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American medical students less likely to choose to become primary care doctors

Despite hospital systems and health officials calling out the need for more primary care doctors, graduates of U.S. medical schools are becoming less likely to choose to specialize in one of those fields.

3 Jul 2019

Many grandparents’ medications are not safely stored around grandchildren, poll finds

Whether it's a rare treat or a weekly routine, spending time with grandchildren brightens life for many older adults. But a new poll suggests many of them could do more to reduce the risk of their medications harming their grandchild.

1 Jul 2019

More seniors are dying in falls. Doctors could do more to reduce the risk.

Older adults worried about falling typically receive general advice: Take an exercise class. Get your vision checked. Stop taking medications for sleep. Install grab bars in the bathroom.

27 Jun 2019

Expanding role of registered nurses in primary care

Nurse-researchers at South Dakota State University are helping rural clinics more fully utilize registered nurses in primary care and have expanded the nursing curriculum to better prepare students to deliver that care.

27 Jun 2019

‘Medicare for All’ emerges as early divide in first democratic debate

During Wednesday night's Democratic presidential primary debate — the first in a two-night event viewed as the de facto launch of the primary season — health policies, ranging from "Medicare for All" to efforts to curb skyrocketing drug prices, were among the key issues the 10 hopeful candidates onstage used to help differentiate themselves from the pack.

27 Jun 2019

Machine learning can be a modern approach in cognitive brain health assessment

Worldwide, about 44 million people are living with Alzheimer's disease or a related form of dementia.

26 Jun 2019

San Francisco set to ban sales of e-cigarettes

San Francisco's Board of Supervisors is slated to vote Tuesday to ban the sale and distribution of e-cigarettes in the city. The city is the corporate home of Juul Labs, the biggest producer of e-cigarettes in the country.

25 Jun 2019

In secret, seniors discuss ‘rational suicide’

Ten residents slipped away from their retirement community one Sunday afternoon for a covert meeting in a grocery store cafe. They aimed to answer a taboo question: When they feel they have lived long enough, how can they carry out their own swift and peaceful death?

25 Jun 2019

Top four things seniors need to know to have a safe and healthy summer

Summer is a great time to get active, spend time with friends and family, and enjoy the outdoors. For adults age 65 or older, summertime weather can also pose health challenges.

24 Jun 2019

Five ways to help keep senior citizens safe during summer

Not everyone is aware that summer weather and activities may be challenging for older adults. Senior citizens react differently to hot weather than younger people.

22 Jun 2019

Government policy and infrastructure have substantial impact on hospitalization of seniors

Government policy and infrastructure have a substantial impact on hospitalization of older adults, according to a University of Waterloo study.

18 Jun 2019

Payroll tax is one state’s bold solution to help seniors age at home

Nearly a decade after federal officials discarded a provision in the Affordable Care Act that would have provided Americans with long-term care insurance benefits, two states — Washington and Hawaii — are experimenting with taxpayer-funded plans to help older residents remain in their homes.

7 Jun 2019

ASTRO applauds new prior authorization legislation that aims to reduce obstacles in cancer care

On behalf of the nation's radiation oncologists and the more-than one million cancer patients in their care this year, the American Society for Radiation Oncology applauded today's introduction of bipartisan federal legislation that would rein in restrictive prior authorization practices that unnecessarily delay patient access to critical cancer treatments.

6 Jun 2019

Social Security error jeopardizes Medicare coverage for 250,000 seniors

At least a quarter of a million Medicare beneficiaries may receive bills for as many as five months of premiums they thought they already paid.

6 Jun 2019

Home-based exercise program reduces subsequent falls in high-risk seniors

An in-home exercise program reduced subsequent falls in high-risk seniors by 36 per cent, according the results of a 12-month clinical trial published today in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

4 Jun 2019

People living with HIV have increased risk for heart diseases and face health challenges

Effective antiretroviral therapy has changed the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) from a progressive, fatal disease to a chronic, manageable condition that is associated with higher rates of heart attacks, strokes, heart failure, sudden cardiac deaths, and other diseases compared to people without HIV, according to a new scientific statement from the American Heart Association published in the Association journal Circulation.

3 Jun 2019

Researchers find link between high LDL cholesterol levels and early-onset Alzheimer's

Researchers with the Atlanta Veterans Affairs Medical Center and Emory University have found a link between high LDL cholesterol levels and early-onset Alzheimer's disease.

29 May 2019

Delirium increases risk of cognitive dysfunction, but only in the first postoperative month

New research indicates that older patients who develop delirium - an acute attentional deficit that waxes and wanes, right after surgery are more likely to show signs of postoperative cognitive dysfunction one month later.

29 May 2019

Study tests telephone-based care program for at-risk homebound seniors

Something as simple as a phone call could be a way to alert health care providers and caregivers that an elderly person suffering from dementia may be spiraling down to dangerous self-neglect, according to researchers at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston

28 May 2019

Tips to stay safe and well when temperatures soar

Dehydration, sunburn, heatstroke, insect bites, rashes, and lacerations – summer can spell health meltdown with a seemingly endless list of unsightly, uncomfortable, and potentially lethal hazards.

24 May 2019