Public Health - General
The Pump Handle
Category archives for Public Health – General
Exploring links between working conditions and obesity in low-wage workers
Posted by Celeste Monforton, DrPH, MPH of George Washington University School of Public Health & Health Services on November 28, 2012 Most current strategies to address the obesity problem in Americans focus on individuals changing their behavior. A new report illuminates why those strategies alone ignore the work environment as a contributor to obesity risk.
New study highlights need for workplace interventions that reduce depression risk
Posted by The Pump Handle on November 26, 2012 Exploring reliable links between work and depression, which is a significant health and economic burden for individuals as well as society, is somewhat murky. But a new study published in the American Journal of Public Health used two analytic strategies to address such criticism.
Physicians take lead role in confronting opioid misuse, but still face hurdles
Posted by The Pump Handle on November 16, 2012 Since 2000, overdose deaths due to prescription painkillers in Utah have increased by more than 400 percent. By 2006, more Utahans were losing their lives to prescription drug overdoses than to motor vehicle crashes. For Dr. Lynn Webster, a longtime pain management physician, the startling numbers were a call to action.
Chronic pain patients caught in the middle of growing opioid abuse problem
Posted by The Pump Handle on November 9, 2012 It took six years of going from doctor to doctor to doctor for Penney Cowan to finally receive a diagnosis for her chronic pain: fibromyalgia. Doctors had told her she’d just have to learn to live with the pain — a condition that some days made it hard to lift a cup of coffee. So when she decided to join the pain program at Ohio’s Cleveland Clinic, she didn’t have high hopes. She says she expected the effort to fail.
Hurricanes, healthcare, and elections
Posted by Liz Borkowski on October 31, 2012 When it comes to disaster preparedness and to healthcare, the two presidential candidates have fundamentally different approaches.
Despite record of saving lives and money, poison centers face uncertain funding future
Posted by The Pump Handle on October 26, 2012 Earlier this year, federal officials put their foot down: New Hampshire could no longer use federal preparedness money to supports its poison control efforts. The directive sent state lawmakers scrambling to find extra funds. Without new money, New Hampshire callers to the Northern New England Poison Center would get a recording telling them to call 911 or go to the emergency room.
Worth reading: Polio, pregnancy, and wily mosquitoes
Posted by Liz Borkowski on October 25, 2012 A few recent pieces worth a look.
Is the ACA bad for business? Not so, say researchers and business owners
Posted by The Pump Handle on October 19, 2012 At Palm Beach Groves in Lantana, Fla., a small, seasonal business that ships fresh citrus nationwide, employees have regularly voted between getting a raise or keeping their employer-based health insurance. Health coverage always wins, as many employees’ ages and pre-existing conditions would have made it nearly impossible to get coverage on their own. But a new report finds the Affordable Care Act is on target to help prevent this scenario.
Happy Global Handwashing Day!
Posted by Liz Borkowski on October 15, 2012 October 15th is Global Handwashing Day, which aims to increase awareness about the effectiveness of soap-and-water handwashing for disease prevention.
Report illustrates worrisome trend of painkiller abuse among injured workers
Posted by The Pump Handle on October 12, 2012 Researchers studying workers’ compensation claims have found that almost one in 12 injured workers who begin using opioids were still using the prescription drugs three to six months later. It’s a trend that, not surprisingly, can lead to addiction, increased disability and more work loss – but few doctors are acting to prevent it.