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.

Journal of Public Health Management presents new ideas for building better public health workforce

A recent special supplement to the Journal of Public Health Management calls attention to the country's pressing need for a larger and fully capable public health workforce. The supplement, written by the leading academic voices in public health and published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins (LWW), also sheds light on the challenges the U.S. faces in adequately meeting public health needs.

6 Nov 2009

Kaiser Permanente to host 2009 National Diversity Conference in San Francisco

Kaiser Permanente will host its 2009 National Diversity Conference November 4-6 at the Palace Hotel in San Francisco.

4 Nov 2009

Lifestyle changes prevents type 2 diabetes in people at high risk for developing the disease: Study

Sustaining modest weight loss for 10 years, or taking an anti-diabetic drug over that time, can prevent or lower the incidence of type 2 diabetes in people at high risk for developing the disease, according to the Diabetes Prevention Program Outcomes Study (DPPOS), a long-term follow-up to a landmark 2001 diabetes prevention study.

3 Nov 2009

NIH awards Charles Drew University $9.8M to reduce cancer health disparities in underserved populations

Charles Drew University has been awarded $9.8 million from three major national funders to support the university's long-term, UCLA partnership aimed at reducing the risk of cancer among minorities in poor and disadvantaged communities.

30 Oct 2009

NIH awards $75 million to establish medical research consortium to combat health disparities

The National Institutes of Health has awarded $75 million to Charles Drew University of Medicine and Science and three other historically black institutions to establish a medical research consortium to combat health disparities in minority and underserved populations.

30 Oct 2009

UCLA Kaiser Permanente Center expands to eliminate health disparities

The UCLA School of Public Health has received a $5.2 million gift from Kaiser Permanente to endow the UCLA Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Equity. The center, formerly known as the Center to Eliminate Health Disparities, is dedicated to improving the health of underserved populations through research, community collaboration and leadership development.

30 Oct 2009

Girls' ethnicity and weight linked to participation in risky sexual behaviors

A University of Pittsburgh study sheds new light on the relationship between race, body weight and sexual behavior among adolescent girls. The results suggest that a girl's ethnicity and her actual weight or perception of her weight may play a role in her participation in risky sexual behaviors. The study results are published in the November issue of Pediatrics, now available online.

29 Oct 2009

Study on quality of health care for US-born Latinos and undocumented Latinos

Where Latinos are born and their immigration status affect the quality of health care they receive in the US, according to Professor Michael Rodr-guez and colleagues from the UCLA Department of Family Medicine and the Network for Multicultural Research on Health and Healthcare based in Los Angeles, California.

29 Oct 2009

National Institutes of Health awards $735,000 grant for prenatal obesity and diabetes research

The National Institutes of Health has awarded Clemson University professor Maria Mayorga and Medical University of South Carolina professor Kelly Hunt a $735,000 grant to study the effects of a mother's obesity and diabetes on infant health in certain ethnic groups.

28 Oct 2009

New York Times examines journal editorial on neglected tropical diseases in Islamic nations

The New York Times examines the conclusions drawn in a recent PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases editorial that the Islamic world is suffering from a "devastating burden" of neglected tropical diseases.

27 Oct 2009

Consumer health informatics applications help patients to better manage their health care

Electronic tools and technology applications for consumers can help improve health care processes, such as adherence to medication and clinical outcomes like smoking cessation, according to a report by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

27 Oct 2009

Insurer contracting policies can jeopardize health care system, says NNCC study

A study conducted by National Nursing Centers Consortium (NNCC) has found that nearly half (48%) of all major managed-care organizations in the United States do not credential or contract with nurse practitioners as primary care providers.

27 Oct 2009

Genetic mutations cause for SIDS and SUDS

Scientists and clinicians at the Montefiore-Einstein Center for Cardiogenetics have teamed up and found that genetic mutations leading to Long QT Syndrome (LQTS) could be causing electrical malfunctioning of the heart resulting in the mysterious deaths more commonly known as Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) and Sudden Unexplained Death Syndrome (SUDS) in people older than 12 months of age.

27 Oct 2009

NBCSL lauds the Veterans’ Health Care Budget Reform and Transparency Act

NBCSL President, Rep. Calvin Smyre (GA), applauds the Obama Administration’s efforts to improve health care for veterans. Today, President Barack Obama signed the Veterans Health Care Budget Reform and Transparency Act, which provides one year of advance funding for veterans’ medical programs. The VA now has one year to plan how to best allocate funds and deliver care to returning veterans.

23 Oct 2009

FPB awarded $3.7M in six stimulus grants

The Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing (FPB) at Case Western Reserve University was recently awarded $3.7 million in six stimulus grants from various federal offices to fund innovative research and academic programs.

22 Oct 2009

HIV stigma: a barrier for proper care

The feeling of stigmatization that people living with HIV often experience doesn't only exact a psychological toll -new UCLA research suggests it can also lead to quantifiably negative health outcomes.

22 Oct 2009

Lactose intolerance rates may be overestimated by wide margins

Prevalence of lactose intolerance may be far lower than previously estimated, according to a study in the latest issue of Nutrition Today.(1) The study, which uses data from a national sample of three ethnic groups, reveals that the overall prevalence rate of self-reported lactose intolerance is 12 percent - with 7.72 percent of European Americans, 10.05 percent of Hispanic Americans and 19.5 percent of African Americans who consider themselves lactose intolerant.

21 Oct 2009

Persistence of sucking habits increases risk of speech disorders in preschool children

Pacifier, baby bottle or finger sucking may hamper a child's speech development if the habit goes on too long.

21 Oct 2009

Study reveals greater public support for reducing health care disparities among socio-economic groups

As Congress debates the public health care option, a recent study reveals greater public support for reducing health care disparities among socio-economic groups (i.e. by income or education) than among racial groups.

19 Oct 2009

"Recognizing Innovation in Multicultural Health Care Award" for Kaiser Permanente

Kaiser Permanente has been awarded the prestigious "Recognizing Innovation in Multicultural Health Care Award" by the National Committee for Quality Assurance for efforts to reach across cultural and language barriers to provide health plan members with care that meets their unique needs.

13 Oct 2009

Health Disparities News and Research

Further Reading

Journal of Public Health Management presents new ideas for building better public health workforce

Kaiser Permanente to host 2009 National Diversity Conference in San Francisco

Lifestyle changes prevents type 2 diabetes in people at high risk for developing the disease: Study

NIH awards Charles Drew University $9.8M to reduce cancer health disparities in underserved populations

NIH awards $75 million to establish medical research consortium to combat health disparities

UCLA Kaiser Permanente Center expands to eliminate health disparities

Girls' ethnicity and weight linked to participation in risky sexual behaviors

Study on quality of health care for US-born Latinos and undocumented Latinos

National Institutes of Health awards $735,000 grant for prenatal obesity and diabetes research

New York Times examines journal editorial on neglected tropical diseases in Islamic nations

Consumer health informatics applications help patients to better manage their health care

Insurer contracting policies can jeopardize health care system, says NNCC study

Genetic mutations cause for SIDS and SUDS

NBCSL lauds the Veterans’ Health Care Budget Reform and Transparency Act

FPB awarded $3.7M in six stimulus grants

HIV stigma: a barrier for proper care

Lactose intolerance rates may be overestimated by wide margins

Persistence of sucking habits increases risk of speech disorders in preschool children

Study reveals greater public support for reducing health care disparities among socio-economic groups

"Recognizing Innovation in Multicultural Health Care Award" for Kaiser Permanente

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

Examining how pain could play a direct protective role in the gut

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