October 2012 - NPR Health Blog - The Network of Care

Bioethicists Call For Privacy Protections For Personal Genomes

A sample of saliva taken from a coffee cup can reveal someone's genes, for better and for worse. Now bioethicists are recommending privacy protections as the age of cheap, fast genome sequences unfolds. Read More...

Published Thu, Oct 11 2012 9:35 AM by Shots - Health Blog

Medicare Dings Hospitals For Too Many Repeat Customers

The Federal government wants hospitals to take responsibility for discharged patients to make sure they are not admitted again within 30 days. Medicare will penalize hospitals with many repeat admissions, but some think putting this whole burden on hospitals...

Published Wed, Oct 03 2012 12:37 AM by Shots - Health Blog

Admit It: Medicare Errs In Crackdown On Hospital Quality

Just before new penalties kicked in for hospitals that readmit too many Medicare patients, the government discovered that the data it used to were out of date. The changes from the error are tiny, amounting on average to a fraction of a percent for most...

Published Wed, Oct 03 2012 12:55 PM by Shots - Health Blog

How Cellphones Helped Researchers Track Malaria In Kenya

By tracking nearly 15 million cellphones in Kenya, scientists mapped out how malaria spreads through the Texas-sized country. The findings pinpoint areas where efforts to control malaria would be the most effective. One day, the data may help guide alert...

Published Thu, Oct 11 2012 12:47 PM by Shots - Health Blog

Ketamine Relieves Depression By Restoring Brain Connections

A few years ago, scientists discovered that the club drug ketamine worked as a quick and effective treatment for people depression who didn't respond to other treatments. New research goes further in explaining just how it works. Read More...

Published Thu, Oct 04 2012 1:51 PM by Shots - Health Blog

Meningitis Outbreak Update: List Of Hospitals Released

The government has named 75 medical facilities that received a potentially contaminated drug suspected of infecting 47 patients with meningitis nationwide. Read More...

Published Fri, Oct 05 2012 3:33 PM by Shots - Health Blog

Arabian Coronavirus: Plot Thickens But Virus Lies Low

At first it seemed likely that the two known cases of illness from the new cousin-of-SARS virus may have been exposed in or near the Saudi Arabian city of Jeddah. But now it's pretty certain that a 49-year-old Qatari man who had traveled to Jeddah...

Published Fri, Oct 05 2012 2:27 PM by Shots - Health Blog

After Ebola Fades, What Happens To The Quarantined?

To curb a recent Ebola outbreak in Uganda, health workers quarantined over 40 people suspected of infection with the virus. Their belongings were burned and buried in case they were harboring the virus. Read More...

Published Fri, Oct 05 2012 12:55 PM by Shots - Health Blog

The Peanut Butter Cure Moves From Hospital To Snack Room

For over a decade, peanut butter paste supplements like Plumpy'Nut have saved children around the world from malnutrition. Now health officials want to use the packets not just to save starving kids, but to keep them healthy in the first place. But...

Published Thu, Oct 04 2012 12:43 AM by Shots - Health Blog

Girls Vaccinated For HPV Not More Likely To Be Sexually Active

Researchers found that 11- and 12-year-old girls who had the vaccine were no more likely to have had sexual health issues than ones who didn't. Still, parents' concerns about daughters and sexual activity remain a barrier to widespread adoption...

Published Mon, Oct 15 2012 12:34 PM by Shots - Health Blog

For Families Of Medicare Recipients, Insurance Choices Are Tricky

When a relative signs up for Medicare, it is often perplexing — and unnerving — for the rest of the family who may have grown used to cushy employer-sponsored coverage. Read More...

Published Mon, Oct 08 2012 12:08 AM by Shots - Health Blog

Romney's Remarks On Abortion Cause A Stir

The GOP presidential nominee told a newspaper that as president he won't push abortion-restricting legislation. The remarks, from which Mitt Romney has since walked back, surprised those on both sides of the abortion debate. Read More...

Published Wed, Oct 10 2012 2:19 PM by Shots - Health Blog

When Should Seniors Hang Up The Car Keys?

Most elderly drivers give up the keys only when their child or grandchild intervenes. Social workers say it's important for family members to be aware and look for changes in their parents' driving behavior. Read More...

Published Mon, Oct 08 2012 12:06 AM by Shots - Health Blog

Medicare: Where Presidential Politics And Policy Collide

Medicare is emerging as the most important health care voting issue — more important than even the Affordable Care Act. And with 10,000 baby boomers qualifying for the program every day, whoever wins the election will have to find some way to rein in...

Published Tue, Oct 16 2012 1:43 PM by Shots - Health News

Misdeeds, Not Mistakes, Behind Most Scientific Retractions

Biomedical researchers believed that most retractions of published studies were the result of honest errors. An analysis of retractions over four decades finds that's not the case. Read More...

Published Mon, Oct 01 2012 1:03 PM by Shots - Health Blog

October 2012 - NPR Health Blog

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