Radio România Internațional

Tag: medicine

  • The Future of Healthcare in Romania

    The Future of Healthcare in Romania

     

    The COVID-19 pandemic has shown that up-to-date health-related data is a critical instrument in effective public health measures and responding to crises. Moreover, the pandemic brought about a massive acceleration in the adoption of digital tools, but, as stakeholders argue, complex obstacles persist that make it difficult for the full potential of digital health data to be achieved.

     

    The European Health Data Space, a key pillar of a strong EU healthcare system, is designed to overcome these obstacles. It is a framework for the exchange of specific health-related data, which establishes clear rules, common standards and practices, digital infrastructures and a governance framework for the use of electronic health data by patients and for research, innovation, policy-making, patient safety, statistics or regulatory purposes. Cristina Berteanu, Ph.D. medical sciences:

     

    Cristina Berteanu: “It is the first European data space that begins with healthcare and completely changes the paradigm, in the sense that the patient has priority over data ownership and can connect with other patients from the member states, but also with doctors in Romania and in all the other member states. Secondly, access to such data by researchers or by policy-makers is very well defined within a legal framework, which has rules for data access. It will bring important progress in discovering new molecules, in creating strategies and public policies, including prevention and customised medicine, because with access to anonymised data, targeted treatments can be created much more precisely and much more easily. Work is already underway on this European data space that will have to be operational as of 2025. This requires significant digitisation in all member states and we hope that we are making progress considering that 207 hospitals in Romania have access to funds for digitisation under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan.”

     

    In addition to patients being able to access and share this data more easily, while retaining greater control over it, healthcare professionals will be able to do their job more easily and effectively. Thanks to improved interoperability, they will be able to access a patient’s medical history, thus broadening the set of information relevant to treatment and diagnostic decisions, including when patient data is located in another EU member country.

     

    Also, by supporting the exchange of data between healthcare providers within countries and across borders, healthcare providers will avoid the duplication of tests, with positive effects for patients and healthcare costs. Researchers will have access to larger amounts of representative and high-quality data and will be able to access data in a more efficient and less expensive way, through a data access platform that guarantees patient data confidentiality.

     

    Regulators and decision-makers will also have easier access to healthcare data for more effective policy-making and better operation of evidence-based healthcare systems. This, Brussels says, will lead to better access to healthcare, reduce costs, increase efficiency, strengthen research and innovation and help build more resilient healthcare systems.

     

    Electronic patient records, smart hospitals, the concept of Big Data and the use of artificial intelligence are part of the medicine of the future. And some of them are already present in Romania. The first smart hospital in Romania, a pilot project that will help digitise the entire healthcare system, will be opened in Târgu Mureș. But what does a smart hospital entail? Cristina Berteanu:

     

    Cristina Berteanu: “The use of electronic patient records, telemedicine, cybersecurity, the use of robots in surgery. Also, the use of virtual reality in training medical staff and doctors, as well as Big Data and the development of AI algorithms to use this concept as best we can in various areas of prevention, healthcare strategy, to ensure the quality, precision and speed with which test results are given”.

     

    In Romania, revolutionary technologies and artificial intelligence are already used in many fields, starting with radiology, imaging, radiotherapy, and data collection. The new technologies that are already used in Romanian healthcare help in early diagnosis, in creating personalised treatment plans and in the molecular characterisation of tumors, especially when we talk about cancer, doctor Cristina Berteanu also explained. (AMP)

  • January 20, 2023

    January 20, 2023

    ECONOMY This year Romania’s economy is
    also going to be influenced by global uncertainties caused by inflation, the
    escalation of the war in Ukraine, the energy crisis and disrupted supply
    chains. This is one of the conclusions of a report on financial stability
    released by Romania’s Central Bank (BNR). The BNR report also speaks about a
    systemic risk related to delayed reforms and European funds absorption. In
    another development, the BNR urges people to show caution on taking mortgage
    loans because of the risk caused by the growing inflation rate.






