It’s about cholesterol – and the drug to lower your blood-cholesterol called Atorvastatin. In fact, cholesterol lowering drugs are the most commonly prescribed drugs world wide. The next most commonly prescribed drug is for treating excess stomach acid using a drug called Omeprazole. Millions of these drugs are prescribed every year, in Ireland, to public…

Two of the big ones are robotic surgery and wireless connectivity. Telesurgery involves both technologies. Using telesurgery, surgeons can operate surgical robotic instruments from anywhere in the world with wireless networks. With surgery, there is no room for error, yet doctors are human and mistakes can happen. Robotic surgery helps doctors to improve precision, control…

We should not be always focussed on the negatives like waiting lists and overcrowding. Recent years have seen some of the most amazing medical advances which give more hope to people of all ages. One of the big research breakthroughs was of course the Covid-19 vaccine. It was also discovered that steroids and arthritis drugs…

A hearing this week was told that the Irish health service does not have the required understanding of the condition and the population does not have the necessary awareness of it too. For this and other reasons, services are limited. There have been calls for funding in the forthcoming Budget for research, awareness and assessment…

Of course there are genuine concerns with this new technology. But what about the positive impact it may have on our healthcare? AI has the potential to transform the work of doctors, nurses and hospitals and help patients get better care. AI essentially means smart machines that can perform tasks normally done by humans. They…

The Spanish health system is rated among the top ten in the world. The World Health Organisation places it 7th in the world. That is quite impressive given it is a country with over 47 million people, compared to over 5.5 million people in Ireland. The Spanish system is regarded as first in the world for…

Much concern has been raised recently on how Artificial Intelligence (AI) may pose a threat to humanity. Of course there are genuine concerns with this new technology. But what about the positive impact it may have on our healthcare? AI has the potential to transform the work of doctors, nurses and hospitals and help patients…

The Minister for Health, Stephen Donnelly has been insisting recently that hospital waiting lists for treatment are on the decline but the statistics do not really bear that out. There has been a small fall in the numbers but really just in the order of a few hundred patients. The overall picture remains gloomy. Latest…

Beds, beds, beds – it’s not rocket science. One of the big reasons why Ireland has such long hospital waiting lists, is a basic shortage of hospital beds. Now we have the proof, in a new study from the Economic Social & Research Institute. It says that there may be a bed capacity shortfall of…

Ireland has published the first examination of the factors affecting patients getting onto public hospital waiting lists and getting off waiting lists. It says that the public hospital system here prioritises access to specialised care, based on need and not on ability to pay and because of this, waiting lists exist. Not surprisingly, waiting lists…