Belgium-based AARDEX Group, the world leader in medication adherence solutions, announced a strategic partnership with Pill Connect Ltd, an English company specializing in the design, development and manufacture of innovative medical devices for dispensing solid oral dose medication. The collaboration will link AARDEX’s proprietary Medication Event Monitoring System (MEMS®) with Pill Connect’s add-on solutions for drug delivery devices. The combined system has significant potential to radically influence patients’ adherence performance.

Through this strategic alliance, AARDEX will reinforce its comprehensive portfolio of smart solutions and connected devices available to effectively measure and manage medication adherence for patients and healthcare providers. There are significant benefits to be gained from ecosystems that seamlessly measure and analyze patient adherence to medications in clinical trials. The successful management of this is supported by research settings and professional healthcare systems. The first initiative will integrate Pill Connect’s smart dosing system with AARDEX’s MEMS Adherence Software (MEMS AS®) for medicines delivered in solid oral dose form. The collaboration will start in academic research, followed by drug development clinical trials, and then extended to commercialized drugs and real-life conditions.

David Dalla Vecchia, CEO and Financial Lead of AARDEX Group, commented, “Smart packaging is one of the most reliable ways to accurately measure, describe, manage and influence patient adherence in relation to medication. It highly correlates with patient behaviour, making the results highly valuable. It is a proven way to minimize risk while being a seamless experience for patients. The objective is to support an unbiased and precise measure of medication adherence in key therapy areas, not only for commercialized drugs and real-life conditions, but also clinical trials and drug efficacy. This partnership will also be pivotal in enhancing the impact of academic research findings.”

James Burnstone, CEO of Pill Connect Ltd commented, “Managing patient compliance can make the difference between failed and successful clinical trials. The combination of Pill Connect’s smart dosing systems with the AARDEX MEMS AS® system ensures the precise capture and analysis of data for clinical trials and adherence monitoring. We are delighted to be collaborating to bring these solutions to our customers. For clinical trials, the integration of this kind of tool will improve the speed and accuracy of medication adherence assessment and intervention efficacy and potentially decrease the rate of unnecessary mediation, bolstering success at every level.”

AARDEX is passionate about continuously innovating data-driven medication adherence solutions to enhance digital therapeutics and patient empowerment. Evidence-based digital adherence monitoring systems can help improve clinical results and conclusions, maximizing the chances of success in clinical trials. Sponsors can improve drug efficacy by managing patient adherence to the study medications and pharma companies can reliably and seamlessly monitor and address patient medication adherence, minimizing risks of trial failure or costly adjustments.

About AARDEX Group

AARDEX Group is the world leader in digital solutions to measure and manage medication adherence. With operations in Belgium, Switzerland and the U.S., AARDEX develops and markets digital solutions for adherence-enhancing strategies in clinical trials, research settings, and professional healthcare systems. AARDEX is the central actor of a complete ecosystem that combines its MEMS® Adherence Software with a wide range of smart packages and devices that measure patient adherence across all routes of drug administration. AARDEX’ vision is to continuously innovate in data-driven medication adherence solutions to enhance digital therapeutics and patient empowerment.

About Pill Connect Ltd

Pill Connect Ltd is a health technology company based in Manchester, UK developing smart solutions to improve patient care. Pill Connect’s smart dispensing system which aims to improve and monitor patient adherence, concluded its first clinical trials in 2019.

Kindred Healthcare, LLC and Baptist Health South Florida announced a joint venture to build and operate a 60-bed inpatient rehabilitation hospital in the Miami-Dade County metro area.

The new hospital, to be called Baptist Health Rehabilitation Hospital, will have all private rooms and focus on acute rehabilitation for patients who suffer from stroke, traumatic brain injury, spinal cord injury, complex neurological disorders, orthopedic conditions, multiple trauma, amputation and other injuries or disorders. The rehabilitation facility will also feature multidisciplinary therapy gymnasiums outfitted with the latest therapeutic technologies, including augmented reality balance training, therapy bionics and a full body exoskeleton. Additionally, it will include a therapeutic courtyard with exterior amenities to support patient care and help patients return to daily living activities.

“We are excited to work with Baptist Health – one of Florida’s leading healthcare providers – to increase access to high-quality inpatient rehabilitation services in South Florida,” said Russ Bailey, President, Kindred Rehabilitation Services. “As with our existing rehabilitation hospitals across the country, this new hospital will be dedicated to passionately advocating for and providing hope, healing and recovery to patients in its care.”

