Category Archives: Public health

History of Climate Policy and Advocacy by the American Public Health Association

By | February 23, 2024

In January, the Medical Care Blog’s editors published a consensus statement on climate policy and health. This statement was co-signed by many of our authors, editors, and editorial board members of the Medical Care journal. As we look ahead to our focus theme for 2024, we want to begin with a look backward as well.… Read More »

Healthy Intersections Podcast: Talking About Plastics

By | January 26, 2024

January 2024 Edition Hello, and welcome to the Healthy Intersections Podcast, hosted here at The Medical Care Blog. We’re kicking off a year of climate action here on the podcast and blog. For our first episode of 2024, we interview Dr. Imari Walker-Franklin, a research chemist at RTI International, science communicator, and the co-author of… Read More »

Don’t “Stay In Your Lane”: Why Clinicians Should Be Activists For Social Change

It was the tweet heard around the healthcare world. In 2018, after the American College of Physicians had published their position paper advocating gun control as a public health imperative, the National Rifle Association posted a tweet starting: “Someone should tell self-important anti-gun doctors to stay in their lane.” Clinicians immediately began posting images and… Read More »

Climate Change and Public Health Consensus Statement

From The Medical Care Blog: A special consensus statement on climate change and public health In 2021, more than 250 of the world’s leading medical and public health journals released a joint statement about climate change and public health. Published simultaneously, editorial boards of the journals declared climate change to be the “greatest threat” to… Read More »

Weathering and Its Impacts on Health

By | January 4, 2024

What comes to mind when you hear the word “weathering”? Perhaps you think of erosion, depletion, and wearing down. Or maybe enduring, surviving, and withstanding. All of these associations accurately describe what happens to our bodies in response to chronic stress. This particular type of physiological stress affects the brain and other parts of the… Read More »

Yearning for Change: Youth Activism and Civic Engagement in Public Health

By | December 21, 2023

The need for youth activism and civic engagement in public health has never been greater. A mentor once said, “When public health is doing its thing, you will never hear a word about it.” But today, the profession doesn’t have that luxury. We must act if we want public health to remain a strong and… Read More »

Making PrEP Accessible to Patients Experiencing Homelessness

By | November 9, 2023

Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) has gone from a deadly infection to a manageable health condition in the last thirty years. Today, we have medications available that can treat those with HIV and prevent HIV in uninfected people. Pre-exposure prophylaxis, also known as PrEP, is a medication given to individuals without HIV to keep them from… Read More »

Healthy Intersections Podcast: October 2023

By | February 17, 2024

This month’s topic focuses on suicide and social determinants of health (SDoH) Welcome to the Healthy Intersections podcast for October, 2023. Today’s podcast focuses on the links between suicide and social determinants of health in the United States. Suicide is one of the causes of deaths of despair, along with deaths from drugs and alcohol.… Read More »

Improving Pathways Into Health Care and Public Health to Increase Diversity

By | October 4, 2023

Representation matters to health. Improving pathways into health care and public health is an important way to increase workforce diversity. This is a crucial step in reducing health disparities and advancing health equity in the U.S.   Black, Latinx, and American Indian and Alaska Native communities face higher rates of chronic and life-threatening health conditions. Yet… Read More »

Healthy Intersections Podcast: September 2023

By | February 17, 2024

Happy fall! This month’s Healthy Intersections Podcast focuses on food and climate — a timely topic during the fall harvest months. Food insecurity and food quality are known as important social determinants of health. For example, the percent of residents receiving food assistance (eg, SNAP) is associated with neighborhood life expectancy. On the other hand,… Read More »

Health effects of tech overload: Can public health see it?

