Original article
Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Hoffmann, MPH has been managing director of the Institute for Community Medicine since 2007 and has held the W3 professorship for population-related health care epidemiology and community health at Greifswald University Medicine since December 2011. He also heads the Health Care Epidemiology and Community Health department. As a representative of the German Society for Epidemiology (DGEpi) in the DNVF, he conducts research in the areas of innovative care concepts, the epidemiology of chronic diseases, population-related intervention and prevention, fights with verve for federated data and quality management and is a member of the scientific advisory board of “Monitor Health Care Research”. (MVF).
28.05.2013
Dr. med. Wolfgang Abenhardt has been a practicing internist and oncology doctor at the MOP in Elisenhof since 1988 with a license for all internal medicine (focus on oncology) and nuclear medicine. Membership in DKG/AIO/NIO/BNHO/DGHO/BDI, DGN. Abenhardt is board member of the Federal Association of Outpatient Specialist Medical Care (BV ASV)
28.05.2013
“Better health and higher work productivity through sustainable changes in patient behavior” is the title of a current meta-analysis by Booz & Co and the Bertelsmann Foundation, which aims to prove the “effects of increased therapy adherence”. In this analysis, the authors - Peter Behner, Ab Klink and Sander Visser (Booz) as well as Jan Böcken and Stefan Etgeton (Bertelsmann Foundation) used data from five selected chronic diseases, but in this review they tried not only to examine the direct ones, but above all the economic ones to record costs. In the interview, Peter Behner (Managing Director in the Berlin office of Booz & Company and Head of the European Health Practice), Ab Klink (Senior Executive Advisor of the Health Practice of Booz & Company Amsterdam, previously Minister for Health, Welfare and Sport in the Netherlands) and Sander Visser (member of the management board of Booz & Company Amsterdam) explains their motivations, the learnings and the next possible steps to address adherence (see also MA&HP 4/13 and Pharma Relations 7/13).
28.05.2013
Prof. Dr. med. Wolf-Dieter Ludwig, chief physician at the Clinic for Hematology, Oncology and Tumor Immunology, HELIOS Klinikum Berlin-Buch, member of the Management Board of the EMA, Chairman of the AkdÄ and, among other things, member of the scientific advisory board of “Monitor Healthcare Research” (“MVF”), takes a strong stand for greater transparency regarding clinical trial data: It calls for public access to all clinical trial data. Direct access to detailed reports on clinical studies, such as in the form of a link in the European Assessment Report (EPAR) on an active ingredient after its approval, is essential “in order to be able to assess the effectiveness and harm of new drugs in a methodologically unbiased manner,” as stated in the article him with the published independent information sheet “The Medicines Letter” (46/2012).
28.05.2013
The debate about access to clinical trial data is currently at a critical point. The debate over data access is not new, nor are the efforts of scientific organizations such as the Cochrane Collaboration and the European Medicines Agency (EMA) for absolute data transparency. But the pharmaceutical industry is resisting the release and publication of clinical trial data. The ECJ's court rulings in the AbbVie and InterMune cases could decide whether the EMA can maintain its commitment to transparency in the long term or has to give in. The pharmaceutical companies' lawsuits are a novelty in that it is the first time that legal action has been taken against the EMA's transparency policy.
28.05.2013
It wasn't that long ago that the German health system served as a role model for other European countries. But things seem to have changed since 2006, when Germany was still way ahead in terms of quality - for the worse. Seven years ago, the European quality index EHCI confirmed that Germany was in third place in a European comparison, but in 2012 it was only in 14th place. Above all, the quality of medical treatment still leaves room for improvement. But how does this happen when health care spending has constantly increased in recent years? The auditing firm KPMG AG investigated this paradox and uncovered weak points.
28.05.2013
Medical progress on the one hand, patient dissatisfaction on the other, this is the common picture of our healthcare system. But how can this contradiction be explained? The variety of therapies seems to be enabling more and more people to live longer. At the same time, however, there are also complaints about deficits in the German healthcare system - long waiting times, for example. However, in the public discussion, the voice of patients is neglected, write the authors of the “Patient Wishes” study, who tried to close this gap with a large-scale survey and came to a surprising result: the patients are apparently not that dissatisfied.
28.05.2013
Discount agreements, which were initially established primarily in the generics segment, are increasingly being used throughout the entire pharmaceutical market. The 16th AMG amendment also brought about a partial reorganization of the contract constellations. Since May 1, 2013, discount contracts have been advertised publicly. This led to numerous terminations of old contracts and a flood of new tenders.
28.05.2013
In a joint statement, five major medical societies have drawn up suggestions for improvements to the process of assessing the benefits of medications in accordance with the Medicines Market Reorganization Act (AMNOG). You should contact the Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG) and the Federal Joint Committee (G-BA), which carry out this benefit assessment. The specialist societies want to use their suggestions to help avoid unnecessary disputes and misjudgments. “At the same time, a more transparent process should increase the political acceptance of the results among legislators, payers, service providers and especially among patients and relatives,” the statement says.
28.05.2013
Zur initialen medikamentösen Therapie von Patienten mit einer venösen Thromboembolie bzw. Lungenembolie (VTE) sind in Deutschland niedermolekulare und unfraktionierte Heparine (NMH und UFH), Fondaparinux oder neue orale Antikoagulanzien (NOACs) zugelassen. Leiden die Betroffenen gleichzeitig unter einer schweren Einschränkung ihrer Nierenfunktion, besteht zumindest bei einigen Wirkstoffen das Risiko einer Akkumulation mit einem daraus folgenden höheren Blutungsrisiko. In Leitlinien und Fachinformationen wird das Problem adressiert - die Umsetzung im Klinikalltag war bisher allerdings nicht untersucht. „Monitor Versorgungsforschung“ sprach mit Professor Dr. Thomas Wilke, dessen Institut (www.ipam-wismar.de) sich dem Thema im Rahmen der nichtinterventionellen Studie „A-TRIP“ unter Unterstützung des Unternehmens Leo Pharma angenommen hatte. Leo Pharma bietet das NMH Tinzaparin („innohep“) an. Wilke beschreibt im Interview einen Zwischenstand der Studie, deren Ergebnisse noch 2013 publiziert werden sollen.