“For years, Baptist Health has cared for patients facing acute or disabling injuries and illnesses to help improve their functional and cognitive level of independence,” said Ana Lopez-Blazquez, executive vice president and chief strategy officer, Baptist Health. “Together with Kindred, we look forward to growing our rehabilitation program and to expanding access to inpatient rehab services in our community.”

The hospital is expected to open in early 2023. It comes in addition to the current Baptist Health Rehabilitation at Homestead Hospital, which offers a full-range of inpatient rehabilitation services.

About Kindred Healthcare

Kindred Healthcare, LLC is the nation’s leading specialty hospital company delivering acute health services in its long-term acute care hospitals, inpatient rehabilitation hospitals, acute rehabilitation units, and behavioral health line of business, all specializing in treating the most medically complex patients. Based in Louisville, Kentucky, and ranked as one of Fortune magazine’s Most Admired Healthcare Companies for nine years, Kindred’s mission is to help our patients reach their highest potential for health and healing with intensive medical and rehabilitative care through a compassionate patient experience.

About Baptist Health South Florida

Baptist Health South Florida is the largest healthcare organization in the region, with 11 hospitals, more than 23,000 employees, 4,000 physicians and 100 outpatient centers, urgent care facilities and physician practices spanning across Miami-Dade, Monroe, Broward and Palm Beach counties. Baptist Health has internationally renowned centers of excellence in cancer, cardiovascular care, orthopedics and sports medicine, and neurosciences. In addition, it includes Baptist Health Medical Group; Baptist Health Quality Network; and Baptist Health Care On Demand, a virtual health platform. A not-for-profit organization supported by philanthropy and committed to its faith-based charitable mission of medical excellence,Baptist Health has been recognized by Fortune as one of the 100 Best Companies to Work For in America and by Ethisphere as one of the World’s Most Ethical Companies.

Olympus Corporation (Director, Representative Executive Officer, President and CEO: Yasuo Takeuchi) announced that it has been selected(1) by Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW) to implement the Japan-Russia Medical Cooperation Promotion Project in the field of endoscopy for the fiscal year ending March, 2021. Under the project, Olympus will promulgate gastrointestinal endoscopic/laparoscopic techniques in support of a five-year oncology plan launched by the Russian government in 2019.(2)

As part of the project, Olympus will facilitate online training programs for gastrointestinal endoscopic/laparoscopic techniques taught by Japanese oncology specialists for Russian endoscopists and oncologists. The bilateral project is being carried out in cooperation with Russia’s two premier cancer centers, the N. N. Blokhin Cancer Research Center and the P. Hertsen Moscow Oncology Research Institute branch of the Russian National Medical Research Radiological Centre (NMRRC) as well as Asian Medical Education and Training Support (AMETS).(3) As part of the project’s initiatives, Olympus commits to disseminate Japan’s world-leading technologies for early diagnosis and treatment in Russia, contributing to the improvement of oncology treatment and research in the region.

Objectives of the MHLW’s Japan-Russia Medical Cooperation Promotion Project in the Field of Endoscopy (April 2020 – March 2021):

1. To help advance the Russian government’s oncology plan by implementing cancer educational activities for facilities and doctors specializing in that branch of medicine. These activities will take place primarily at Russia’s two premier cancer centers, the N. N. Blokhin Cancer Research Center and the P. Hertsen Moscow Oncology Research Institute within the NMRRC.

2. To provide opportunities for training and knowledge sharing on the latest medical technologies by Japanese physicians, contributing to the improvement of gastrointestinal cancer measures, from diagnosis to treatment, particula
rly for colorectal cancer.

Program activities were unveiled at the Japan-Russia Symposium on Colorectal Cancer Management and at the Signing Ceremony of the Memorandum of Cooperation among AMETS and the two Russian cancer centers, which were held on January 19. The signing ceremony was attended by Japanese and Russian government officials, including Mr. Sergey Muraviev, Director-General, International Cooperation and Public Relations Bureau, Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, Dr. Teiji Takei, MHLW Assistant Minister for Global Health and Welfare, and Mr. Takeshi Matsunaga, Embassy of Japan in Russia. In addition, 1167 healthcare professionals from all over Russia attended the symposium virtually.