By | August 31, 2023

What if there was a public health problem so big that even public health leaders were too enmeshed in its grip to be able to warn against its perils? I worry that we are in that very conundrum with regard to our relationship with technology. It has accelerated from being part of our world to… Read More »

Beyond COVID and Opioids: Contextualizing Life Expectancy Decline in the United States

By | September 18, 2023

This entry was one of the winners of our Summer 2023 student blog contest! Trends in Life Expectancy The recent decline in life expectancy in the United States is largely attributed to the well-known COVID-19 pandemic and opioid epidemic. However, these recent crises are not the sole drivers of the stagnation and subsequent drop in… Read More »

Negative Health Outcomes of American Anti-LGBTQ Laws

By | September 8, 2023

This entry was one of the winners of our Summer 2023 student blog contest! Anti-LGBTQ laws are flooding the United States. As of June, a historic 491 anti-LGBTQ bills have been introduced in 2023 – a 203% increase from the entire 2022 year. More bills were introduced in the first three months of 2023 than… Read More »

Healthy Intersections Podcast: August 2023

By | February 17, 2024

Hi everyone! We’re excited to share the August edition of our Healthy Intersections Podcast with you. This month, we hosted Dr. Amanda Onwuka, a social epidemiologist and health services researcher at RTI International, as well as Jeremy Ney, author of American Inequality. We talk about the epidemic of drug overdose deaths in the US, mental… Read More »

Reducing the Harms of Substance Use: Lessons From Abroad

By | July 4, 2023

The way we’re addressing substance use and overdoses in the United States isn’t working. Let’s be perfectly clear: the “war on drugs” isn’t, and never was, really a war on drugs. It’s been a war waged on communities who are Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC). The war on drugs started well before President… Read More »

Improving Home and Community-Based Services for People with Dementia

Over the past 25 years, significant strides have been made in shifting services for people with dementia and Alzheimer’s disease to home and community settings. Home and community-based services (HCBS) enable people with various forms of dementia to receive care in a familiar setting while promoting their independence, well-being, and overall quality of life. As… Read More »

Public Health Saved Your Life Today: Insight From Dr. Leana Wen

Public health saved your life today, but you probably didn’t know it. That was one of the valuable take-home messages from Dr. Leana Wen, when she spoke to public health students and early career professionals at California State University Los Angeles. Dr. Wen was the culminating speaker in our semester-long series on public health leadership.… Read More »

Healthy Intersections Podcast: June 2023

By | June 19, 2023

Welcome to the June 2023 episode of the Healthy Intersections podcast! This month, we sit down again with Carol Schmitt, Chief Scientist at RTI International, along with Juliet Sheridan, to talk about another of the RTI Rarity interactive state maps. This time, we are looking at North Carolina. We talk about historical redlining, climate change,… Read More »

See Yourself as a Leader: A Conversation with Jackie Valenzuela

See yourself as a leader. That is one of the key messages from Jackie Valenzuela, Chief Advisor to the County Health Officer of the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health. She has held multiple leadership positions within the one of nation’s largest public health departments. And she recounts coming to them by being open… Read More »

Don’t Wait to Lead: A Conversation with Dr. Chris Chanyasulkit

Don’t wait to lead. That is a key message from Dr. Chris Chanyasulkit, the president of the American Public Health Association (APHA). And it resonates with many students and early career professionals anxious to make a change. Our conversation with Dr. Chanyasulkit was the first in a series on public health leadership. The Department of… Read More »

Racial Justice Reframing: A Shift in Perspective

By | May 31, 2023

Racial justice reframing is the process of shifting our attention from individual choices to the many structural and societal factors that contribute to health inequities. This framing allows us to picture a world where values of equity, shared responsibility, and community care are paramount. We see a world where everyone – regardless of their identities… Read More »

Healthy Intersections podcast: May, 2023

By | May 19, 2023

Welcome to the May, 2023 episode of the Healthy Intersections podcast! This month, we sit down again with Carol Schmitt, Chief Scientist at RTI International, to talk about another of the RTI Rarity interactive state maps. This time, we are looking at Oklahoma. You can watch the episode, download the audio file, and read the… Read More »

The U.S. Pandemic Public Health Emergency Declaration Has Ended

By | May 13, 2023

The pandemic public health emergency declaration ends today in the United States. Here, I share a look back and what to expect going forward. One thing is clear: with this change in designation, the U.S. has revealed that its public health preparedness was always meant to be temporary. Where we started It was December 12,… Read More »

