News Blog

Blog Topic: Public Health

  • La Comunidad Hispana group

    Reducing the Prevalence of Cervical Cancer in the Hispanic Community

    January 19, 2018

    The Hispanic community is the fastest growing population in the United States, and their health needs are growing too: the CDC’s most recent reports show that Hispanic women have the highest incidence of cervical cancer than any other racial or ethnic group in the U.S.

  • drunk-driving-crash

    Getting to Zero Alcohol-Impaired Driving Fatalities: An Insider’s View

    January 17, 2018

    As we took our positions around the bed in the trauma bay, I could hear the first patient being wheeled in by the paramedics, screaming hysterically with slurred speech, “I’m sorry! I’m sorry! Please save her!” The paramedics slid her backboard on to the gurney. She was flailing with tears welling up in her eyes and a heavy smell of alcohol on her breath.

  • common-cold-myths-facts

    Baby, It’s Cold (Season) Outside!

    January 05, 2018

    “Don’t go outside with wet hair, you’ll catch a cold!” We’ve all heard this and other “facts” about how you might catch a cold, but which ones are true and which are simply something to sneeze at? We sat down with Anne Norris, MD, an associate professor of Infectious Diseases, to find out.

  • calorie-count-larger

    When It Comes to Calorie Consumption, Is Knowledge Power?

    December 20, 2017

    Over-consumption of calories has been a key driver of rising rates of obesity. By May 2018, restaurants, grocery stores, and other food establishments with 20+ locations will be required to post calorie information on their menus. The hope is that making such information more visible will encourage consumers to choose – and restaurants to offer – lower-calorie items. But will it work?

  • cch-opioid-emergency

    How the Opioid Epidemic is Changing Emergency Care

    December 13, 2017

    Drug overdoses, mostly from opioids, are killing an average of 142 Americans each day. In Chester County, deaths related to opioid overdoses are up 38 percent for the first half of this year compared with 2016. The crisis is affecting both urban and community hospitals alike. Chester County Hospital is taking steps to meet the challenges this crisis presents.

  • new hypertension guidelines

    Tis the Season to Be…Hypertensive?

    December 06, 2017

    We’re smack in the middle of the Holiday season – the time of year when just about every media outlet begins rolling out tips for keeping stress down, maintaining diet and exercise routines, and starting the New Year off right. While these can be helpful, they’re not always foolproof. In fact, this year for many Americans, some heath pitfalls may be unavoidable – specifically, high blood pressure.

  • worldaidsday2017

    World AIDS Day 2017: Aging with HIV

    November 27, 2017

    It has been almost 40 years since the world was first introduced to the HIV/AIDs epidemic. Since those early days of confusion and fear, treatment advances have led to a scenario that doctors and patients in the 1980s and early 1990s could not have imagined: the aging HIV patient.

  • copoisoning

    Surviving the “Silent Killer”: How Seamless Coordination Saves Lives

    November 13, 2017

    As temperatures drop, the number of visits to emergency rooms across the country tends to spike in the opposite direction. From tumbles off of ladders while decorating and holiday baking burns, to icy falls and omnipresent flu germs, the “most wonderful time of the year” doesn’t always live up to its moniker. Yet, there’s one seasonal threat that we tend to forget about until a tragic story hits the news: carbon monoxide (CO), often dubbed the “invisible killer” or “silent killer.”

  • volunteer

    An Ounce of Volunteering is Worth A Pound of Cure

    October 27, 2017

    Over the past two years, Jack Sheridan has seen his cardiovascular vital signs – total cholesterol, triglycerides and LDL (the “bad” cholesterol) – decrease dramatically. Yet, during this time, he hasn’t exercised more or changed his diet. His weight has remained the same as have his medications. So what’s his secret? He volunteers.

  • main apothecary image

    The Evolution of the Apothecary for the Apothe-curious

    October 13, 2017

    A long, long time ago in a public health era far, far away, there was a world where CVS or Walgreens storefronts weren’t on every corner and drug regulations were nonexistent. This was the time of apothecaries – those fascinating druggists who meticulously mixed herbs and minerals, adding a dash of animal fat here and a bit of earwax there, all with the intent of curing the ailments of their fellow man.

About this Blog

This blog is written and produced by Penn Medicine’s Department of Communications. Subscribe to our mailing list to receive an e-mail notification when new content goes live!

Views expressed are those of the author or other attributed individual and do not necessarily represent the official opinion of the related Department(s), University of Pennsylvania Health System (Penn Medicine), or the University of Pennsylvania, unless explicitly stated with the authority to do so.

Health information is provided for educational purposes and should not be used as a source of personal medical advice.

Blog Archives

Go

Author Archives

Go
Share This Page: