Healthcare leaders consider HIT’s potential in promoting greater health equity and patient-entered care vs. its potential to unintentionally increase existing disparities in health and health care.
The current issue of the Journal of Public Health Management and Practice, provides a definitive analysis of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), which is now under fire as unconstitutional exercise of federal power.
According to the authors of “Swimming Upstream? Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Cultural Ascendancy of Public Health,” the act provides the first true opportunity to elevate the nation’s commitment to the most critical elements of public health – disease prevention, wellness promotion, and population-based interventions.
Research at UCLA shows that thegreater a teen's addiction to nicotine, the less active the prefrontal cortex is, suggesting that smoking can affect brain function.
GW Health Policy Researchers, led by Wilhelmine Miller, Ph.D., associate research professor in the School of Public Health and Health Services, Department of Health Policy, played a major role in the supplement of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine (AJPM), funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF).
An "implementation science" approach will play a critical role in the next phase of The U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), according to an editorial in JAIDS: Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes. The journal is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health.
A preventive dental program targeting preschoolers under age 4 administered by physicians instead of dentists effectively reduces the need for tooth decay-related treatment among young children, a University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill study shows.
UT Southwestern investigators found that patrons of black-owned barbershops who had their blood pressure regularly measured there and who were encouraged to follow up with their physicians were nearly nine times more likely to see a physician than patrons who were simply given hypertension literature.
Recently, a research team from the Department of Emergency Medicine at Jefferson Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University discovered an alarming amount of lead contamination in ceramic cooking and eating utensils sold in Philadelphia’s Chinatown.
New research that reveals how maternal antibodies block an immune response to the measles virus is a first step toward improving current childhood vaccination practices, scientists say.
Dermatologist at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center who has done tanning research is available to comment about the American Academy of Pediatrics support of legislation to ban tanning by minors.
Nearly two-thirds of Americans age 70 and older have hearing loss, but those who are of black race seem to have a protective effect against this loss, according to a new study led by Johns Hopkins and National Institute on Aging researchers.
Insurers and consumers spent $52.2 billion on prescription drugs in 2008 for outpatient treatment of metabolic conditions such as diabetes and elevated cholesterol.
A new study by a researcher at the University of Arkansas shows that Internet kiosks providing information on prenatal and postnatal care for mother and baby have helped reduce infant, child and maternal mortality rates in rural India. Contrary to traditional assumptions about the positive effects of social networks, the study’s findings demonstrated that strong social ties in rural villages did not help women seek and obtain appropriate medical care.
According to a new study published February 24 in the peer-reviewed journal Environmental Health Perspectives (EHP), serum polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) at concentrations found in the general U.S. population are associated with the failure of fertilized embryos to implant in the uterus after in vitro fertilization (IVF). This study may help explain earlier reports of impaired reproduction and increased time to pregnancy among women exposed to PCBs. “Our findings provide insight into a specific time point following conception that determines whether a pregnancy will occur that may be particularly sensitive to PCB exposure,” says lead author John Meeker.
Bans on using credit cards to pay for cigarettes bought on Internet sites – combined with bans on commercial shippers delivering the products – appear to have effectively reduced the size and reach of the online cigarette sales industry, a new University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill study shows.
Electricity use has health benefits in diverse populations worldwide, but the relationship is not linear, and increasing use past a certain threshold may not add benefits. Additionally, those benefits may be offset by negative health impacts of the fuel used to generate electricity. A multitiered analysis published February 21 in the peer-reviewed journal Environmental Health Perspectives (EHP) investigates the relationship between coal consumption, electricity use, and health impacts, as well as the related implications for climate and energy policy.
While many researchers generally credit the desire for smaller families for the decline in fertility rates in developing, low-income countries, new research suggests that prevention of unwanted births may actually be a larger factor.
Adelaide researchers have taken a step closer to the development of a universal flu vaccine, with results of a recent study showing that a vaccine delivered by a simple nasal spray could provide protection against influenza.
1) Behavioral interventions modestly increased physical activity among healthy adults; 2) Racial minorities more likely than non-Hispanic Whites to be light, intermittent smokers; 3) A shift in approach of substance abuse treatment may be beneficial.
Cigarette smoking has been linked with overproduction of mucus associated with chronic bronchitis, according to a study conducted by researchers in New Mexico. The study indicates cigarette smoke suppresses a protein that causes the natural death of mucus-producing cells in the airways of bronchitis patients.
Infectious disease experts at Johns Hopkins say new research clearly shows that screening teens and young adults for sexually transmitted infections may best be achieved by making free, confidential home-kit testing available over the Internet. From a public health standpoint, the project is a clear winner, the experts say.
