Health Disparities News and Research

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Health disparities (also called healthcare inequality in some countries) refer to gaps in the quality of health and health care across racial, ethnic, sexual orientation and socioeconomic groups.

Communications aimed at shifting organizational culture can overcome gender differences in career paths

To attract and maintain a diverse, qualified academic workforce, institutions of higher education should have - and promote - policies to help balance career and family life, according to an article published by UC Davis researchers in the June 2013 issue of Academic Medicine.

6 Jun 2013

Study: Offering flu vaccines at elementary schools could expand vaccination rates, reduce costs

Offering flu vaccines at elementary schools could expand vaccination rates and reduce costs, according to a new study reported in the scientific journal Vaccine by researchers from UC Davis Health System; the Monroe County, New York, Department of Public Health; University of Rochester Medical Center; and U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

6 Jun 2013

Johns Hopkins researchers find interstate variations in rates of emergency bowel surgeries

Johns Hopkins researchers have documented huge and somewhat puzzling interstate variations in the percentage of emergency versus elective bowel surgeries. Figuring out precisely why the differences occur is critical, they say, because people forced to undergo emergency procedures are far more likely to die from their operations than those able to plan ahead for them.

5 Jun 2013

Racial and ethnic disparities in obese children may be determined by risk factors in infancy

Racial and ethnic disparities in children who are overweight and obese may be determined by risk factors in infancy and early childhood, according to a study published Online First by JAMA Pediatrics, a JAMA Network publication.

4 Jun 2013

Three health education leaders to be honored as 2013 Champions of Health Professions Diversity

Three inspiring leaders in health education will be honored by The California Wellness Foundation as the 2013 Champions of Health Professions Diversity for their successful efforts to improve the health and wellness of California's most underserved communities.

4 Jun 2013

Researchers find that stress of poverty influences health costs among resilient kids

Children living in poverty who appear to succeed socially may be failing biologically. Students able to overcome the stress of growing up poor are labeled "resilient" because of their ability to overcome adversity, but University of Georgia researchers found this resiliency has health costs that last well into adulthood.

3 Jun 2013

SLU assistant professor receives grant to identify policies that improve health of African-American men

An assistant professor at Saint Louis University's College for Public Health and Social Justice has received a $100,000, two-year grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to determine which behaviors and policies are most likely to improve the health of African-American men.

31 May 2013

National Sleep Awareness month: ACOEM focuses on the impact of sleep disorders in workplace

In recognition of May as National Sleep Awareness month, the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine's ongoing awareness campaign to address chronic disease in the workplace is focusing on the impact of sleep disorders on worker health and productivity.

27 May 2013

Highlights: Geography's role in elective surgeries in Calif.; Conn. Democrats eye shifting $400M in Medicaid money; HHS says Cedars-Sinai has $2.2M in billing errors

Geography plays a role in whether patients in California have elective operations such as joint replacement, weight loss surgery and gallbladder removal, according to a new study. The California HealthCare Foundation study showed wide variations in patient surgeries across the state (Gorman, 5/22).

24 May 2013

Second annual conference to reduce genomic health disparities

Researchers in genomic health disparities from the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine and the Stanford University School of Medicine have teamed up to hold the second annual "Why We Can't Wait: Conference to Eliminate Health Disparities in Genomic Medicine."

23 May 2013

GWU launches Avance Center for the Advancement of Immigrant/Refugee Health

Today the George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services announced the launch of the Avance Center for the Advancement of Immigrant/Refugee Health, a collaboration between SPHHS, the Maryland Multicultural Youth Centers, the Rivera Group, and other community partners.

22 May 2013

Obesity directly tied to several cancers

"Obesity is a major risk factor for developing cancer, roughly the equivalent of tobacco use, and both are potentially reversible. Further, obese cancer patients do worse in surgery, with radiation or on chemotherapy - worse by any measure." Karen Basen-Engquist, Ph.D., Director of MD Anderson's new Center for Energy Balance in Cancer Prevention and Survivorship and professor of Behavioral Science.

