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Pregnant teenagers face unique health risks compared to their older counterparts because, for one thing, their bodies are still developing. Research has shown that very young mothers have higher odds of having eclampsia, postpartum blood loss and other complications. It seems likely that limits on abortion access across the U.S. may have long-lasting effects on the health of generations of expectant adolescents.
U.S. Navy patient safety training. Photo by Macy Hinds | Public domain photo
A growing body of research shows a link between gender, race and ethnicity and unsafe patient care, but some experts say more comprehensive patient data are needed to better understand why certain groups are more likely to be harmed by medical error.
Image courtesy of The Commonwealth Fund
If policymakers don’t work to mitigate the detrimental effects of laws that limit American women’s health services, they will exacerbate already poor outcomes resulting from persistent inequities in social determinants of health that are driving demographic disparities. That’s one of the takeaways from a recent report by The Commonwealth Fund, a nonprofit research institution that focuses on health care policy and practice research.
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With most major health systems using patient portals for scheduling COVID-19 vaccinations, many older adults may need help setting up accounts. This situation is considered especially true for those older people with lower incomes and education levels, according to data from the National Poll on Healthy Aging at the University of Michigan Institute for Healthcare Policy and Innovation.
The poll finds that 45% of adults aged 65 to 80, and 42% of all adults aged 50 to 80, said they had not set up an account with their health provider’s portal system. Continue reading
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Food insecurity — when people lack access to food or go hungry due to poverty or other challenges — remains a serious problem for many older adults. A new study finds that more than 25% of people with both Medicaid and Medicare, the dual eligibles, said they were food insecure. Among all older adults in the survey, food insecurity was most common (6.2%) in those 75 to 84; it was least common (4.8%) in adults 85 and older.
Social issues such as hunger, inadequate housing, social isolation and poverty are linked to poor health, especially as we age. Continue reading
