Association of Health Care Journalists

Environmental Racism and Indigenous Communities
2021-11-17 01:00 - 2021-11-18 01:00 (America/New_York)
Journalists reporting on environmental issues, which often impact health, in Tribal communities may overlook or ignore important Native voices. In this two-day virtual workshop sponsored by the Institute for Journalism & Natural Resources on environmental racism and Indigenous communities, journalists will hear from experts about the history of environmental racism in Native nations, how Tribal members are working to protect water sources, common missteps journalists make when covering Indigenous communities and more. This workshop is limited to 25 participants.
When/Where: 11:00 am – 5:00 pm EST, November 17-18, 2021 (virtual)
Cost: Free
Application deadline: Wednesday, November 3, midnight
Visit the organization’s website for more information.

2021 Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) Virtual Annual Meeting
2021-11-17 01:00 - 2021-11-19 01:00
The PCORI Annual Meeting brings together members of the health care community, including researchers, patients, caregivers, clinicians, insurers, health system representatives, and other stakeholders. The event serves as a report to the nation on PCORI’s progress in funding initiatives to determine which care approaches work best, for whom, and under what circumstances.
This year, PCORI will present six main sessions at its Virtual Annual Meeting. Five plenaries will set the stage for discussions on each of PCORI’s proposed National Priorities for Health, while our closing plenary will cover what we’ve learned during the COVID-19 pandemic. Fourteen breakout sessions will delve into topics such as health equity and disparities, the fight against COVID-19, maternal morbidity and mortality, intellectual and developmental disabilities, engagement in practice, and more. This year’s meeting will also offer attendees accessible learning and networking opportunities.
Check the organization’s website for more information and to register.

Writing Workshop for Journalists of Color
2021-11-18 01:00 - 2021-11-21 01:00
The Poynter Institute will be holding an online workshop in November for journalists of color who would like to build skills for writing opinion pieces and personal essays. Participants will learn through instruction and small writing groups. This workshop is one of Poynter’s most competitive programs. Only 15 spots are available.
Organization: The Poynter Institute Dates: November 18-21, 2021 Cost: Free Location: Online Application deadline: Monday, August 23 For more information: https://www.poynter.org/shop/writing/power-of-diverse-voices-writing-workshop-for-journalists-of-color-november-2021/

Why Sex Matters: Sex differences in COVID and beyond
2021-12-01 01:00
Dec. 1, 1 p.m. ET
COVID-19 has, in many ways, been a different pandemic for men and women. Men are more likely to develop severe disease, while women more often endure long-haul symptoms. Cases of myocarditis have occurred primarily in young men after vaccination while women have greater stroke risk. COVID also triggers different stress-related mental health challenges. This webinar explores how biological sex shapes our immune response, how gender affects the way we experience stress—and how COVID focuses attention on the longstanding need to understand how sex and gender affect health and disease.
View the recording

Louise McCullough, M.D., Ph.D., the Roy M. and Phyllis Gough Huffington distinguished chair of neurology at McGovern Medical School at UTHealth Houston and chief of neurology at Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center, researches cerebral vascular disease with a focus on sex differences in cell death pathways during stroke. During the pandemic, she turned her attention to sex differences in COVID—the strong inflammatory response in men that can lead to severe symptoms from a ‘cytokine storm,’ and the adaptive immune response in women, which may be linked to long-haul symptoms and perhaps the development of auto-antibodies. Among her many awards, Dr. McCullough received the Javits Neuroscience Investigator Award from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke in 2016.

Sara Ghandehari, M.D., is a pulmonologist and director of pulmonary rehabilitation in the Women’s Guild Lung Institute at Cedar-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. She is also an associate clinical professor of medicine at Cedars-Sinai and U.C.L.A. David Geffen School of Medicine. In caring for COVID patients, she sees the greater severity of symptoms in men, including severe lung damage. Dr. Ghandehari hypothesized that female hormones might have a protective effect, and she and her colleagues conducted a pilot study of progesterone to reduce inffammation. Her work is part of broader investigations into COVID disparities and the potential role of sex hormones in immunomodulation.