    DRUGS Romania has obtained from Brussels a temporary
    suspension for a period of three months in the exports of some drugs from the
    category of anti-flu antibiotics. According to the authorities in Bucharest,
    the measure is aimed at ensuring the continuity of drug supplies to the
    Romanian patients in full season of respiratory infections. Authorities have
    given assurances that the export of medicines manufactured by Romanian
    producers is not being affected.






    REFUGEES According to sources with the Romanian Border Police, 7,229,
    Ukrainian nationals entered Romania on Thursday. According to a press release
    issued on Friday, since February 10th last year, two weeks before
    the Russian invasion, 3,355,594 Ukrainian nationals have entered Romania. Most
    of these only transited the country but 100 thousand decided to remain here,
    the authorities in Bucharest have announced.








    WEF
    While attending the 53rd annual World Economic Forum in Davos,
    Switzerland, Romania’s Foreign Minister, Bogdan Aurescu, held talks with
    representatives of the business world. According to a communiqué issued by the
    Foreign Ministry, during the talks the Romanian official held with Ian Edwards,
    CEO of Canadian company SNC Lavalin and with William Young, chairman of the
    Board of Directors of the aforementioned company, high on the agenda was the
    participation of SNC Lavalin in Romania’s civil nuclear projects, more
    specifically in the process of streamlining Unit 1 and the construction of
    Units 3 and 4 of the nuclear power plant in Cernavoda, south-eastern Romania.
    Minister Aurescu has reiterated the key role, the development of the civil
    nuclear sector has in the national strategy for energy security particularly in
    the present geo-political context when energy independence has become of utmost
    importance. Aurescu has also held talks with Miguel Stilwell d’Andrade, CEO of
    Portuguese group Energias de Portugal, where he underlined the importance of
    boosting investment in developing Romania’s green energy resources.










    (bill)

  • The early days of medicine in Romanian Principalities

    The early days of medicine in Romanian Principalities

  • October 5, 2020 UPDATE

    October 5, 2020 UPDATE

    COVID-19 1,591 new cases of COVID-19 and 45 new fatalities have been reported nationwide in the last 24 hours, the Group for Strategic Communication announced on Monday. The total number of infections stands at 137,491, while the death toll stands at 5,048. 108,526 patients have recovered. There are currently 592 people in intensive care. 6,702 Romanians living abroad have tested positive for SARS CoV-2, while 126 have died. Most of these cases have been reported in Germany, Italy and Spain. The negative evolution of the COVID-19 pandemic in recent days does not require the reintroduction of the state of emergency, authorities say, insisting however on the importance of basic health safety measures, such as the wearing of face masks, observing physical distance and rigorous hand hygiene. The head of the Department for Emergency Situations, Raed Arafat, warned that harsher restrictions might be introduced in those areas where the infection rate has gone up significantly.



    LOCAL ELECTIONS The unaffiliated candidate Nicuşor Dan, backed by the Liberals and the USR-PLUS alliance, won the election for Bucharest Mayor General with 42.81% of the votes (282,631), according to the final results of the local elections in Bucharest, posted on the home page of the Permanent Electoral Authority. The Social Democratic candidate Gabriela Firea got 37.97% of the votes, followed by Traian Băsescu, from the Peoples Movement Party, with 10.99%, Florin Călinescu (Green Party) with 2.08% and Călin Popescu Tăriceanu (ALDE) with 1.49%. In the Bucharest General Council, the Social Democratic Party holds 21 seats, followed by USR – PLUS with 17, the Liberals with 12 and the Peoples Movement Party with 5 seats. The turnout at the Bucharest local election on September 27 was 36.76%.



    PRIME MINISTER On Monday Prime Minister Ludovic Orban tested negative for the COVID-19, but he will stay in quarantine until Thursday, working without physical contact with any other individuals, the Government announced. According to the source, the test was voluntary. The prime minister will be tested again on Thursday, 10 days after he was on a TV shooting set with a person who tested positive for the virus.



