Dr Jayant Patel (centre), walks with his wife Kishoree (right) and defence barrister Michael Byrne (left) to the Brisbane Supreme Court on Friday.
Dave Hunt/AAP
By Andrew McGee, Queensland University of Technology
The High Court has handed down its decision on Jayant Patel’s appeal against his conviction on three counts of manslaughter and one count of grievous bodily harm.
It unanimously upheld Patel’s appeal…
Vioxx was withdrawn from the Australian market in October 2004 and there’s an ongoing compensation case.
DaGoaty/Flickr
The enormous medical impact of modern pharmaceuticals has on occasion been matched by some large-scale litigation regarding adverse events. The Vioxx litigation in Australia and elsewhere is one such recent…
There aren’t any miracle cures but there are a number of treatments that can reduce its severity.
Flickr/Algo
Switch on daytime television on any given day and you’d be forgiven for thinking there was a cure for the debilitating and dreaded condition, osteoarthritis.
Unfortunately, there’s not. And that’s not…
Teens have a right to confidential and private health care.
Ed Yourdon
If your teenage daughter was sexually active and wanted to go on the pill, you’d want to know, right? Well, think back to when you were her age – would you have told your parents?
These questions were…
A test case is slated to challenge Myriad’s claim for breast cancer genetic mutations next February.
TheAlieness GiselaGiardino²³/Flickr
The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has found Myriad Genetics is entitled to patents on two sets human genetic mutations used to predict if women have an increased risk of breast and ovarian…
Reimbursing for costs is standard in research but large payments present problems.
Flickr/PACOM
The Commonwealth Government is considering a proposal from Kidney Health Australia to reimburse living kidney donors for reasonable expenses incurred during the donation process, such as loss of income…
Transparency in the relationship between doctors and patients will lead to fairer outcomes for victims of medical mishaps.
AAP
An expansion of the fiduciary duties of doctors towards patients could provide better protection to those suffering from medical mishaps. Such an expansion would require doctors to promptly disclose adverse…
Specialists can go on a genetic fishing expedition tracking down potential relatives.
Doctors are supposed to keep patient information confidential unless told otherwise, right? Well, not any longer.
If you’re diagnosed with a genetic disorder, medical specialists are now allowed to contact…
Screen shot at PM.
Malcolm Vickers/Australian Skeptics (Victorian Branch)
The SensaSlim company’s recent defamation suit against Dr Ken Harvey of La Trobe University highlights some of the regulatory problems facing complementary products in Australia.
Dr Harvey initiated a…
On March 18, 2011, I submitted my first complaint about the promotion of SensaSlim to appropriate authorities – the Complaint Resolution Panel (CRP) which hears complaints about alleged breaches of the…
Stem cells have successfully been transplanted to restore sight.
BWJones
In 2002, the Australian federal Parliament passed two Acts to regulate human embryo and stem cell research.
The Prohibition of Human Cloning Act banned practices that people seemed to be most worried…
Hard laws and regulations are needed to protect our genetic information.
California Institute for Regenerative Medicine
The rapid development of genetic science and technology holds hope for greatly improved health outcomes, with better diagnostics, treatments and cures, as well as the beginning of pharmacogenomics and…
Laws rewarding informants could help crack down on fraud regarding medicines.
anolobb/Flickr
Federal and state governments in Australia appear much less successful than their United States counterparts in recovering taxpayers funds lost to suspected large-scale corporate fraud.
For instance…
Banning patents on biological agents could see capital for innovative medicines dry up.
Read the argument for the proposed legislation
No one can deny that improved medical treatments and equity of access to them are essential to improving our community’s quality of life. Unfortunately…
The Bill seeks to close the loophole opened by the US Patent Office 30 years ago.
AAP
Read the argument against the proposed legislation
Patents are only to be for granted inventions – that’s the intent of the Patents Act 1990, it has been the law for nearly 400 years, and it’s also what…