Psychologist Carolyn M. Mazure, Ph.D., is the Norma Weinberg Spungen and Joan Lebson Bildner Professor in Women’s Health Research and director of Women’s Health Research at Yale, an interdisciplinary research center on the health of women and the interplay of sex, gender, and health. She is internationally recognized for her work on depression, in which she was the among the first to demonstrate how stress is a more potent pathway to depression in women than men and to use these findings to inform treatment interventions. During the pandemic, Dr. Mazure has focused on the consequences of stress on women. She chaired the American Psychological Association’s Summit on Women and Depression, has testified before Congress on women’s health, and served on the advisory committee for the NIH Office for Research on Women’s Health.

Moderator: Michele Cohen Marill

Louise McCullough

Sara Ghandehari

Carolyn M. Mazure

Michele Cohen Marill

HIV & Aging conference
2021-12-01 01:00
Formerly the HIV/AIDS & Aging Symposium, was created to bring community leaders together to improve the lives of older adults living with HIV. The theme is 10 Years of HIV Aging: A Retrospective.
Where: Austin, Texas
When: 8:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m. ET, Wednesday, December 1, 2021 CT
Contact: info@hivandagingconference.com
For more information, visit the organization’s website.

Global Health Conference of the Americas
2021-12-02 01:00 - 2021-12-05 01:00
Be part of the Global Health Conference of the Americas 2021 that will take place from December 2 to 5 in Cartagena, Colombia. The pandemic has caused disruption around the world, and the global health community has had to adapt and respond to the growing needs of vulnerable populations. This year’s conference will host a series of dynamic conversations that will focus on Covid-19, immunization challenges in Latin America, antimicrobial resistance, arboviruses, environment and health, global pediatrics, health digital and more.
The event is organized by the Global Health Consortium of the Robert Stempel School of Public Health and Social Work and the Colombian Society of Pediatrics, in association with the Pan American Health Organization and the National School of Tropical Medicine at the School of Medicine of Baylor.
When/Where:
Date: December 2 – 5, 2021
Location: Cartagena, Colombia. Here are some hotel options to explore.
How to Attend:
Visit the organization’s website for additional information and to register.

Beyond newsstands: how to expand your freelance business through niche publications
2021-12-08 01:00
Dec. 8, 2021, 3 p.m. ET
There is a whole world of potential clients for freelancers to tap beyond newspapers, general interest science and health magazines, women’s magazines and other traditional consumer publications. Trade groups publish magazines for members, companies for customers and universities for alums. Media conglomerates may have a stable of specialized publications targeting various professional groups.
Many are looking for talented freelance writers to fill out the pages, whether digital or print. In this AHCJ webinar, freelance members will learn where to find niche publications and the pros and cons of working for them. They will get advice on pitching and introducing themselves to editors. They’ll learn about potential conflicts of interest if writing for both niche and consumer publications. And they will be able to ask questions of the panelists, two editors and one freelancer who earns six figures by including non-consumer publications among her clients.
View the recording

Jen A. Miller is an award-winning freelance writer and author. She’s a regular contributor to The New York Times and writes their weekly running newsletter. She also has written for The Washington Post, The Guardian, SELF, Buzzfeed, The Philadelphia Inquirer and for niche publications, including Medscape, Clinical Laboratory News and HealthTech. Miller is the author of the e-book, Notes from a Hired Pen: Where to Find New Freelance Writing Clients and Turbocharge Your Career.

Rachel Coker is the director of research advancement at Binghamton University. Her mission is to advance an understanding of and appreciation for the university’s research and scholarship. Coker writes and edits its digital research magazine, Discover-e, an electronic newsletter and other material. One recent article on Discover-e profiled a graduate student’s research into how people with psychopathic traits achieve occupational success. Coker directly hires freelancers.