    DEFENCE Romanias Supreme Defence Council will hold an online meeting on Tuesday, chaired by president Klaus Iohannis, to look at defence and national security issues, such as a defence strategic analysis, the White Paper on Defence, the implementation plan for the national defence strategy 2020 – 2024, national security risks, threats and vulnerabilities forecast for next year, the Presidency announced. The last meeting of the Council was held in late May.



    ELECTION The investigation of local election fraud allegations and the elimination of taxes for three years in the hospitality industry rank high on Parliament’s agenda this week. Another topic under debate is the proposed postponement of the legislative election to March 14, 2021. The date originally set for the legislative election is December 6. Unaffiliated MP Adrian Dohotaru, who tabled this proposal, claims the legislative election should be postponed due to the alarming increase in the number of SARS-CoV-2 infections in Romania and the growing pressure on the health care system.



    NOBEL PRIZE The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2020 has been awarded jointly to researchers Harvey J. Alter, Michael Houghton and Charles M. Rice for the discovery of Hepatitis C virus. The recipients of the Nobel Prize for physics, chemistry, literature and peace will also be announced this week. The winner of the Nobel Prize for Economy will be made public on October 12. With the latter’s exception, the other Nobel Prizes were created by the Swedish industrialist Alfred Nobel (1833-1896), the inventor of the dynamite. In 2020, each Nobel Prize will be accompanied by a $1.1 million check, which is more than in previous years. In 2019 the Nobel Prize for Medicine was awarded to American researchers William Kaelin and Gregg Semenza and to British researcher Peter Ratcliffe for their study on how cells sense and adapt to oxygen availability. The Nobel Awards organizers have announced that, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the prize recipients will most likely receive their awards in their home countries, without having to attend an award ceremony in Stockholm. (translated by A.M. Popescu, V. Palcu)

  • October 7, 2019 UPDATE

    October 7, 2019 UPDATE

    JHA Romania’s Justice Minister, Ana Birchall, is attending the first Justice and Home Affairs Council meeting held under the Finnish Presidency of the Council of the EU. The 2-day meeting will focus on EU measures against corruption, combating cross-border crime by means of Eurojust, electronic evidence and the creation of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office. EU officials will also discuss the EU’s accession to the European Court of Human Rights, combating hate speech online, the protection of personal data as well as the relation between democracy, the rule of law and fundamental rights. Minister Birchall will meet with counterparts from Member States on the sidelines of the event.




    MEETING The Romanian Foreign Minister Ramona Mănescu Monday had a meeting in Bucharest with the US Ambassador in Romania, Hans Klemm. The 2 officials initiated a monthly consultation process designed to cover all topics of bilateral interest. The Romanian Foreign Minister reiterated the countrys firm commitment to further broadening the cooperation between Romania and the US, including, among other things, by tapping the potential generated by the recently signed Memorandum of Agreement on cooperation in the civilian nuclear energy field. Ramona Mănescu also expressed Romanias interest in consolidating dialogue with the USA on all the topics related to regional security, including in terms of energy security. The parties also emphasised the positive effect of top-level visits to Washington and New York with respect to strengthening the strategic partnership between Romania and the US.




    CHECKS Transport Minister Razvan Cuc announced additional checks and safety measures will be implemented in traffic considering that last week was marked by numerous accidents, the most serious of which killed 10 people and injured 7. The driver of a truck collided with a minibus on the oncoming lane, preliminary data indicating the possibility he might have fallen asleep while driving. A mixed task force made of representatives of the Police and the State Inspectorate for Traffic Control will examine tachographs to inspect rest hours for professional drivers.




    CYBER THREATS Over half of European citizens say they aren’t sufficiently informed regarding cyber threats, 70% of enterprises stating they hold minimum knowledge regarding such risks while 80% of European enterprises having faced at least one cyber-security incident. The statement was made earlier today by Communications Minister Alexandru Popescu in Bucharest. The Romanian official said the authorities continue to invest significant resources in increasing the level of knowledge, training and pre-emptive capacity, as well as response capabilities in case of cyber-attacks. Minister Popescu went on to say that Romania has enhanced its cyber diplomacy by signing a memorandum of understanding this year with Israel, Poland and the United States regarding the cyber security of hardware and software infrastructure, of telecom networks and systems, including 5G.




