Health Info

3 ways to tell evidence-based health information from pseudoscience

Posted on by Tami
Health information is increasingly being shared online, and often the borders between legitimate health expertise and pseudoscience aren’t clear. (Shutterstock) “I drink borax!” proclaims the smiling TikToker. Holding up a box of the laundry additive, she rhymes off a list of its supposed health benefits: “Balances testosterone and estrogen. It’s an anti-inflammatory powerhouse…. It’s amazing for arthritis, osteoporosis…. And obviously it’s great for your gut health.” Videos like these prompted health authorities to warn the public about the dangers of ingesting this toxic detergent — and away from such viral messaging that promotes unsubstantiated and medically dangerous health claims. Read…
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Health Secretary urged to release data that ‘may link Covid vaccine to excess deaths’

Posted on by Tami
The group of 21 MPs and peers from four parties have written to the Health Secretary and the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), as well as the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) and the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) to request the data. They believe potentially critical data – which maps the date of people’s Covid vaccine doses to the date of their deaths – has been released to pharmaceutical companies but not put into the public domain. The MPs argue that the data should be released “on the same anonymised basis that it was shared…
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A Guide to Safe Use > News > Yale Medicine

Posted on by Tami
Do not use generative AI for advice, such as whether you should go to the emergency room for chest pain, the doctors say. “Currently, the chatbot cannot create a risk profile on an individual patient at a particular point in time, so it’s better to avoid those types of questions,” says Andrew Taylor, MD, MHS, a Yale Medicine emergency department (ED) physician, who is also leading Yale’s 2024 AI in Medicine Symposium. Rather, here are some tips for trying generative AI: 1. Use it to provide context or education. For example, try the prompt: “I was told to take these…
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Virtual service brings 24/7 medical care closer to home

Posted on by Tami
The VRGS model supports local medical and nursing staff to continue to deliver safe and high-quality care to rural communities, keeping residents closer to home and on Country when it’s safe to do so, and will improve access to care where support services have not previously has been available. Minister for Regional Health, Ryan Park, said the VRGS model meets community expectations for enhanced service delivery in rural areas. “We are excited about the benefits this innovative virtual model of care offers our regional communities and our staff,” Mr Park said. VRGS doctors are experienced, Australian-trained clinicians who work both…
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