Supported by the MHLW since 2017, Olympus has provided its endoscopic systems for the Endoscopic Training Center at Pirogov Russian National Research Medical University, in addition to supporting training activities with Japanese physicians serving as instructors. The Japan-Russia Medical Cooperation Promotion Project is one of such initiatives by Olympus that MHLW has supported. Moving forward, Olympus will continue to assist with the training of Russian endoscopists, aiming to spread the application of endoscopic diagnosis, treatment and surgery.

The UK will see the launch of its first ever pharmacy-first digital health service in a partnership between Well Pharmacy and Push Doctor.

Well Pharmacy and digital health company, Push Doctor, are to launch the country’s first pharmacy-first digital service pilot scheme that will provide over 50,000 patients with direct access to local community pharmacists via the Push Doctor platform.

The pilot, which initially ran at a single GP practice for four weeks, has now been extended to a further three GP practices across Plymouth Sound primary care network and is currently available to over 50,000 patients living in the local area. If the pilot is successful Push Doctor and Well Pharmacy will be increasing the number of surgeries offering digital pharmacist consultations, with Well Pharmacy looking to recruit more clinical pharmacists as the partnership expands.
Improving care in the UK

It is estimated that one-third of GP appointments nationally could be treated by pharmacists who are clinically trained to treat minor ailments. By adopting a pharmacy-first approach, patients who access the Push Doctor platform with such concerns will be directed to a pharmacist who will be able to offer quick and effective treatment online.

The move will free up GP appointments for those with serious or chronic health conditions, easing the burden on the local NHS at a time of unprecedented demand.

Wais Shaifta, Chief Executive, Push Doctor, said: “We are delighted to be partnering with Well Pharmacy to provide the residents of Plymouth with better access to primary care. By directing patients to the most appropriate clinician in the first instance we can treat them faster and more effectively, delivering better health outcomes across the local area.

“By fully utilising the skill and expertise of pharmacists, we will remove non-essential footfall for GP practices, freeing up more time for GPs to see patients with more serious medical issues. We hope this will be the start of a new pharmacy-first delivery model that will set up a future digital NHS across the country.”

Patients will be able to access a highly trained Well Pharmacist flexibly at a time that suits them.

Seb Hobbs, CEO, Well Pharmacy, said: “Through this partnership with Push Doctor we will demonstrate the central role pharmacists can play in providing primary care, prompting a shift towards a pharmacy-first patient mindset. The partnership provides an amazing opportunity for us to increase patient access to pharmacy services and ensure that they can fully leverage the expertise of these highly trained clinicians.”

Scotland’s ‘first digital hospital’ will feature an operational command centre to help clinicians understand in realtime when patients are deteriorating.

The state-of the-art University Hospital Monklands will be furnished with sophisticated touchscreens to help patients navigate their way through the site and clinicians will be able to continuously monitor online feedback from patients’ families to improve care.

NHS Lanarkshire has approved a business case for the new hospital, which will occupy a site of 40 acres at the minimum and will replace the existing Monklands Hospital in Airdrie that was built in the 1970s and has been deemed ‘no longer fit for purpose’.

The new development, which is at the very earliest of design stages, is expected to be built within the next seven years from an as yet undisclosed capital budget and has been conceptualised based on consultations with local people in the area; the estimated cost will be released during the site selection process. Inspiration for the digital hospital approach has been found within advanced hospital projects in the US and Canada; Humber River Hospital, Toronto, and Johns Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore, are two examples the Monklands Replacement Project team have discussed as ‘exemplar hospitals’ in exploring the opportunities of digital technology.

The hospital will be delivered according to a new clinical model which requires particular departments and services to be located close together. The proposed layout will see the departments interconnected on a ground floor level, allowing for ease of communication between relevant specialisms.

There is an ambition within the local health board’s strategy to shift care away from inpatient treatment to day case, day treatment, outpatient and community care, to develop ‘pan-Lanarkshire hospital centres of excellence’ and support the healthcare needs of the wider West of Scotland. NHS Lanarkshire is developing a digital strategy will see the implementation of a range of digital technology to support patients and staff from the acute hospital to care in the home. The new University Hospital Monklands will be at the forefront of this move to revolutionise the way healthcare is delivered.

Video and still images show the exciting design concept for how the hospital could look when it is relocated to a new site that will offer the opportunity to deliver the most modern healthcare, designed to ensure that the huge advances in digital technology are central to an improved experience for patients and help staff carry out their work.

