we prioritize treatment rates in cancer plans?

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Early Bird: Diagnosed but not treated? Prioritizing timely care in Europe’s cancer plans2022-01-28T08:51:59+02:00

Webinar: Improving patient safety: why perioperative care and effective monitoring matters

28 September, 2021, 2-3pm CET

In Europe, 2.4 million patients undergo high-risk surgery every year and while surgery is safer today than ever – it is not totally risk free, Evidence suggest that death during surgery is now rare but the 30 days after the procedure are crucial – more than 1 in 100 adults (1.5%) die in the first 30 days following their operation. During high-risk surgery it is vital that blood continues to flow to organs. If blood pressure drops, and organs do not get enough blood, the higher the risk of severe postoperative complications, such as myocardial injury, acute kidney injury, and increased mortality, These drops in blood pressure are known as intraoperative hypotension (IOH) and are common – particularly in more senior patients. As little as a minute of IOH can increase the risk of patient harm or death and there is low awareness of this urgent issue among patients, clinicians, and policy makers. However, if IOH is effectively monitored and managed, many of these issues can be reduced or avoided. In addition, the need to improve perioperative care has been accentuated by the pandemic, which has put pressure on hospital capacity.

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Webinar: Improving patient safety: why perioperative care and effective monitoring matters2022-01-28T08:52:11+02:00

Webinar: Equity and Outcomes, Ensuring Fair Access to Healthcare

28 September 2021, 4pm UK

Life expectancy is generally on the increase, including healthy life expectancy. New treatments that have greatly improved the chance of survival following the diagnosis of life-threatening diseases.

However, comparisons of survival rates reveal striking differences among countries for cancers, cardiovascular disorders and other serious non-communicable and communicable diseases, even between countries with a similar GDP. What are the reasons for these differences and, more importantly, what are the best ways to address them? The aim of the session is to raise awareness among health policy makers, clinical and biotechnology, health professionals, academics and interested public and patients about gaps and needs for equity in health outcomes and fair access to healthcare.

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Webinar: Equity and Outcomes, Ensuring Fair Access to Healthcare2021-10-07T11:58:24+02:00

Webinar: Artificial Intelligence – Improving Health, from Smart Hospitals to Smart Homes

24 August 2021, 4pm UK

What do developments of smart hospitals and smart homes mean for patients, health professionals and policy makers? Better diagnostics? Better medicines? Greater efficiency? Nowadays use of the term artificial intelligence (AI) elicits all sorts of reactions, from enthusiasm to fear. How much are these reactions well-founded? One thing is clear: when it comes to health, AI can be applied in myriad ways, from all of the departments in a hospital to all corners of one’s home.

Given the patchy performance of public health approaches during the COVID-19 pandemic, with the benefit of hindsight, how can we better harness available data to improve decision making for improved societal health, cost management, and patient outcomes – better safety of medicines, control of long-term conditions and solutions for rare/orphan diseases?

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Webinar: Artificial Intelligence – Improving Health, from Smart Hospitals to Smart Homes2022-01-28T08:52:23+02:00

Webinar: Vaccines, Trusted Information and Fake News

27 July, 4pm UK

Within many countries the COVID—19 pandemic is entering a 3rd wave and vaccine confidence is a live issue. According to an August 2018 edition of the Economist, “Italy, France and Serbia … have lower child-vaccinations rates than Burundi, Rwanda and Senegal.” On a background of differences in regulatory approaches to COVID-19 vaccine approvals and statements critical of COVID-19 vaccine efficacy by national leaders, Belgium at one point in 2021 had received 200,000 units but had only been able to distribute 4% of their quantity due to a lack of acceptance in the general public. In contrast, the WHO notes preparedness to accept a COVID-19 vaccine of 65% in recent surveys in Less Developed Countries.
How do we ensure that valid information regarding vaccines is circulated and accepted at all levels of society both in developed and in less developed countries? How do we disentangle outright vaccine refusal from vaccine hesitancy?