Designing From the Margins to Advance Equity

By | May 2, 2023

“Access for the sake of access or inclusion is not necessarily liberatory, but access done in the service of love, justice, connection, and community is liberatory and has the power to transform.” – Mia Mingus, community organizer, disability and transformative justice advocate  Are you designing with equity and inclusion in mind? For public health and… Read More »

Healthy Intersections Podcast: April 2023

By | April 24, 2023

Originally published April 6, 2023; updated April 24, 2023 to add audio links. Welcome! April 2023 marks a new milestone for the Healthy Intersections Podcast (HIP), sponsored by the American Public Health Association’s Medical Care Section. I’m taking on the role of the main producer of HIP. We’re also moving to a video AND audio… Read More »

Social Fitnessing as a Pandemic Health Strategy

By | February 23, 2023

Public health has preached a lot of things in the three years of the COVID-19 pandemic. It has promoted social distancing, masks, vaccines, and quarantine to help prevent the spread. And it has helped spread awareness about antivirals for people infected with COVID-19. But what about “social fitnessing”?   This is the premise that the… Read More »

A Renewed Outlook on Substance Use Prevention

An Opportunity to Get Ahead of the Overdose Crisis For many Americans, drug use ‘prevention’ conjures memories of early public health campaigns using fearsome imagery and catchy slogans to deter substance use. Campaigns implored youth to “just say no” to drugs, and the public received stark warnings: “this is your brain on drugs.”

Using CLAS Standards to Advance Equity

To address calls for improving health equity, organizations could consider using CLAS Standards to advance diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). In recent years, health organization leaders have prioritized the need to address systemic inequities. A 2021 survey of health care organizations identified health equity as a top priority [pdf]. This focus has grown since the… Read More »

Reporting detention-related harms

Community-based clinicians sometimes see patients who have been recently released from immigration detention. Those encounters can be challenging, especially when patients reveal health harms experienced while in detention. It is obviously critical that clinicians provide high-quality medical care and address any health issues potentially brought about or exacerbated by their detention history. But do they… Read More »

Long-acting reversible contraception in the era of abortion bans

It is more important than ever to expand access to a broad range of safe and effective contraceptives that includes long-acting reversible contraception (LARC) methods. We are living in a new era in the US. As of early November, 2022, abortions are banned from the point of conception in 12 states and severely restricted in… Read More »

November 2022 Healthy Intersections Podcast

In this month’s podcast, Dr. Samy Anand gives an overview of The Medical Care Blog posts published in October and a preview of the journal articles in the November issue of Medical Care. Then, co-editor of the blog, Dr. Gregory Stevens, discusses the results of the midterm election and the results of ballot measures relevant to… Read More »

APHA Annual Meeting 2022 Preview

By | November 4, 2022

It’s that time of year again–APHA’s Annual Meeting! This year we’ll be meeting in Boston Nov. 6-9 with a digital event Nov. 14-16. I’m looking forward to seeing colleagues this year and getting to catch up with so many interesting people. Of course, I’m also excited about the excellent Medical Care Section Program. Here’s a… Read More »

Public health is (once again) on the ballot

By | November 29, 2022

The 2022 midterm elections are upon us. And public health is once again prominent on the ballot. Think back to the 2020 presidential election and just how stark a contrast Joe Biden and Donald Trump presented on COVID-19, climate change, and the Affordable Care Act. This year is no different. Voters across the country are choosing… Read More »

Improving treatment adherence with evidence-based approaches

Over the last 25 years, researchers have documented the broad impact of behavioral interventions on a range of psychological and physical health outcomes. Despite the promise of evidence-based treatments, a common challenge for practitioners is ensuring treatment adherence to maximize benefits. This is especially challenging for most chronic conditions. Integrating research and recommendations from medication… Read More »

COVID Still Kills, but the Demographics of Its Victims Are Shifting

As California settles into a third year of pandemic, covid-19 continues to pose a serious threat of death. But the number of people dying — and the demographics of those falling victim — has shifted notably from the first two years. Given the collective immunity people have garnered through a combination of mass vaccination and… Read More »