Shannon Muchmore is a senior editor at Healthcare Dive, a vertical at the digital platform Industry Dive, whose target audience is industry decision makers. Healthcare Dive provides in-depth journalism into news and trends shaping healthcare. Topic areas including health IT, policy and regulation, insurance, digital health, payer-provider partnerships, value-based care and more. Before taking the job at Healthcare Dive, Muchmore worked in the D.C. bureau for Modern Healthcare. She is actively seeking freelancers.

Moderator: Barbara Mantel

Jen A. Miller

Rachel Coker

Shannon Muchmore

Barbara Mantel

Regret the error: How greater access to medical records could make patients safer
2021-12-08 01:00
Dec. 8, noon ET
Journalists should prepare to help their readers, listeners and viewers for an inevitable downside of a welcome development with electronic health records. A federal rule that took effect in April has made it easier for many patients to access their medical records. While this move is welcomed by patient advocates, it also will reveal many more cases of incorrect information recorded about people’s medical histories and treatments.
This webinar follows up on questions raised by veteran health care journalist Cheryl Clark in a series of articles for MedPage Today, including one titled “Open Notes Shines Light on Errors in Patient Medical Records—Will the new rule lead to a flood of correction requests?” This webinar will begin with a brief talk by Clark about her articles, followed by presentations from two of the leaders in efforts to help patients get easier access to their medical records.
View the recording

Catherine DesRoches
Deven McGraw
Kistein Monkhouse
Cheryl Clark
Kerry Dooley Young

Through OpenNotes, Catherine DesRoches is a leader of efforts to make health care more transparent by inviting doctors, nurses and therapists to share their notes with their patients. She came to OpenNotes from Mathematica Policy Research, a national firm with extensive expertise in social policy research, where she was a senior fellow studying the use of electronic health records by hospitals and physicians, the effect of health care organizations on physician clinical practice. A graduate of the University of Massachusetts, School of Public Health, she received her doctoral degree at the Joseph P. Mailman School of Public Health at Columbia University.

Formerly the director of the Center for Democracy & Technology, Deven McGraw served as deputy director, of health information privacy at the Department of Health and Human Services in the Obama administration. During her time at HHS, McGraw led efforts to issue guidance on the right of individuals to access and obtain a copy of their health information. She has a masters degree from the Johns Hopkins School of Hygiene and Public Health and a law degree from Georgetown University, in addition to a bachelor’s degree from the University of Maryland in journalism.

Kistein Monkhouse is the chief executive officer and founder of Patient Orator, a digital health platform addressing healthcare disparities. She also produced the film, “Humanizing Healthcare.” Monkhouse’s earliest experience in health care included working as a home-care coordinator and as a nursing assistant. She holds a masters in public administration from Long Island University.

A medical and science journalist for more than three decades, much of it spent at the San Diego Union-Tribune, Cheryl Clark developed one of the nation’s first beats on HIV-AIDS at a major newspaper in the early 1980s. She’s written more than 1,000 stories about physicians and hospital quality and safety, fraud, over-utilization, outcome research, variation, and healthcare policy. “I read the 3,000-page federal payment rules, and I read the Affordable Care Act. Details are important,” Clark wrote in her biography for the AHCJ website.

Moderator: Kerry Dooley Young

There will be a question-and-answer period after their presentations.

Congressional hearing: "Growing our Economy by Investing in Families"
2021-12-08 01:00
“Growing our Economy by Investing in Families: How Supporting Family Caregiving Expands Economic Opportunity and Benefits All Americans”
Congressman Jim Himes (CT-04), Chairman of the U.S. House Select Committee on Economic Disparity and Fairness in Growth, will hold a hybrid hearing titled,” to examine the link between federal investments in affordable family care and inclusive economic growth. In the wake of the House passage of the Build Back Better Act and the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Select Committee members will also discuss the impact of family care access and affordability in relation to America’s economic stability and labor force.
When: 11:00 a.m. ET – 1:00 p.m. ET, Wednesday, December 8, 2021
Where: 2118 Rayburn House Office Building and livestream will be available on YouTube and the Select Committee’s website
For more information, visit the organization’s website.

