Tag Archives: LGBT

Covering the many challenges LGBTQ adults face as they age

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Photo: lewishamdreamer via Flickr

Photo: lewishamdreamer via Flickr

Health concerns for aging members of the LGBT community are numerous and varied – from battling multiple chronic diseases due to lack of preventive care to fighting prejudice within the health system when trying to obtain services.

Some of the unique health and social needs of older LGBT adults was the focus of a recent Benjamin Rose Institute on Aging conference in Cleveland. Presentations and panels featuring top-tier experts presented valuable lessons for journalists interested in reporting on LGBT aging, says AHCJ member Eileen Beal, a longtime writer on aging who attended the event. Continue reading →

Liz Seegert is an independent health journalist based in New York’s Hudson Valley, who writes about caregiving, dementia, access to care, nursing homes and policy in her role as AHCJ’s Health Beat Leader for Aging. Seegert helps provide context for reporting on this multidimensional issue with story posts, tip sheets, analysis, data and one-on-one interviews with aging experts.

After Orlando outcry, FDA seeks comments on blood donation policy for gay men

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Photo: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/Amanda Mills (2011)

Photo: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/Amanda Mills (2011)

In the wake of criticism following the June attack at a gay nightclub in Florida, U.S. regulators are taking another look at the blood donation policy for gay men.

In a Federal Register notice, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration called for public comments about its donation policy, which calls on gay men to defer giving blood for a year following their last sexual encounter.

“The FDA said it was establishing a public docket for comment about its current recommendations and that interested people should submit comments, backed by scientific evidence, supporting alternative potential policies to reduce the risk of HIV transmission,” Reuters’ Toni Clarke reported on July 26. The agency is taking comments until Nov. 25. Continue reading →

Susan Heavey, (@susanheavey) a Washington, D.C.-based journalist, is AHCJ’s topic leader on social determinants of health and curates related material at healthjournalism.org. She welcomes questions and suggestions on resources and tip sheets at determinants@healthjournalism.org.

Another look at blood donation in wake of Orlando shooting

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Photo: Fibonacci Blue via Flickr

Photo: Fibonacci Blue via Flickr

Last month’s shooting in Orlando in drew attention not only to the city’s gay community but also to limits in how the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community there could respond when it comes to what many do in the aftermath of such tragedies – give blood.

The shooting at the gay nightclub left 49 victims dead. Many in the community sought to donate blood only to run into U.S. Food and Drug Administration regulations that call for sexually active gay men to wait a year after their last sexual encounter before giving blood. Continue reading →

Susan Heavey, (@susanheavey) a Washington, D.C.-based journalist, is AHCJ’s topic leader on social determinants of health and curates related material at healthjournalism.org. She welcomes questions and suggestions on resources and tip sheets at determinants@healthjournalism.org.

Planning for AHCJ’s annual conference with an eye on disparities

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Stokes Federal Courthouse - Superior Avenue Bridge - Shoreway Bridge - Cleveland Ohio via photopin (license)Cleveland, home to both the well-known Cleveland Clinic medical center and areas still reeling from the loss of manufacturing jobs, hosts AHCJ’s 2016 conference, which will offer many opportunities for journalists to explore the social determinants of health, from infrastructure to trauma.

Stokes Federal Courthouse – Superior Avenue Bridge – Shoreway Bridge – Cleveland Ohio via photopin (license)Cleveland, home to areas still reeling from the loss of manufacturing jobs, hosts AHCJ’s 2016 conference, which will offer many opportunities for journalists to explore the social determinants of health, from infrastructure to trauma.

Think of Cleveland, as a health reporter, and your first thought jump to the Cleveland Clinic, the group of well-known medical centers rated one of the nation’s most premier hospitals (and one of the hosts for AHCJ’s conference in the city April 7-10.)

Yet the four-day event in the heart of Cleveland will also examine many facets of health care (or lack thereof) for vulnerable populations. Continue reading →

Susan Heavey, (@susanheavey) a Washington, D.C.-based journalist, is AHCJ’s topic leader on social determinants of health and curates related material at healthjournalism.org. She welcomes questions and suggestions on resources and tip sheets at determinants@healthjournalism.org.

Check out this new primer on LGBT health issues

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ILO HIV/AIDS human ribbon, 2010 via photopin (license)AHCJ’s Social Determinants & Disparities section now includes more information on covering health issues related to the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community, (LGBT).

ILO HIV/AIDS human ribbon, 2010 via photopin (license)AHCJ’s Social Determinants & Disparities section now includes more information on covering health issues related to the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community, (LGBT).

In the past year, we’ve moved to beef up our content area on health disparities, including those affecting certain subgroups, including the LGBT population.

To that end, we’ve asked Andrew M. Seaman to pull together an all-around list for reporters covering health issues that affect the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community. A medical correspondent at Reuters and the ethics committee chair for the Society of Professional Journalists, he is well placed to help reporters and editors wade through what can be complicated coverage issues or simply new territory. Continue reading →

Susan Heavey, (@susanheavey) a Washington, D.C.-based journalist, is AHCJ’s topic leader on social determinants of health and curates related material at healthjournalism.org. She welcomes questions and suggestions on resources and tip sheets at determinants@healthjournalism.org.