Economic Troubles Bring Security Threats to Business

According to Mr. Roger Ameriks from Crown Security Group in New Zealand, his company is seeing increasing demand from a number of organizations and individuals who may not have previously needed security services.

Roger and his team at Crown Security Group offer global experience in security at the highest level, including Close Protection work for the Saudi Royal Family, Diplomats, VIPs, corporate heads and celebrities. The company also offers specialist training in security services throughout the world, sought after by various military and government agencies, and corporations.

Now, the team are seeing the world's financial sector in the security spotlight as stress levels continue to rise.

"Protocols need to be put in place to address all issues of security and personal safety in the business environment. We're getting a lot of enquiries from people reassessing their security needs," Roger says.

Redundancies are a sad reality of the world's struggling economy, with tens of thousands of people losing their jobs in recent months. Roger says disgruntled employees burdened by financial worries can give rise to a host of security threats for a company.

"Employers need to consider security issues when making redundancies. It's prudent to have a discreet security presence at redundancy announcements and meetings in case tensions boil over," Roger says. "An ex-employee has an intimate knowledge of a business, so measures need to be taken to remove risks to people and property should someone decide to act on their frustration at losing their job."

As economies falls on hard times, the likelihood of rifts between business partners and colleagues also increases. In many years of security at the highest level, Roger has seen anger erupt into physical aggression in numerous settings - including the boardroom.

"Financial pressure pushes people into desperation, and they do things they wouldn't normally do. Things can turn ugly very quickly - good security is about being one step ahead to avoid that."

Corporate heads may also face threats to their personal safety in an ailing economy as people vent their anger at losing money, or their jobs.

"Contrary to popular belief, close personal protection is not just for celebrities. For a businessperson feeling vulnerable, having a protection professional looking after their personal safety allows them to get on with their lives and running their business, and know they are safe doing it," says Roger.

Employee theft is another aspect to consider as people feel the pinch of a turbulent economy and rising living costs. A security audit can significantly reduce the risk of a company falling victim, Roger says.

Ultimately, he says addressing security in a business or organization is not about scaremongering or raising suspicion. "It's about raising awareness of security issues and putting sound systems in place to keep people and the business safe from the very real threats that are out there these days."

Crown Security Group (http://www.crownsecuritygroup.co.nz/)

Healthcare industry using more radiology tests

Use of radiology imaging tests has soared in the past decade with a significant increase in newer technologies, according to a new study that is the first to track imaging patterns in a managed care setting over a substantial time period.

Study results are reported in the November/December 2008 issue of the journal "Health Affairs," which focuses on the pros and cons of the medical technology boom, the biggest driver of increasing healthcare costs.

A team of researchers from the University of California, San Francisco and the Group Health Center for Health Studies in Seattle conducted the study using data from 377,000 patients enrolled in the Group Health Cooperative in Washington state between 1997 and 2006. The study population underwent five million radiology tests during this 10-year period.

Analysis showed an increase in all type of imaging technologies, with the majority of the tests being X-ray procedures. The average total imaging cost per patient, per year doubled during the study period, from $229 to $443.

The most striking finding was the increase in the number of newer and pricier tests such as computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging scans, according to the research team. In 1997, 13.5 percent of the study group had undergone a CT, MRI, or both, and in 2006 it was 21 percent. Study results showed the per-patient number of CT scans doubled over the 10 years, and the number of MRI scans tripled.

This increase in CT and MRI imaging appeared across the board, with no single patient group or disease group dominating, according to lead author Rebecca Smith-Bindman, MD, an associate professor of radiology and biomedical imaging, epidemiology and biostatistics, and obstetrics, gynecology, and reproductive sciences at UCSF.

The goal with newer imaging tests is to use them in the most efficient and effective way possible and as a replacement for older, less accurate tests, emphasized Smith-Bindman. "But we found the newer tests, such as CT and MRI, are being added on top of the old tests, such as X-rays, rather than replacing them -- and this increases costs.

"Like first-time parents taking baby pictures, we may be overdoing it with newer diagnostic imaging tests. Using these tests wisely can detect treatable diseases and save lives. Excess imaging may be too much of a good thing. In addition to health care costs, we need to consider patients' exposure to potentially cancer-causing radiation. The benefit of testing needs to be balanced against the risk," she said.

Smith-Bindman's study confirms previous reports of a trend toward over-imaging, including one that found imaging has risen faster than any other medical service that Medicare patients receive.

The study findings also highlight concern about a correlation between the type of health care practice and rates of imaging, Smith-Bindman said. "Unlike managed care systems such as Group Health that receive a fixed amount to care for each patient, 'fee-for-service' practices get financial rewards for doing extra testing, including recouping investments in office-based scanning equipment. It is likely that rates of testing are higher in fee-for-service practice, and this habit of doing more imaging may be spreading into managed care."

The study did not address the appropriateness of imaging and whether the increase was associated with improvements in patient care, and this is an area that needs further study, the research team noted.

"Our results definitely highlight the need to curb unnecessary imaging. In future research we need to examine the value of imaging so that we can assess when the new technology leads to improved patient care and improved outcomes, and when the value of new technologies is limited or nonexistent. In all cases, we need to use the technology in a way that limits unnecessary exposure to radiation," Smith-Bindman said.

Study co-authors were Diana L. Miglioretti, PhD, associate investigator, and Eric B. Larson, MD, MPH, executive director, both of the Group Health Center for Health Studies.

The study was supported by funding from the Group Health Center for Health Studies.

The Group Health Center for Health Studies conducts research on preventing, diagnosing, and treating major health problems. Government and private research grants provide its main funding. Group Health Cooperative is a Seattle-based, consumer-governed, nonprofit health care system that integrates care and coverage.

UCSF is a leading university dedicated to promoting health worldwide through advanced biomedical research, graduate-level education in the life sciences and health professions, and excellence in patient care.

Have you heard about medical tourism?

Let me show you my holiday photos. This is me in the hospital. These are the stitches from my operation. Sound strange? Maybe, but we think medical tourism may be the wave of the future.

Medical tourism is based on the fact that healthcare is so expensive in the USA that if you need or want elective surgery, for anything from a facelift or dental implants to a hip replacement or heart bypass, it's more cost effective to have the procedure done in India, Thailand or Costa Rica than at home in America. Maybe it's because domestic hospitals have to pay so much to insurance companies for malpractice coverage. I guess that blame would then go back to greed, or lawyers, or greedy lawyers, but that's not the point.

Whatever the root cause, surgery is so expensive in the United States that it's cheaper to fly to New Dehli and have your operation there than it is to stay home. Figures posted at medical tourism websites say you and a partner can fly to Thailand, enjoy the beaches, visit some temples, have an operation and fly back home for about 75% less. No wonder medical tourism is gaining so much attention.

Here's another twist: Companies are finding it cheaper to cancel their employee health benefit insurance and instead, self-insure their employees by sending them overseas for medical treatment. Of course the care they get is just as good. World-class healthcare quality is assured by dealing only with internationally accredited hospitals.

And it's not only happening in America. Canadians and Europeans, who have nationally funded healthcare, are going overseas because they don't have to wait in long waiting lists. Why wait a year for knee surgery when you can get it tomorow in Bangkok?

Isn't life strange?