Ultrasound Provides New options For Self-embedding Patients.

In a new study, ultrasound scanning was used as a minimally-invasive technique for detection and treatment of a behavioral disorder called self-embedding, where patients tend to cause injuries to themselves. The findings of the study will be highlighted in the online edition and October print issue of the journal Radiology.
William E. Shiels II, D.O., chairman of the Department of Radiology at Nationwide Children's Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, and president of The Children's Radiological Institute, and the senior author of the study, said "This is a new way for radiologists to impact public and mental health. Radiologists can be in a position to interrupt a cycle of self-harm with effective, early diagnosis and referral for appropriate behavioral health and foreign body removal." Self-harm or self-embedding is refers to a condition where patient tends to inflict injuries to his/her body without intending to commit suicide. Patients tend to insert objects into their recently made wounds.

System C releases BenefitsPLUS, a new benefits identification and delivery service.

System C has released a new service to provide help to NHS Trusts in identifying and delivering benefits from their new and current IT applications. System C’s new service is called BenefitsPLUS, it is available in several forms ranging from a low-cost fixed price benefits identification package until a complete end-to-end benefits management and delivery service.  BenefitsPLUS is directed to Trusts aiming to gain the most out of current IT systems, in addition to Trusts preparing business cases for new investment. BenefitsPLUS was developed based on extensive experience of healthcare IT deployment and process redesign of System C. It models the benefits that can be obtained from the use of IT in several settings and matches them against trust processes.  The result is localized benefits planning based on national experience.
Damian Pearce, a service delivery director at System C, mentioned that the company recognized the high pressure affecting the NHS to deliver new output targets at the same time as making significant efficiency gains. He said “Many organizations can unlock hundreds of thousands or even millions of pounds through improved management of benefits. Technology and solutions are simply the enablers of improvement.  We can provide additional service improvement and delivery expertise, with substantial hands-on experience of other sites, to ensure that these benefits are successfully delivered. “ System C’s BenefitsPLUS model provides analysis for seven categories of benefits: time-saving, clinical, litigation risk, statutory, cash releasing, strategic and patient experience. It also quantifies ‘dis-benefits’ such as financial and management costs and demands on users’ time.

Functional Brain Imaging in Parkinson's to Determine Medication-Cognition Relationship

Functional brain imaging is now conducted in Parkinson's patients by  PhD student, Ian Cameron, in an attempt to determine the brain parts affected by the currently prescribed medications in Parkinson's disease, these medications are primarily used to treat symptomatic motor dysfunction in Parkinson's patients.
A study performed by Mr. Cameron on Parkinson's patients and a control group revealed that the affected brain circuit in Parkinson's, which is believed to be responsible for the motor malfunction in the disease, is also affecting cognitive functions like decision making and planning. In their attempt to understand the aspects of Parkinson's disease that affect the brain's ability to function on a cognitive level, the researchers in the Queen's Centre for Neuroscience Studies have found that Parkinson's patients have better ability to perform automated tasks than the control group, yet , they seemed to have greater difficulty switching from easy to hard tasks.
In their experiment, the researchers asked the two participant groups to first look at a light when it came on, and then they were asked to change that behavior by looking away from that light. The Parkinson's patients responded to the first task with greater accuracy, suggesting higher ability in performing automated response. As for the second task though, they struggled to perform what was asked, it was incredibly difficult for the patients to perform plan adjusting; this in turn suggests cognitive malfunction as related to task switching which involves planning and decision making. These findings suggest that the cognitive balance of a Parkinson's disease patient might be upset by the use of medications that treat motor symptoms of the disease.