    NOBEL The 2019 Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine on Monday was jointly awarded to William Kaelin Jr., Sir Peter Ratcliffe and Gregg Semenza for their pioneering research into how human cells respond to changing oxygen levels. The Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine is the first in the series of Nobel prizes awarded at this time of the year. Last year, the Nobel Prize went on to American researcher James P. Allison and Japanese scholar Tasuku Honjo for their achievements regarding the treatment of cancer.




    FOOTBALL Romania’s national football team met in Bucharest to train for the matches to be played against the Faeroe Islands on October 12 and against Norway at home, on October 15, in the 2020 European Championship preliminaries. Spain is currently top of the tables with 18 points, followed by Sweden with 11 points, Romania with 10 points, Norway with 9 points, Malta with 3 points and the Faeroe Islands with zero points. The top two teams in each group will advance to the Championship. The draw for the 2020 European Championship will be held in Bucharest on November 30. Bucharest will host four matches, three in the group phase and one in the round of 16. Romania’s under-21 team is also playing Ukraine on Thursday at home, and Northern Ireland next Monday, also at home, as part of the 2021 European Championship preliminaries. We recall that this year Romania’s under-21 team reached the semi-finals of the European Championship hosted by Italy and San Marino.


    (translated by: Vlad Palcu, Ana-Maria Popescu)

  • October 1, 2018 UPDATE

    October 1, 2018 UPDATE

    JUDICIARY – The High Court of Cassation and Justice in Bucharest Monday approved a request filed by the National Anti-Corruption Directorate to reopen a case involving the Social Democrat leader, Liviu Dragnea, who is also the speaker of the Chamber of Deputies. Dragnea is accused of abuse of office in this case which was closed in 2013, but prosecutors decided to reopen it following reports from the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF). The investigation will target the award of public contracts to a construction company back when Dragnea was the president of the Teleorman County Council. In fact, Dragnea is currently subject to a second probe in a case concerning the same company. He was also sentenced to 3 and a half years for having ordered the fictitious employment of 2 party members, and has another 2-year suspended sentence for election fraud.



    2018-2019 ACADEMIC YEAR – Nearly half a million students in Romania Monday started a new academic year. President Klaus Iohannis attended the opening ceremony in Iasi, recalling that the city hosted the first modern university in Romania in 1860. The President added that the recent decades, marked by economic and technological advancement, have turned the great university centres in pillars of economic growth. In turn, Prime Minister Viorica Dancila attended the opening ceremony at the Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy in Craiova, saying that the Romanian medical school is an elite school, and that healthcare and education should underlie the development of society. The new academic year starts with the Education Minister position left vacant, after Valentin Popa resigned last week. Rovana Plumb, Minister of European Funds, has been nominated as interim Education Minister.



    REMARKS – The recent changes to the justice legislation in Romania risk throwing the country back in the early 2000s, a period marked by deep corruption, US Ambassador to Bucharest Hans Klemm said today at the opening ceremony of a new academic year at the Law School in Bucharest, also attended by the French Ambassador to Bucharest, Michele Ramis. Hans Klemm referred to the amendments brought to the Criminal Code and Criminal Procedure Code, the modifications brought to the Judicial Inspection Corps, and the magistrates protests against the changes, which were “unimaginable in the past, Klemm argued. In their current version, these amendments will hinder or make it utterly impossible the investigation and prosecution of such crimes as murder and organized crime, the US official went on to say. According to Ambassador Klemm, international cooperation in the justice field will be reduced significantly over worries linked to sharing information with Romania.



