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Press releases Saturday 22 October 2005
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(1) RETIRING EARLY IS NOT LINKED TO LONGER LIFE
(2) NHS SHOULD HAVE AN INDEPENDENT REGULATOR
(1) RETIRING EARLY IS NOT LINKED TO LONGER LIFE
Online First
(Age at retirement and long term survival of an industrial population:
prospective cohort study)
http://bmj.bmjjournals.com/cgi/rapidpdf/bmj.38586.448704.E0
Retiring early is not linked to longer life, finds new research published online by the BMJ today.
There is a widespread perception that early retirement is associated with longer life expectancy and later retirement is associated with early death. But no consensus has been reached on the effect of early retirement on survival.
The study took place in the US state of Texas and involved over 3,500 employees of the petrochemical industry who retired at 55, 60, and 65. Participants were monitored for up to 26 years to assess whether there was any survival advantage of early retirement.
After adjusting for factors such as sex and socioeconomic status, the researchers found that employees who retired at 55 had a significantly increased mortality compared with those who retired at 65. In fact mortality was almost twice as high in the first 10 years after retirement at 55 compared with those who continued working.
In contrast, employees who retired at 60 had similar survival to those who retired at 65.
Although some workers retired at 55 because of failing health, these results clearly show that early retirement is not associated with increased survival, conclude the authors. On the contrary, mortality improved with increasing age at retirement for people from both high and low socioeconomic groups.
Contact:
Bernadette Cunnane, Shell Media
Relations, Shell International, London, UK
Email: bernadette.cunnane@shell.com
(2) NHS SHOULD HAVE AN INDEPENDENT REGULATOR
(Letter: Time for Ofhealth)
http://bmj.com/cgi/content/full/331/7522/965
The NHS should have an independent regulator like other public utilities in the UK, argues a senior doctor in this week’s BMJ.
Many public utilities have independent regulators to see that commercial interests and unfair pricing do not disadvantage the public.
At present the UK does not have an independent regulator of healthcare reform, yet the consequences of ill judged reform of the NHS may inflict long term damage to the delivery of health care to its citizens, says Ian Kunkler, a consultant at the Western General Hospital in Edinburgh.
He believes that the shortcomings of the private finance initiative are persuasive arguments for an independent regulator, and suggests that key tests might include equity of access to care; collaboration between healthcare professionals, managers, and patients, and financial prudency and transparency.
“If these golden rules were met, the UK government would be more likely to carry the support of the public and NHS professionals to meet the healthcare challenges of the 21st century,” he concludes.
Contact:
Ian Kunkler, Consultant in Clinical
Oncology, Western General Hospital, Edinburgh, Scotland Currently in Spain
Email: i.kunkler@ed.ac.uk
(3) “A VIRTUAL KATRINA” OF DEATHS EVERY WEEK IN US DUE TO RACIAL HEALTH GAP
(Editorial: Left behind:
the legacy of hurricane Katrina)
http://bmj.com/cgi/content/full/331/7522/916
Research estimates that health inequalities between white and black Americans cause 84,000 extra deaths every year – equating to a virtual hurricane Katrina every week, says an editorial in this week’s BMJ.
But because the victims die gradually from diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, cancer, HIV, and from drug and alcohol abuse, the public are generally unaware of the scale of the fatalities.
Hurricane Katrina has exposed US health inequalities, though these are not unique to America’s racial legacy, argue the authors. Poverty, unemployment, alienation and neglect all contribute to the health divide for the poorest and for minority communities across the US, the UK and other western countries.
In America, however, the result is a health gap which has endured despite years of health developments and economic growth, and progress on race issues.
The hurricane’s devastating aftermath exposes the policy changes – from both government and the private sector – which must be introduced to tackle the health divide, say the authors. These include investing in prevention not just rescue strategies, strengthening public health systems, and supporting responsible choices by individuals. For instance, promoting healthy eating and exercise is only of limited benefit in poor communities where “parks and supermarkets are less common than fast food chains and stores selling alcohol.”
As the US rushes to rebuild its southern states, Americans should think carefully about how they could create healthier and more equal communities. “It is even more important that we and others apply these lessons to help the many other individuals and communities with poor health who continue to languish out of the public eye,” they conclude.
Contact:
David Atkins, Chief Medical Officer,
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Maryland, USA
Email: datkins@ahrq.gov
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