Monklands Replacement Project (MRP) clinical lead Dr Jim Ruddy said: “Relocating to a spacious new site gives us the opportunity to create a hospital that can deliver our ‘clinical model’ – the blueprint for providing future healthcare that has been developed by our clinicians and other colleagues.

“With NHS Lanarkshire’s patients becoming older and increasingly suffering from a number of complex conditions, the use of digital technology is key to this clinical model. A hospital built with digital technology at its core will free up clinicians’ time, allowing even more time to be spent looking after patients.”

University Hospital Monklands chief of nursing services Karen Goudie added: “Our ambition for the new Monklands to be Scotland’s first digital hospital will greatly benefit patients, visitors and staff.

“There will also be an operational command centre at the heart of the development, providing the most modern of healthcare with real-time information to make staff instantly aware of patients whose condition is deteriorating, helping to maximise patient safety and patient flow, and to address any capacity issues in the safest way possible. The centre will even monitor online feedback from patients’ families to help improve care.”

MRP director Graeme Reid said: “We’re delighted to share this inspirational vision for Scotland’s first digital hospital, a world-class hospital for the communities of Lanarkshire who will be served by it in years to come.

“The design was created with the valued input of patient and public representatives and staff, who provided feedback at a series of workshops last year.

“It illustrates the exciting future for patients and staff of the proposed hospital, with further feedback being sought from the public during the planning process once a site is confirmed.

“A location for the new hospital will be confirmed this spring from the three shortlisted potential sites – Gartcosh, Glenmavis and Wester Moffat – following a public engagement process and a site scoring exercise.”

There is an ambition within the local health board’s strategy to shift care away from inpatient treatment to day case, day treatment, outpatient and community care, to develop ‘pan-Lanarkshire hospital centres of excellence’ and support the healthcare needs of the wider West of Scotland. NHS Lanarkshire is developing a digital strategy will see the implementation of a range of digital technology to support patients and staff from the acute hospital to care in the home. The new University Hospital Monklands will be at the forefront of this move to revolutionise the way healthcare is delivered.

Video and still images show the exciting design concept for how the hospital could look when it is relocated to a new site that will offer the opportunity to deliver the most modern healthcare, designed to ensure that the huge advances in digital technology are central to an improved experience for patients and help staff carry out their work.

Monklands Replacement Project (MRP) clinical lead Dr Jim Ruddy said: “Relocating to a spacious new site gives us the opportunity to create a hospital that can deliver our ‘clinical model’ – the blueprint for providing future healthcare that has been developed by our clinicians and other colleagues.

“With NHS Lanarkshire’s patients becoming older and increasingly suffering from a number of complex conditions, the use of digital technology is key to this clinical model. A hospital built with digital technology at its core will free up clinicians’ time, allowing even more time to be spent looking after patients.”

University Hospital Monklands chief of nursing services Karen Goudie added: “Our ambition for the new Monklands to be Scotland’s first digital hospital will greatly benefit patients, visitors and staff.

“There will also be an operational command centre at the heart of the development, providing the most modern of healthcare with real-time information to make staff instantly aware of patients whose condition is deteriorating, helping to maximise patient safety and patient flow, and to address any capacity issues in the safest way possible. The centre will even monitor online feedback from patients’ families to help improve care.”

MRP director Graeme Reid said: “We’re delighted to share this inspirational vision for Scotland’s first digital hospital, a world-class hospital for the communities of Lanarkshire who will be served by it in years to come.

“The design was created with the valued input of patient and public representatives and staff, who provided feedback at a series of workshops last year.

“It illustrates the exciting future for patients and staff of the proposed hospital, with further feedback being sought from the public during the planning process once a site is confirmed.

“A location for the new hospital will be confirmed this spring from the three shortlisted potential sites – Gartcosh, Glenmavis and Wester Moffat – following a public engagement process and a site scoring exercise.”

To address inequity in access to quality diabetes care for many children and young adults around the world, Eli Lilly and Company and Life for a Child (LFAC) are significantly expanding their long-term partnership and shared mission to provide free immediate care as well as build sustainable diabetes care models for vulnerable populations. Additionally, Life for a Child announced a new strategic partnership with Beyond Type 1, a global diabetes nonprofit focused on changing what it means to live with chronic illness.