Healthy Intersections Podcast: September 2022

By | October 10, 2022

On this month’s episode of the Health Intersections Podcast, Samy Anand from the Medical Care Section recaps last month’s blog posts and previews September’s issue of the Medical Care journal. Check out these great reads. Next, Jess Williams, co-editor of the blog and podcast, interviews Dr. Cheryl Conner who is a Clinical Associate Professor at… Read More »

Becoming Adept at Policy in Health Advocacy

The pursuit of health equity requires public health and medical professionals to become adept at policy in their health advocacy work. The American Public Health Association (APHA), in fact, defines policy work as one of its 10 essential public health services. APHA says professionals should be capable of “creating, championing and implementing policies, plans and laws”.… Read More »

Retrospective: On Prescription Drugs

By | August 22, 2022

The Medical Care Blog is preparing for its full return later this month. Until then, we are continuing to highlight articles published by our contributors on timely topics. A federal bill is pending that would allow Medicare to begin negotiating drug prices for the very first time. Even though it would begin with only 10… Read More »

APHA Calls for Single-Payer Health Reform

By | July 6, 2022

It is not too late to fix the US healthcare system. But every day spent in this folly, the problem gets worse. It is time to move this conversation forward. We are excited to share that in November 2021, the American Public Health Association (APHA) formally adopted a policy statement titled “Adopting a Single-Payer Health… Read More »

Ethical research using government administrative data

By | June 16, 2022

As a public health researcher, I love data, the more the better. I held this belief until I found that I myself had become the “subject” of research without my consent. This experience made me rethink ethical research. The more data, the better? In 2017, I encountered a state-level bill that required all the government… Read More »

SDoH in Same-Sex Couple Hotspots and Coldspots

By | June 24, 2022

Happy Pride month! In this post, I’d like to share about a research project in progress that is relevant to the LGTBQIA+ community. This post may also be interesting to those of you who care ok about health equity and the social determinants of health (SDoH). I am a member of the queer community myself.… Read More »

Healthy Intersections Podcast: June 2022

By | June 2, 2022

On this month’s episode of the Healthy Intersections Podcast, Samy Anand from the Medical Care Section recaps last month’s blog posts and preview’s June’s issue of the Medical Care journal. Some great articles to check out for your summer reading list. Next, Lisa Lines, co-editor of the blog and podcast, interviews Dr. Pia MacDonald, an… Read More »

Fixing Health Care: A Health Care Revolt Begs Five Big Questions

In a previous post, we shared highlights from an event about fixing health care featuring Dr. Michael Fine, a family medicine physician, former public health official, and the author of Health Care Revolt. The faculty of the Department of Public Health at California State University Los Angeles led the event as part of a department-wide book read.… Read More »

Broadband is a human right: the right to information and COVID-19 disparities

Understanding internet access through a human rights framework has been a goal of human rights advocates for years. But COVID-19 has brought the idea of “broadband as a human right” to the forefront as a necessary and urgent human need. A recent study exploring the Social Determinants of Health and COVID-19 mortality, found that individuals without… Read More »

Whole Person Health: A Path to Health Equity (Part 2)

In our first blog post of this series, we discussed how the current medical approach misses so much of what influences health, and how it perpetuates health inequities in our society. In this post, we go in-depth on the elements of Whole Person Health (WPH) that are necessary components of a just and equitable approach… Read More »

Whole Person Health: A Path to Health Equity (Part 1)

Our current U.S. medical system doesn’t work. It is not able to adequately care for the sickest, most vulnerable, and least resourced people. It often excludes those seen as “other” in our society. To become a just system, we need a new focus on Whole Person Health (WPH). Very briefly, WPH cares for the whole person and… Read More »

The new landscape for community public health

By | March 10, 2022

We’re in a new landscape, where citizens sees themselves as agents for community public health and as part of the public health infrastructure. My patient began to talk about COVID in her community. She first told me the rates of infection from the previous weeks. Then she told me what COVID strains were dominant at… Read More »

Vaccination Choice: The Strongest Link in the Weakest Case

By | February 24, 2022

Almost 30 years ago I was working in the White House as part of a team working to win approval of President Bill Clinton’s proposal for universal health insurance. The effort was winding down. It was obvious it would fail. I was tired and depressed. One of my last appearances in support of the plan… Read More »