Words matter: Responsible reporting on alcohol use and misuse
2021-12-15 01:00
Dec. 15, noon CT/1pm ET
As evolving science has helped researchers understand the science of addiction disorders better, it’s become clear that much of the language we use to describe those conditions is outdated and can increase stigma, particularly with disorders related to alcohol use. Journalists need to be aware of appropriate terms and their meanings as well as common misconceptions about alcohol use disorder. This webinar will cover the appropriate terminology in covering alcohol disorders, current insights into how scientists now think of alcohol misuse, and common misconceptions about alcohol use and risks, including popular misunderstanding of the risks of alcohol use during pregnancy.
The webinar features Dr. George Koob, director of the NIAAA, as well an NIAAA researcher, a researcher into prenatal alcohol exposure, and a journalist and best-selling author of a memoir about living with an alcohol disorder. These are some of the topics the webinar will address:
* Basic terms everyone should accurately understand, such as “overdose” and “blackouts”* Stigmatizing words to avoid* New terms that can increase the public’s understanding* Thinking of alcohol issues as a spectrum* Recognition of alcohol disorders as affecting all ages and genders* The most up-to-date research into risks of alcohol exposure during pregnancy
View the recording
George F. Koob
Sarah Hepola
Luisa Zuccolo
Patricia Powell
Tara Haelle

George F. Koob, Ph.D., is the director of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), where he provides leadership in the national effort to reduce the public health burden associated with alcohol misuse. As NIAAA Director, Dr. Koob oversees a broad portfolio of alcohol research ranging from basic science to epidemiology, diagnostics, prevention, and treatment. Dr. Koob earned his doctorate in Behavioral Physiology from Johns Hopkins University in 1972. Prior to taking the helm at NIAAA, he served as Professor and Chair of the Scripps’ Committee on the Neurobiology of Addictive Disorders and Director of the Alcohol Research Center at the Scripps Research Institute.

Sarah Hepola is the author of the bestselling book, Blackout: Remembering the Things I Drank To Forget, a memoir that was also the first book (that she knows of anyway) to discuss the science of blackouts. She began her journalism career twenty years ago at the Austin Chronicle, where she wrote about culture, and her gigs since then have included: music critic, travel writer, beauty columnist, sex blogger, and personal essays editor. In 2010, she quit drinking after a pretty robust career in that, too. Her writing has appeared in the New York Times, the Guardian, Elle, Glamour, Salon, and Texas Monthly, where she is a writer-at-large. She lives in Dallas with a very fluffy gray cat named Wallace.

Luisa Zuccolo is Senior Lecturer in Epidemiology at the University of Bristol. Following her first degree in Physics, she obtained a Fellowship from the University of Turin, Italy, in Cancer Epidemiology and Surveillance. She then moved to the University of Bristol and was awarded a pre-doctoral Fellowship from the UK Medical Research Council to complete an MSc in Epidemiology (London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine) and a PhD in Genetic Epidemiology (University of Bristol). She was then awarded a second MRC Fellowship in population health science epidemiology, after which, in 2018, she secured a tenured position at the University of Bristol. Dr Zuccolo researches the causal effects of alcohol on health, in particular of prenatal alcohol exposure, using methods and designs that improve causal inference. She is also interested in barriers to and effects of prolonged breastfeeding.

Patricia Powell, Ph.D., is the Deputy Director of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. Dr. Powell works closely with the NIAAA Director to provide scientific leadership in the development, implementation, and management of NIAAA’s broad research portfolio. Previously, Dr. Powell held the position of NIAAA Associate Director for Scientific Initiatives. In that role, she oversaw a broad range of research activities, sought opportunities to jumpstart or expand projects that reflected the Director’s priorities, and identified opportunities for NIAAA to become more involved in existing activities and initiatives across the National Institutes of Health, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and beyond. Dr. Powell has 20 years of research experience in developmental genetics and in cellular and molecular biology.