Starting in February 2021, the partners will expand access to care for youth with diabetes from approximately 23,000 in 2020 to approximately 150,000 in 65 countries over the next 10 years. The program also strives to improve outcomes in all countries that receive support. Type 1 diabetes management support includes access to mealtime and basal insulins, reusable pens, blood glucose monitoring, A1C testing and diabetes education.

“Insulin has improved dramatically since it was first discovered a century ago, but there is still much work to be done to ensure equitable access to quality diabetes care, medicines, and support programs across the globe,” said Mike Mason, president, Lilly Diabetes. “Lilly and Life for a Child have been collaborating for years to develop solutions, and we are excited to strengthen this critical work with Beyond Type 1.”

Since 2009, Lilly has donated 2.4 million vials of insulin to LFAC, which provides access to care, education, and lifesaving medicines and supplies to children and young people with type 1 diabetes in developing countries. As part of the partnership, Lilly will provide mealtime and basal insulins and reusable pens as well as covering the costs associated with arranging, packing, and shipping to countries in conjunction with Direct Relief. The expanded partnership will enable Life for a Child to reach children and young people in more than 60 countries, including India, Pakistan, Ethiopia, Tanzania, and Bolivia.

“Insulin is essential for survival in type 1 diabetes, but it is not enough – blood glucose monitoring, medical care, and diabetes education are just as important. Lilly’s very generous and extensive support of this expansion will enable Life for a Child to greatly increase provision of all these components of care, in many countries across the globe,” said Dr. Graham Ogle, General Manager of Life for a Child. “Together, we aim to build a healthier world, where children with diabetes thrive no matter what country or situation they are born into.”

Global diabetes nonprofit Beyond Type 1 will further support the expansion of Life for a Child’s programming by providing educational resource development alongside strategic communications support to amplify their critically important work.

“Over the next ten years, with this new support, Life for a Child’s footprint will expand to serve 150,000 children with life-sustaining diabetes care around the globe. Beyond Type 1 is thrilled to be joining the LFAC Steering Committee and working to magnify and support this work through community building, communication efforts and resource development,” said Beyond Type 1 CEO Thom Scher.

The expansion of the Life for a Child program is part of Lilly’s social impact efforts and supports Lilly 30×30, the company’s goal to improve access to quality health care for 30 million people living in settings with limited resources, each year, by 2030. The expansion builds on decades of Lilly’s global health work to improve equitable access to diabetes care and medicines, including in Kenya, Mexico, South Africa, and the U.S.

About Eli Lilly and Company
Lilly is a global health care leader that unites caring with discovery to create medicines that make life better for people around the world. We were founded more than a century ago by a man committed to creating high-quality medicines that meet real needs, and today we remain true to that mission in all our work. Across the globe, Lilly employees work to discover and bring life-changing medicines to those who need them, improve the understanding and management of disease, and give back to communities through philanthropy and volunteerism.

Sleeping is a vital process that maintains the internal and external mechanisms of your body. It promotes healing, rejuvenation, and overall health and well-being. Sleeping trouble is not only limited to being unable to sleep but also getting poor sleep quality, insufficient sleep, and waking up feeling tired and sluggish. You may notice the difference between getting a good night’s sleep and poor sleep by how alert, sharp, and invigorated you feel the next day.

Getting enough sleep also helps you recover from exhaustion, stress, mental and emotional distress, and ailments by flushing toxins out from your brain and body and facilitating cell regeneration in these areas. Imagine if you are frequently sleep-deprived or getting poor sleep quality. It can have a detrimental impact on your overall health and increase the risk of developing health conditions such as cardiovascular diseases, stroke, diabetes, and mental disorders. To help you maintain good health and well being, we will share some of the things you can do if you have trouble sleeping.

Use Sleeping Aids

Although this approach does not necessarily have to be your first option among the ways of treating your sleep troubles, these interventions are effective to some extent. Sleeping aids can be classified as medical and physical, and we will discuss some of these options.

Medical Sleeping Aids

Many people who have trouble sleeping or have sleep disorders such as insomnia, restless legs syndrome, shift work sleep disorder, and delayed sleep phase disorder often use over-the-counter medications to help them sleep better. These medications have varying effectiveness and can also cause daytime drowsiness if you don’t get 7-8 hours of sleep after taking them. CBD product experts from ulu.com recommend CBD oil as an organic and safe alternative for sleeping medications. CBD has a natural sedative effect on the body and does not have the side-effects of most over-the-counter sleeping pills and medications. It also relieves stress, anxiety, and chronic pain, which are common underlying causes of sleep problems.