22 May 2013

Vitamin C kills drug-resistant TB bacteria in lab

In a striking, unexpected discovery, researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University have determined that vitamin C kills drug-resistant tuberculosis bacteria in laboratory culture.

22 May 2013

Roundup: Okla. governor pushes funding fix to cover 9,000 on Medicaid; Texas lawmakers OK new mental health funds

Gov. Mary Fallin proposed a last-minute legislative change Friday to the state's Insure Oklahoma program that would direct $50 million in state tobacco taxes to pay for more than 9,000 people who are expected to lose their health insurance under the program.

21 May 2013

State rejections of Medicaid expansion likely to widen health disparities

The Los Angeles Times reports that states opting against expanded eligibility -- among them, some of the nation's unhealthiest -- could fall even further behind as the Affordable Care Act is implemented. News outlets also offer reports from Arizona, Michigan, Wisconsin, Ohio, California, Florida and Virginia.

21 May 2013

UC Davis scientists detect novel molecular target for multiple sclerosis

Working with lab mice models of multiple sclerosis, UC Davis scientists have detected a novel molecular target for the design of drugs that could be safer and more effective than current FDA-approved medications against MS.

17 May 2013

Robotic transplantation may reduce health disparities for obese patients with chronic kidney failure

Obese patients who received robotic kidney transplants had fewer wound complications than patients who received traditional "open" transplant surgery, according to surgeons at the University of Illinois Hospital & Health Sciences System.

17 May 2013

People diagnosed with cancer are more likely to declare bankruptcy

People diagnosed with cancer are more than two-and-a-half times more likely to declare bankruptcy than those without cancer, according to a new study from Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. Researchers also found that younger cancer patients had two- to five-fold higher bankruptcy rates compared to older patients, and that overall bankruptcy filings increased as time passed following diagnosis.

17 May 2013

Low income African-American adults living closer to fast food restaurants have higher BMI

African-American adults living closer to a fast food restaurant had a higher body mass index than those who lived further away from fast food, according to researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, and this association was particularly strong among those with a lower income.

17 May 2013

College of Nursing wins grant to implement community health and wellness program

The Ohio State University College of Nursing and Making a Difference, Inc. have teamed up to win a $60,000 dollar grant from The Ohio State University Office of Outreach and Engagement to address health disparities by implementing a comprehensive community health and wellness program in a Near East Side neighborhood of Columbus, OH.

16 May 2013

Health Disparities News and Research

Further Reading

Communications aimed at shifting organizational culture can overcome gender differences in career paths

Study: Offering flu vaccines at elementary schools could expand vaccination rates, reduce costs

Johns Hopkins researchers find interstate variations in rates of emergency bowel surgeries

Racial and ethnic disparities in obese children may be determined by risk factors in infancy

Three health education leaders to be honored as 2013 Champions of Health Professions Diversity

Researchers find that stress of poverty influences health costs among resilient kids

SLU assistant professor receives grant to identify policies that improve health of African-American men

National Sleep Awareness month: ACOEM focuses on the impact of sleep disorders in workplace

Highlights: Geography's role in elective surgeries in Calif.; Conn. Democrats eye shifting $400M in Medicaid money; HHS says Cedars-Sinai has $2.2M in billing errors

Second annual conference to reduce genomic health disparities

GWU launches Avance Center for the Advancement of Immigrant/Refugee Health

Obesity directly tied to several cancers

Vitamin C kills drug-resistant TB bacteria in lab

Roundup: Okla. governor pushes funding fix to cover 9,000 on Medicaid; Texas lawmakers OK new mental health funds

State rejections of Medicaid expansion likely to widen health disparities

UC Davis scientists detect novel molecular target for multiple sclerosis

Robotic transplantation may reduce health disparities for obese patients with chronic kidney failure

People diagnosed with cancer are more likely to declare bankruptcy

Low income African-American adults living closer to fast food restaurants have higher BMI

College of Nursing wins grant to implement community health and wellness program

Sensing a Healthier Future

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

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