Motorcycle helmets, long known to dramatically reduce the number of brain injuries and deaths from crashes, appear to also be associated with a lower risk of cervical spine injury, new research from Johns Hopkins suggests.
While a new study finds that consumer interest in electronic cigarettes runs high, a companion study underscores that e-cigarettes' ability to help smokers cut down or quit is unknown, as is their safety.
The FDA, through the new Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act, is considering banning outdoor tobacco product advertising at various distances from schools and playgrounds. The tobacco industry is challenging these rules on First Amendment grounds, arguing that they would lead to a near complete ban on tobacco advertising in dense urban areas. A new study by the Center for Tobacco Policy Research (CTPR) at Washington University in St. Louis found that a 1000-foot buffer would still allow for tobacco ads. Smaller buffer zones of 350 feet may result in almost no reduction of outdoor tobacco advertising.
Obesity is more prevalent in areas with lower educational attainment and certain ethnic profiles than in areas of suburban sprawl, according to researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago.
A $4 million, five-year grant from the National Cancer Institute will create a Texas regional Community Networks Program Center (CNPC), called Latinos Contra El Cancer, to reduce cancer-related health disparities among Texas Latinos.
Alabama hunters fell out of tree stands at an alarming rate during the recent deer-hunting season. Fourteen fell and four died — the highest number of fatalities from tree-stand falls ever seen in a single year in the state, says the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.
Danish scientists, in a study published in American Chemical Society’s journal, Chemical Research in Toxicology, found that the invisible particles inhaled into the lungs from breathing wood smoke from fireplaces have multiple adverse effects.
What may start as a seemingly harmless day of gardening or yard work can quickly take a turn for the worse when common plants make their mark on the skin, causing a host of mild to even severe skin reactions. That is why dermatologists are arming outdoor enthusiasts with preventative tips to keep these perils of the great outdoors at arm’s length.
The first assessment of the total cost of dengue illness in the Americas reveals the economic burden to be approximately $2.1 billion per year, exceeding that from other viral illnesses including human papillomavirus (HPV) and rotavirus. Results of the study conducted by Brandeis University were released in the February issue of the American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene.
Growing up poor increases a person’s likelihood of health problems as an adult, but a new study led by a Cornell University environmental psychologist shows that being raised in a tight-knit community can help offset this disadvantage of poverty.
Even minute amounts of lead may take a toll on pregnant women, according to a study published by Lynn Goldman, M.D., M.S., M.P.H., Dean of George Washington University’s School of Public Health and Health Services in D.C., and colleagues, in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives. Although the levels of lead in the women’s blood remained far below thresholds set by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and standards set by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, women carrying more lead had significantly higher blood pressure.
In the current issue of Journal of Public Health Management and Practice, public health experts assert that improved community engagement is needed to prevent the spread of pandemics. The observations are based on an assessment of distribution and vaccination trends for the H1N1 vaccine in Los Angeles County in 2009, with a special focus on the African American community. The Journal of Public Health Management and Practice is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a Wolters Kluwer Health company.
A study of more than 14,000 men and women whose hearts stopped suddenly suggests that the chances of survival are very high if such cardiac arrests are witnessed in large public venues, including airports, sports arenas or malls. The reasons, researchers say, are that almost four out of five such cases appear to be due to a survivable type of heart rhythm disruption and that big places with lots of people are more likely to have an automated external defibrillator, or AED device, handy, along with those who can apply it as well as CPR.
Senator Frank R. Lautenberg (D-NJ), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Superfund, Toxics, and Environmental Health, will hold a hearing to examine the effectiveness of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). GW School of Public Health and Health Services Dean Lynn Goldman will testify at the hearing.
The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center's popular web-based teen prevention and smoking-cessation program, ASPIRE (A Smoking Prevention Interactive Experience), now speaks Spanish.
A team of applied economists suggests a new approach to monitoring the relationship between nutrition and child mortality in developing countries. Based on their analysis of health surveys from 130 countries, change in the numbers of mildly underweight children can serve as a better indicator of underlying public health threats than standard measures.
Complementary and alternative medicine use increased among blacks, whites, Asian-Americans and Hispanics between 2002 and 2007, but at different rates.
At a time when access to prompt treatment might affect survival, a large new study finds that African-American and Hispanic women newly diagnosed with breast cancer often face delays in care of more than a month.
In the confined space of a classroom, gastrointestinal illnesses can spread quickly, causing sufferers many painful and uncomfortable symptoms. But what is to blame for a school-based outbreak? In most cases, improper food handling is the culprit, says a Ryerson University public health expert.
Highly-caffeinated energy drinks – even those without alcohol – may pose a significant threat to individuals and public health, say researchers at the University of Maryland School of Public Health and Wake Forest University School of Medicine. They recommend action by health providers, consumer, manufacturers and federal regulators.