Natural Sleeping Aids

There are natural supplements that you can use to promote sufficient and quality sleep. Valerian root is a well-known herbal supplement that has a long history of medical use. It has been used as a natural treatment for anxiety, depression, and insomnia as early as the second century A.D. Ongoing research and studies are being conducted on the use of valerian as a safe and non-habit-forming sleeping aid, and some studies are showing promising results.

Melatonin is a hormone that our bodies produce naturally. Dubbed as a sleep hormone, its production increases at night and signals the brain and the body to enter sleep mode. Melatonin hormones are particularly effective in treating sleep problems caused by shift work and jet lag. It also helps with other sleep disorders by shortening the time needed to fall asleep and lengthening the time spent sleeping.

Magnesium is another mineral and natural supplement that plays a significant role in getting good sleep. It is known to be involved in various body processes, including brain function and heart health maintenance. It helps relax the muscle, calm the mind, and regulate melatonin production to make sleeping easier. When magnesium is taken as a supplement—for example from a company such as RnA ReSet—along with melatonin and vitamin B complex, it shows remarkable effectiveness in treating amnesia.

Use Natural Relaxation and Calming Aids

Having a relaxed mind and body and a feeling of calmness are precursors of good sleep, and there are many ways of getting relaxed while you tuck yourself into bed. Aromatherapy is an effective way of relieving stress, easing muscle tensions, and relaxing your mind and body. Lavender is one of the most well-known aromatherapy ingredients that has a soothing fragrance that promotes somnolence and sleep. Using lavender-scented natural oils can help you get to sleep easier and sleep longer because of its relaxing effects.

Chamomile is another natural calming aid that can be used as an aromatherapy ingredient or as a tea to promote sleep. It has a gentle scent and a mild sedative effect that helps you fall asleep quickly. Drinking chamomile tea 30 to 60 minutes before sleeping can calm your senses and get you drowsy and ready for bed. Before you use chamomile tea to help you sleep, make sure you have no plant or pollen allergies.

Passionflower extract or tea is another herbal remedy that helps you sleep better at night. It has a relaxing and calming effect that makes you toss and turn in bed less often and gets you to fall asleep faster. As a tea, it has a slow and gradual effect and is recommended taken an hour before bed.

Apply Relaxation Techniques

You can help yourself get a good sleep without having to spend a penny by spending extra effort on meditation, yoga, tai chi, and breathing techniques. Meditation and yoga help calm your mind by clearing your thoughts and relieving the buildup of stress and tension that accumulated during the day. Tai chi promotes muscle relaxation and clarity of the mind with its gentle and deliberate movements.

Deep or abdominal breathing before sleeping also gives a general sense of relaxation. Deep breathing involves your stomach, ribcage, and lower back, allowing for better oxygen intake and carbon dioxide exhalation, which regulates calmness and relaxation. Applying deep breathing as you fall asleep helps your body shift to the sleeping mode more easily.

Apply Lifestyle Changes

By simply adjusting your daytime and bedtime activities, you can make changes to your sleeping pattern. Reducing your daytime naps to 20-30 minutes or eliminating daytime naps can help your body to sleep easier at night.

Exercising in the late afternoon or early evening promotes a body temperature drop later in the evening, which helps us to fall asleep and stay asleep. Avoid drinking alcoholic and caffeinated beverages before going to bed and drink milk instead. Turn off the TV and your mobile devices at least an hour before bed and listen to soft, soothing music and keep the lights low to promote melatonin production and get you to sleep.

Sleep troubles and sleep disorders can have scary health consequences if not remedied immediately. The good news is there are various approaches and solutions available for sleep problems. Try out changing your lifestyle or using natural remedies first before turning to supplements or medications. If your sleep troubles persist, consult your doctor to help determine and treat any underlying condition to your sleep problem. Always give yourself a good sleep and your body will thank you for it.

Hospitals have acted quickly to accommodate the influx of COVID-19 patients, but how do they keep the virus from spreading inside their buildings?

Testing the airflow and maintaining the proper pressure in rooms is crucial, yet many hospitals only routinely audit 15–20% of their facilities, and the process is an outdated one that relies on handwritten notes and Excel spreadsheets.

