Posted on April 12th, 2012 by Erica Noonan
When does the public’s health trump individual liberty? Are there unintended consequences to regulations aimed at promoting public health? And what are the effects of public mandates in the day-to-day practice of medicine? More than 100 physicians and public health experts attended the Massachusetts Medical Society’s eighth annual Public Health Leadership Forum on Wednesday to [...]
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Posted on February 28th, 2012 by Rick Gulla
Commentary By Lynda Young, M.D. President, Massachusetts Medical Society In Massachusetts, the number of people with HIV/AIDS has increased 35 percent from 2000-2009, and 500 people are newly diagnosed every year. Nationally, the Centers for Disease Control estimates that more than one million people live with HIV, with 56,000 new infections occurring annually. Many don’t [...]
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Posted on February 2nd, 2012 by Rick Gulla
In a letter delivered today to state senators, MMS President Lynda Young, M.D. shared physician concerns on Senate 2122, An Act Relative to Prescription Drug Diversion, Abuse and Addiction, proposed legislation intended to address the growing problem of prescription drug abuse in the Commonwealth. Here is the text of her letter: The Massachusetts Medical Society [...]
Filed under: Drug Abuse, Health Policy, Mass. Legislature, Public Health, Uncategorized | 2 Comments »
Posted on September 30th, 2011 by Rick Gulla
Respiratory conditions such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder (COPD), asthma, and tuberculosis affect millions of people around the globe and present major challenges to public health as well as personal health. COPD, for example, is now the third leading cause of death in the U.S., claiming nearly 125, 000 lives each year. The details of [...]
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Posted on June 1st, 2011 by Rick Gulla
Alcoholism and alcohol abuse affect nearly 18 million people in the United States, and every year contribute to 79,000 deaths, 1.6 million hospitalizations, and 4 million emergency room visits. The resulting health costs are enormous, and we need only read the stories of drunken drivers and alcohol-induced violence to know that some costs associated with these [...]
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Posted on April 29th, 2011 by Rick Gulla
When it comes to impaired driving, the topics that seem to get the most attention are alcohol, age, “distracted driving,” and now, the latest, “drowsy driving.” But medical and health issues also play critical roles, and that’s the primary message for patients from the May edition of Physician Focus, the MMS’s monthly television program. Program [...]
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Posted on February 15th, 2011 by Frank Fortin
The MMS and five other health care organizations in Massachusetts this week launched a new public campaign to educate adults about the proper use of antibiotics for bacterial infections. The centerpiece of the campaign is a five-week advertising campaign on WBZ-TV newscasts, which states, “Taking antibiotics when you don’t need them can make them less [...]
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Posted on January 31st, 2011 by Rick Gulla
Sexually transmitted diseases are the most commonly reported infectious diseases in the U.S., with some 19 million new infections occurring each year according to the CDC. In Massachusetts, the Department of Public Health records 20,000 cases annually. These infections affect all ages, races, ethnic groups, and social and economic classes. The February edition of Physician Focus examines the many aspects of [...]
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Posted on January 10th, 2011 by Rick Gulla
Prescription drug abuse has become a serious and growing problem in the United States, with an estimated 48 million people or 20 percent of the population age 12 and older have used these drugs for nonmedical reasons in their lifetimes. Abuse by young people is particularly alarming, with nearly two million youth age 12-17 abusing [...]
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Posted on December 1st, 2010 by Rick Gulla
Who’s in charge? Will they respond fast enough? Will I and my family be safe? These are questions that pop up when major public emergencies strike, be they natural disasters, severe storms, infectious disease epidemics, or man-made disasters. Responding to these kinds of events has become an enormous challenge facing health providers, public officials, and [...]
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