4/16
Health Sciences
Racial disparities in avoidable hospitalizations for Medicare beneficiaries
Racial disparities in avoidable hospitalizations for Medicare beneficiaries
A new Medical Care study by LDI Fellow Norma Coe and colleagues reveals racial disparities in avoidable hospitalizations that are even greater than in traditional Medicare.
Four facts about the COVID-19 boosters
Four facts about the COVID-19 boosters
The FDA and CDC endorsed boosters of the Moderna and Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccines just a month after the agencies did the same for a Pfizer/BioNTech booster. Here’s what’s known today about these shots.
Genetic disease CDKL5 deficiency disorder could be treatable after childhood
Genetic disease CDKL5 deficiency disorder could be treatable after childhood
The study finds that the CDKL5 gene, which plays an important role in proper brain development during childhood, is also active in adulthood, and that gene therapy may help adult patients.
Mandates likely work to increase vaccine uptake
Mandates likely work to increase vaccine uptake
Rather than causing a backlash, vaccination requirements will succeed at getting more people inoculated, according to research from PIK Professor Dolores Albarracín and colleagues at Penn.
Novel gene therapy platform speeds search for ways to cure blindness
Novel gene therapy platform speeds search for ways to cure blindness
A newly developed single-cell RNA sequencing technique enables researchers to quickly identify an optimal vector for delivering therapeutic genetic material to treat vision disorders, and perhaps other genetic conditions.
National Academy of Medicine welcomes two new members from Penn
National Academy of Medicine welcomes two new members from Penn
The Perelman School of Medicine’s Marylyn D. Ritchie and PIK Professor Sarah A. Tishkoff are among 100 new members to be elected this year to the Academy, one of the highest honors in health and medicine.
How consumers describe racism in health care
How consumers describe racism in health care
A team of researchers looked at Yelp reviews of hospitals that highlighted racist experiences.
General anesthesia just as safe as spinal anesthesia after broken hip surgery
General anesthesia just as safe as spinal anesthesia after broken hip surgery
Challenging common beliefs, Penn research shows patterns of recovery to be similar for patients who received spinal anesthesia and those who got general anesthesia.
Eight Penn researchers receive 2021 NIH Director’s Awards
Eight Penn researchers receive 2021 NIH Director’s Awards
The National Institutes of Health grants, totaling more than $8 million, will support seven high-risk, high-reward research projects.
Geographic disparities in lower extremity amputation rates
Geographic disparities in lower extremity amputation rates
A new study published in the Journal of the American Heart Association shows that peripheral artery disease affects Black people and those of low socioeconomic status, and the U.S. health system is missing opportunities to slow or stop the progression.
In the News
Philadelphia Gay News
UPenn hosts free online panel for LGBTQ+ workplace inclusion
The Eidos LGBTQ+ Health Initiative, led by José Bauermeister and Jessica Halem of the School of Nursing, will host a free online panel in April on the integration of LGBTQ+ people in the workforce.
FULL STORY →
The New Yorker
How to die in good health
PIK Professor Ezekiel Emanuel says that incessantly preparing for old age mistakes a long life for a worthwhile one.
FULL STORY →
Philadelphia Inquirer
Mayor Parker’s plan to ‘remove the presence of drug users’ from Kensington raises new questions
Shoshana Aronowitz of the School of Nursing and Ashish Thakrar of the Perelman School of Medicine comment on the lack of specificity in Philadelphia’s plan to remove drug users from Kensington and on the current state of drug treatment in the city.
FULL STORY →
Philadelphia Inquirer
How many patients would recommend their Philly-area hospital to family and friends? Check your local hospital
The Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania has been named one of the most recommended acute-care facilities by patients in the Philadelphia area.
FULL STORY →
WHYY (Philadelphia)
Homeward bound: When a Penn Medicine nurse was diagnosed with uterine cancer, she turned to the service dogs she helped to train
A profile highlights Maria Wright of Penn Medicine Lancaster General Health, from her volunteer work connecting people with service dogs to her cancer diagnosis and her own journey applying for a service dog.
FULL STORY →