    PARLIAMENT – Romanian Senators and Deputies will resume session on Tuesday after attending ceremonies marking the start of a new academic year across the country on Monday. The Chamber of Deputies agenda includes the law regulating the exploitation of natural gas in the Black Sea. The debate and the vote on this matter were delayed by a week. The bill got Senates approval and has been tabled to the Chamber of Deputies. Members of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats in Romania have announced they would introduce several amendments, while Social-Democrat leader Liviu Dragnea wants to delay the vote, to give MPs enough time to analyse and discuss the offshore bill. Also this week the ruling coalition faces two simple motions. The Liberal Party in opposition has filed a simple motion against Finance Minister Eugen Teodorovici in the Chamber of Deputies, while the Save Romania Union and Liberal party have filed a motion against Transport Minister Lucian Sova in the Senate. Both documents will be debated and voted on Wednesday. Parliaments committee investigating the involvement of the Personal Security Service (SPP) in the activity of certain political parties and some of their leaders is also scheduled to start its activity this week.



    NOBEL PRIZE – Scientists James P. Allison of the United States and Tasuku Honjo of Japan were awarded the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 2018 “for their discovery of cancer therapy by inhibition of negative immune regulation. The Nobel Prize for Literature will be announced next year along with the recipient selected for 2019, in the wake of wide-ranging sexual assault allegations targeting members of the Swedish academy, made public by #MeToo. The Academy has thus decided to postpone the literature prize for next year, to allow the institution to reform and replace its outgoing members. Five Nobel prizes were instated by Swedish inventors, industrialist and philanthropist Alfred Nobel, for medicine, chemistry, physics, literature and peace. A sixth Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences was founded by Bank of Sweden in 1968.



    TENNIS – Romanian tennis player Simona Halep is ranked first and enjoys a considerable lead in WTA standings. Halep is up 2,400 points over runner-up Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark and 2,700 against Germanys Angelique Kerber. The gap will shrink starting next week, considering Halep withdrew in the first round in Beijing this year. Last year the Romanian player reached the finals. This is Simonas 48th consecutive week at the top of the womens singles rankings. Also the Romanian player is ranked 11th in an all-time ranking. Other Romanians ranked in the WTA Top 100 are Mihaela Buzarnescu (24), Irina Begu (53), Sorana Cirstea (61), Ana Bogdan (80) and Monica Niculescu (82).


    (translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu, Vlad Palcu)

  • Doctor Carol Davila

    Doctor Carol Davila

    In mid 19th century, when the Romanian principalities of Wallachia and Moldavia were undergoing a modernisation process, they were lacking most institutions associated with the modern world, institutions which were first set up in Western Europe. The healthcare system was one of them. The situation was soon to be changed for the better, when ruler Barbu Stirbey brought to Bucharest doctor Carol Davila. His complete name was Carlo Antonio Francesco d’Avila and, although a French national, he was born in Parma, Italy.



    The exact year of his birth is not known, it is either 1828 or 1830. His father’s name is also unknown. A legend, fuelled by the doctor himself, goes that his parents were countess Marie D’Agoult and composer Franz Liszt. The countess Marie D’Agoult indeed had three children with the famous pianist. One of their daughters, Cosima, came to be Richard Wagner’s wife. Carol, however, the son of the countess, who contributed to the emancipation of a small country in Eastern Europe, didn’t need the name of a famous father to win worldwide acclaim. Although his origins are not clear, his actions, once he settled in Wallachia, were highly appreciated.



    Historian Ion Bulei has more on doctor Carol Davila’s biography: “The modernisation of Romanian society started during those times, when many Romanians studied in Western Europe and then returned to the country. As opposed to that, he was a foreigner who came here, embarking on the same route, but taking the opposite direction, choosing to stay here. This is partly due to his second wife, Ana Racovita, whom he met in 1861. Ana Racovita was related to the Golescu family of noble scholars, and she was a ravishing beauty. Davila fell so deeply in love with her that some historians claim she was actually one of the reasons he chose to stay in the Romanian Principalities. He believed that institutions were essential to the development of a state, and he did a lot from this point of view, by setting up the National Surgery School, in 1855. Later on, in 1869, Davila set up the Medical School. He is also the founder of the pharmaceutical and the veterinary education systems. He set up medical associations and publications, held lectures and made demonstrations, introduced medical courses in hospitals, established a system of free medical check-ups, set up asylums for orphans and deaf mute people, and set up a military ambulance service. After graduation, his students went to the major capitals of the world, to Paris, Rome, Berlin and Vienna. So, Davila was practically present everywhere. He was an extremely active character, being fully aware of a fact: Romania could develop a healthcare system only by setting up such institutions. “



