Public Health in the News – March 8, 2015

Global

• China has made dramatic policy improvements to try to improve air quality within the country. One of the driving forces behind these changes came from tweets about air pollutants from the U.S. Embassy in Beijing.
• Major pollution problems exist in Europe’s rivers and lakes, leading to decreased biodiversity.

National

• U.S. healthcare workers who had Ebola are talking about their experiences with inadequate healthcare and stigmatization. They worry their experiences will deter other healthcare professionals from volunteering.
• Stressful conditions can alter your genes – and these genetic changes can be passed down to your children, or even your grandchildren!
• Nature News interviews one of the scientists who helped develop Holocar, the first approved stem-cell therapy, which can help treat blindness.
• Public health for your pets: how to avoid accidental cases of poisoning. Make sure you keep medications and toxic foods out of reach of cats and dogs!
• McDonalds has announced they will no longer be buying and using chicken that was raised with antibiotics.
• Studies show that women have a lower pain tolerance, but healthcare professionals often don’t realize this, leading many women to experience inadequate pain management.

Chicago

• A new app that has launched in Chicago, Go2Nurse, is like Uber for healthcare – you can request and pay for a nurse to visit you in your home!
• During a forum in Wicker Park, activists upset about the closing of a mental health facility confronted Chicago mayor Rahm Emmanuel over mental health issues.

Northwestern

• A Northwestern study found that a gene therapy could help people with a diabetes-related pain syndrome.
• An NU alumnus and his spouse have donated $92 million to Northwestern for biomedical research!

Cover Photo by Tookapic via Pexels: Creative Commons