The most recent Australian suicide statistics from 2013 show that, out of the whole population, men aged 85 years and over have the highest suicide rates. While the attention these figures have garnered is a positive sign, this is hardly a new phenomenon. [ + ]

The challenge of meeting the needs of our ageing population – today and into the future – is considerable. It cannot be achieved in insolation from government, health and community services, and other industries including technology, design and business services. Partnerships are critical to maximising efficiency and quality of the care and services provided to older Australians. Central to such partnerships is a co-design approach that puts older Australians and their families at the heart of all decision-making, and engages people from across industries and disciplines with the shared goal of providing the best possible care and services. [ + ]

Mental health problems are common in young people and often have their first onset during this period of life. But many affected youth either don’t seek or delay seeking professional help. [ + ]

At this year's Australia Museum Eureka Prizes, a ninth-grader stole the show with her myth-busting video explain just exactly why we have an appendix. Her diagnosis of the misunderstood organ's crucial role in gut health saw Paige Bebee from Ivanhoe Girls’ Grammar School in Victoria awarded the University of Sydney Sleek Geeks Science Eureka Prize – Secondary category for her video, The Secret of the Appendix. [ + ]

The National Safety and Quality in Health Services Standards were introduced in 2011 by The Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care (the Commission), under the National Health Reform Act. [ + ]

Michael Vagg, Barwon Health [ + ]

Jeffrey Craig, Murdoch Childrens Research Institute [ + ]

For decades, clinicians and researchers have been concerned about patients getting treatments, including operations, that don’t work. As well as failing to treat the original health problem, ineffective care exposes patients to complications and side-effects and waste precious health-care resources. [ + ]

[ + ]

Aric Bendorf, University of Sydney; Ainsley Newson, University of Sydney, and Ian Kerridge, University of Sydney [ + ]

The science of sleep medicine has long proved difficult in the treatment of chronic insomnia, with researchers still not convinced of the effectiveness of sleeping pills currently on the market. However, researchers at Penn University in the US have found that a half-and-half mixture of sleeping pills and placebo tablets might be just as effective as a nightly schedule of sleep medication for treating chronic insomnia. [ + ]

Surgeons perform faster and with more accuracy when listening to music, according to a study published in the Aesthetic Surgery Journal. [ + ]

Technology company Polycom conducted a survey of over 1,200 healthcare professionals between October 2014 – April 2015. The respondents were asked about what they believed were the greatest challenges to the future of healthcare. While funding and access to healthcare were clear leaders in current challenges to healthcare, North American respondents indicated that the heavy demand on health service infrastructure was the biggest strain on their own industry. To overcome these healthcare bottlenecks by 2025, technology developments such as mobile, the Internet of Things (IoT) and big data, will play a critical role. [ + ]

At this week’s Health Informatics Conference 2015, Queensland Health announced the founding of eHealth Queensland, a dedicated eHealth division in a move to bring together the statewide rollout of electronic medical records (EMRs) in state hospitals and patient information viewing solution called The Viewer. [ + ]

Mater Health Services Brisbane has upgraded its IT infrastructure to meet growing demands for its network of 2,000 virtual desktops which will number 5,000 units in hospitals, clinics, remote sites and on ruggedised devices in the field over the next 18 months. [ + ]