    Carol Davila’s essential contribution to the development of the Romanian medical system was also highly appreciated by those who succeeded Barbu Stirbey at the helm of the country: ruler Alexandru Ioan-Cuza and king Carol I. Actually, his entire family left an indelible mark on certain areas of Romania’s cultural and social life. An energetic and very active individual, Carol Davila was about 56 years old when he passed away, in august 1884. His life was however marked by many illnesses.



    Here is historian Ion Bulei again: “It is true that he suffered from rheumatism. He also suffered from typhus and sciatica. From this point of view, he was unfortunate, but he was a happy, accomplished man from other points of view. He had a model family. He had two sons and two daughters. One of his sons was playwright Alexandru Davila, who was also the artistic director of the National Theatre in Bucharest, in the early 20th century. His daughter Elena married general Petricari and was one of queen Elisabeta’s ladies in attendance. She was a highly cultured and very well informed lady, whose memoirs, written in French and now kept in the archives of the Romanian Academy, describe life at the royal court and Romania’s overall situation. The book shows the author’s well defined literary talent and fascinates the reader with its minute details of daily life, which manage to recreate an atmosphere.”



    Today, doctor Carol Davila continues to be appreciated and honoured by Romanians. The Medical School in Bucharest bears his name, and a life-size statue of Carol Davila is placed in front of the building hosting the institution. A bust of his, by world-famous sculptor of Romanian descent Constantin Brancusi, can also be admired in the courtyard of the Military Hospital in Bucharest.

  • The Medicine Market in Romania

    The Medicine Market in Romania

    First announced
    in March, the cut in the prices of subsidised medicine will come into effect on
    July 1st. A list of medicine whose price is 20% subsidised is to be
    made public prior to the enforcement of the measure. Pharmacists are discontent
    with the fact that the government order regulating subsidised medication and
    the list of new prices is made public only one day before the measure comes
    into force. The vice-chairman of the Pharmacists’ Board in Romania, Clara
    Popescu, says pharmacies have very little time to establish the new prices and
    create the new medicine lists:


    It is
    absurd to expect pharmacies to be ready to enforce the measure on July 1st.
    They will not be able to enter thousands of medicines into their data bases in
    a few hours.


    Producers of
    generic drugs warn that cutting prices may also have undesired consequences
    such as the disappearance of very cheap drugs from the market. They say the
    sale price may end up being lower than production costs. Producers have already
    notified the ministry that they have put 1,200 products on their black list,
    products used mainly to treat heart, digestive and rheumatic conditions and
    which can be bought for a few lei in pharmacies. The cut may also entail an
    increase in exports, which will not benefit Romanian patients. The state
    secretary in the healthcare ministry, Dorel Sandesc told Radio Romania that the
    authorities would take measures if necessary:


    Parallel export has been practised and we cannot ignore the risk that it may
    grow if medicines become cheaper. The healthcare ministry will, however, keep a
    close eye on this phenomenon and block the export of essential drugs that could
    endanger the treatment for Romanian patients. We will also punish all failure
    by the public healthcare service to ensure the needed medication for the
    Romanian patients.


    Another
    temporary consequence may be the increase in the price of non-subsidised
    medication because pharmacies with large stocks of subsidised drugs will want
    to compensate for the losses caused by the cut in the price of those drugs.
    Pharmacists are even afraid of bankruptcy. Dorel Sandesc defends the measure,
    saying it will save the healthcare fund money and allow the introduction of
    new, revolutionary drugs.