Austin-based Life Balance Technologies is aiming to change that.

The tech startup has developed a software that will help hospitals and other public facilities reduce the indoor spread of COVID-19 and airborne infections more effectively and affordably.

S?fAir can analyze infection control parameters from 100% of a facility and provide reports faster, more accurately, and with less cost. This software will allow hospitals to track potential risks and reduce hospital-acquired infections, Life Balance Co-Founder Steve Manz said.

“This was not a priority previously because the chance of airborne disease seemed so remote,” Manz said. “Facility-wide testing was time-consuming, costly and unmanageable. Building owners have invested billions of dollars in energy efficient systems to reduce their utility bills, but very few have invested tools to maintain the airflow standards needed for a safe environment.”

Life Balance has already integrated the software in four hospitals outside of Texas and is looking to onboard Austin-area healthcare facilities as soon as possible. The company’s Texas team is currently based in the Capital Factory in Austin.

“The feedback we’re getting is that S?fAir is unique and there’s obviously a huge need for this — so keep going” Manz said. “Hospitals want safer facilities and they need to achieve this with tighter or limited budgets. We are helping them do more with less money. Life Balance Technology is providing a solution to issues that existed before COVID-19. These issues are urgent not only for hospitals, but also to all other public facilities like assisted living, schools and offices, most of which do not test at all. More importantly, this is a solution to benefit the lives and safety of all frontline workers, patients, office workers, students and all occupants.”

Car accidents often result in physical injuries, ranging from minor wounds to life-threatening injuries. The severity of physical distress depends on factors like the speed of the vehicles, the part of the car where the impact occurred, and the efficiency of injury prevention systems like seat belts and airbags.

There are two types of injuries that could result from a road accident. These are impact injuries and penetrating injuries. Impact injuries pertain to blunt trauma caused by applied force, such as when the head hits a hard surface inside the car. On the other hand, penetrating injuries happen when the body is pierced by foreign objects, such as shards from a broken car window.

Blunt trauma often occurs internally, so it is often not detected immediately. They are also more difficult to assess compared to penetrating injuries on the extremities of the body. Below is a more thorough look at these serious injuries that can occur after road accidents.

1. Back Injury and Spinal Damage

Back pain and discomfort are especially common among victims of impact collisions. The Injured Call published a blog post to help ease muscle pain after an accident. However, what appears to be simple pain could be a warning sign of spinal cord damage, since spinal injuries usually take some time to manifest.

Spinal injuries may result in partial nerve damage in certain body parts. In extreme cases, it could end in complete paralysis. Incurring a herniated disc is considered less severe than spinal damage, but it comes with high levels of pain. Also known as slipped disc or ruptured disc, it occurs when a fragment between the vertebrae gets pushed out of its position.

2. Chest Injury

Impact on the steering wheel or seat belt can cause blunt trauma in the chest area. This can result in broken ribs, contusions, collapsed lungs, and internal bleeding. For people with heart conditions, the acute force can put them at risk of traumatic cardiac arrest. Other areas near the chest can also suffer from the impact. This includes injuries in the abdomen, pelvis, and internal organs.

3. Head Trauma And Brain Injury

The head is very vulnerable to impact, so head injuries always require immediate attention. A head-on collision between speeding vehicles can cause concussions, skull fractures, and even traumatic brain injuries. Such injuries could lead to long-term cognitive problems and in more severe situations, comatose. Other disabilities related to head injuries include loss of vision, impaired hearing, and facial deformity.

4. Broken Limbs

The legs, feet, arms, and hands usually suffer a lot from impact. Due to the limited space in the car, the limbs are the first ones to get trapped. A serious crash can lead to disfigurement, fractured bones, and even severed limbs. These injuries can turn into long-term disability that affects day-to-day life.

5. Psychological Disorder

The psychological damage of an accident is as jarring, if not worse, as the physical ones. Accident survivors can suffer from short- and long-term psychological problems, especially if the accident resulted in irreversible injuries or death. Depression, anxiety, and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder are commonly observed among drivers and passengers who are involved in a serious crash.

Conclusion

These serious injuries require immediate medical intervention. And in case you witness a car accident in real-time, it’s best to not move the victims yourself since you may not be able to assess the actual physical damage that they have suffered. Call professional medical help and let the experts do it. Internal bleeding and head injuries are complicated, and they might worsen if you move the injured person in the wrong position.