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Webinar: Vaccines, Trusted Information and Fake News2021-10-07T11:57:41+02:00

H.R. 3’s international reference pricing misses the mark

By Susan Peschin and Duane Schulthess, April 28, 2021

The White House and Congress have declared that reining in Medicare prescription drug costs to help older adults and people with disabilities is a top priority. But one drug pricing strategy on the table would have an outsized negative impact on people with Alzheimer’s disease and decimate research trying to find effective treatments for it. This strategy, known as international reference pricing, ties the price that Medicare pays for some drugs to those paid by other countries. The idea was first introduced as a model for Medicare Part B drugs by then-HHS Secretary Alex Azar in 2018. The next year, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s drug pricing plan, known as the Elijah E. Cummings Lower Drug Costs Now Act (H.R. 3), significantly expanded the scope to allow federal government use of foreign price controls in direct negotiations with pharmaceutical companies for the cost of 250 prescription medicines in Medicare Part B and Part D. It also extended the negotiated price to insurers and the commercial market at large.

H.R. 3’s international reference pricing misses the mark2021-10-07T11:58:42+02:00

Webinar: Taking the next step: health literacy and the fight against cancer

14 April, 8.30-9.00 CET

Higher degrees of health literacy support patients at every stage of their journeys: they help to navigate decision-making and elevate patients to partners. If combined with health literate institutions, the coproduction of health can improve patient care and help reduce costs of unnecessary and inappropriate medical intervention.
Policy changes to increase health literacy have been notoriously difficult to implement, due also to a lack of evidence about the correlation between measures to increase health literacy and actual outcomes. Several initiatives have taken on the task to create such evidence. Most recently, Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan promises to make cancer literacy a priority for European policy makers, guidelines, and programs of action.
What do we know about the value of health literacy, where do we need to know more? How can we achieve higher degrees of health literacy? What lessons can we draw from the current pandemic? Join two outstanding experts for an Early Bird discussion on health literacy!

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Webinar: Taking the next step: health literacy and the fight against cancer2021-10-07T11:59:03+02:00

Belgium makes a U-turn on AstraZeneca jab in over-55s

Belgium is the latest European country to make a U-turn on the AstraZeneca vaccine, now recommending it for use in people over 55 years of age.   The country's Superior Health Council said data from new, large-scale studies in the UK, which showed strong efficacy in older age groups "is reassuring at first sight," and deemed the jab safe and effective.   Belgium was one of a handful of countries – including Germany, France and Italy – that limited the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine last month, despite the European Medicines Agency saying it was safe for anyone over the age of 18. 

Belgium makes a U-turn on AstraZeneca jab in over-55s2024-01-02T17:57:29+02:00

Webinar: Cancer care during a pandemic – what have we learned so far?

10 March, 18:00-18:30

It will probably take years before we can understand the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on cancer patients. We know about decreasing diagnosis, interrupted treatment cycles, and other unintended effects of pandemic control measures. We don’t know, however, what exactly these changes mean for cancer patients and their survival rates. Even though high-quality data is often lacking and there is significant heterogeneity in real world evidence connecting treatment delays with increased mortality, studies increasingly highlight delays in cancer treatment during the past months. More recently, there have also been attempts to standardize estimates of the effects of treatment delays on survival rates, offering important lessons for cancer care systems. How can we quantify the impact of delays in cancer treatment on mortality? What do we know about the causal links between pandemic control measures and cancer care? How can patients, health care professionals, and policymakers help minimize delays in cancer treatment initiation?

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Webinar: Cancer care during a pandemic – what have we learned so far?2021-08-02T09:39:41+02:00

Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan: Why we need it now

10 Feb, 2021, 08:30 – 09:00 CET

"Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan” sounds like something that should be around already. With the Europeans carrying 25% of the global population’s cancer burden, a coherent strategy tackling cancer incidence and mortality in Europe is only consequential. Or is it? Cancer treatment remains a personal and often local matter, and different perspectives exist across Europe on access to cancer care, budgets, and spending. These are reflected in different public health systems and policies at the level of EU member states. Cancer control activities vary greatly within Europe as do the outcomes of cancer care. Considering high European ambitions, persisting interests in member states, and local sensitivities: What can we expect from Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan? How can it become a success and more than just yet another document?

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Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan: Why we need it now2021-03-01T09:34:39+02:00
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