KUHF-FM (88.7, Houston), Nov. 14, 2009
Norbert Herzog and David Niesel of UTMB’s Medical Discovery News responded to listeners questions about swine flu. “Projections are that one to two million people will die worldwide and 70,000 in the U.S. But put in perspective, consider the seasonal flu kills about 40,000 in the U.S. every year,” they said.
Portland Business Journal, Nov. 13, 2009
Dr. Howard Brody, director of UTMB’s Institute for the Medical Humanities, is quoted in this article about doctors in Oregon who receive payments from pharmaceutical companies. “People are belatedly waking up to the idea that this creates an ethical problem” that leads physicians to prescribe the best-known drugs, rather than the best-proven treatments, Brody said. (The full article is available in the attached text file.)
MedPage Today, Nov. 13, 2009
This article outlines UTMB’s recovery from Hurricane Ike. It quotes Dr. Steven Lieberman, vice dean for academic affairs, David Marshall, interim chief operating officer, Mike Shriner, vice president of facilities, operations and management, and Dr. William Mileski, chief of trauma services. A video is included that also features Bill New, associate dean for research administration.
Galveston County Daily News, Nov. 16, 2009
UTMB Drs. Steve Quach, Vic Sierpina and Christine Turley answer questions about swine flu posed by readers of the Galveston County Daily News.
Montgomery County News, Nov. 15, 2009
About 75 minutes after the UTMB Montgomery County Health Department began administering the H1N1 vaccine at Conroe High School on Saturday, all 1,000 doses were gone. A video and a schedule of upcoming vaccination dates are included.
MarketWatch, Nov. 13, 2009
Many doctors are fearful of lawsuits, and liability reform is part of the broader health-care debate. While President Obama doesn’t support a liability cap, he opened the door to alternatives. One argument for a cap is that physicians would order fewer, medically unnecessary tests. In this article, Dr. Howard Brody, director of UTMB’s Institute for the Medical Humanities, said he was skeptical that cost reductions would occur, noting that physicians would continue to order more tests than necessary. The issue of defensive medicine is more complex than it’s typically portrayed, he suggested. “It’s very hard to take something that’s very ingrained and get rid of it in a few years,” Brody said.
MSN Money, Nov. 11, 2009
UTMB and the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston have joined an online program that matches volunteers with clinical research studies. This article also appeared in the Houston Business Journal. Guidry News published a longer article.
JAMA, Nov. 11, 2009
An aging population of people infected with hepatitis C virus is vulnerable to liver complications while increasing numbers of people from countries where hepatitis B infection is common are migrating to the United States. This report details discussions about hepatitis and measures taken to prevent transmission. UTMB’s Miriam J. Alter, a leading infectious-disease investigator, said HCV infection remains high among injection drug users, particularly in baby boomers.
Galveston County Daily News, Nov. 12, 2009
In a letter to the editor, the Rev. Helen Appelberg, pastoral care coordinator at UTMB, wrote about the Senior Seaside Club, which has received funding through a President’s Cabinet Award. Dinners will be held the first Tuesday of every month in 2010.
Houston Chronicle, Nov. 11, 2009
Sen. Chris Dodd is preparing emergency legislation that would require employers to provide up to seven days of paid sick leave to employees if they or their children get sick with flu. Debbie Conley, associate vice president for human resources and employee relations at UTMB, said the proposal probably wouldn’t affect UTMB policies since employees already receive eight hours of sick leave per month.