Moderator: Tara Haelle

Omicron, future variants and reporting on COVID-19 in 2022
2021-12-17 01:00
SAVE THE DATE: Dec. 17, 12:30 p.m. ET
Omicron is the latest SARS-CoV-2 variant to rock the scientific world, but it won’t be the last. This webinar will explore what we are learning about omicron, how the vaccines will work against it and its likely impact on those who have previously been ill or remain unvaccinated. What does it mean for kids? How do we assess our risks for this holiday season? What do variants like omicron mean for how the pandemic will unfold in 2022 and the likelihood that it will still be with us in 2023? Experts will answer those questions and more. Bara Vaida, AHCJ core topic leader on infectious disease, will moderate.
View the recording
Katelyn Jetelina
Joshua Schiffer
Bara Vaida

Katelyn Jetelina, M.P.H., Ph.D., is a professor at the University of Texas Health Center, an epidemiologist, biostatistician, researcher, wife, and mom of two little girls. She has a research lab and teaches graduate-level courses and she also writes the newsletter ‘Your Local Epidemiologist’. Her main goal is to “translate” ever-evolving public health science so that people will be well-equipped to make evidence-based decisions, rather than decisions based in fear.

Joshua Schiffer, M.D., M.Sc., is an infectious disease physician and researcher who develops mathematical models to address significant medical challenges.A major focus of his work is to analyze strategies to achieve an HIV cure in people who require antiviral drugs for their entire lifetime, due to reservoirs of latent virus. His team is also currently focusing on COVID-19, including developing models of the immune response against the coronavirus and the best treatment strategies.

Making Your Writing Appealing to a Broader Audience
2021-12-29 01:00
Give yourself the gift of creativity this holiday season. Creative NonFiction, a magazine featuring true, well-told stories, is holding a webinar on Dec. 29 for writers who want to widen the appeal of local reporting to a national audience.
“The best reportage connects an intimate, local story to a larger issue or trend. A story about one person’s battle with homelessness, for example, can reveal a lot about weaknesses in national infrastructure, cultural indifference to suffering, and the life-saving importance of certain charities,” according to the Creative NonFiction website. Participants will learn how to use a tool called Cosmic Zoom “to find critical distance and unearth new possibilities and points-of-view.”
When/Where: 2:00 – 3:00 p.m. ET (virtual)
Cost: $15
Presenter: Adriana E. Ramirez, a Mexican-Colombian writer, critic, and performance poet based in Pittsburgh. She won the inaugural PEN/Fusion Emerging Writers Prize in 2015 for her novella-length work of nonfiction, Dead Boys.
To register, visit the organization’s website.

The COVID Variants: Omicron and Beyond
2022-01-13 01:00
Science Writers of New York hosts this conversation with Mark J. Mulligan, MD (@mjmull), director of the NYU Langone Vaccine Center. He will talk to SWINY co-chair David Levine (@dlloydlevine) about the Omicron variant, what it means for families and the future of the pandemic.
When/Where: 7:00 p.m.-8:00 p.m. ET, Thursday, Jan. 13 (On Zoom)
For more information and to register, visit the organization’s website.

“Righting the Wrongs: Tackling Health Inequities”
2022-01-19 01:00
The Hastings Center, a research institute focused on bioethics, has organized a two-day summit for January on health equity.
“Day 1 will focus on historical events and decisions that have led to major inequities in health today. It will be designed for the public, and health professionals, researchers, and policymakers,” according to the Hastings Center website.
“Day 2 will offer insights and examples of promising strategies that health care leaders and practicing clinicians can employ to address inequities through policy, clinical care, medical education, research, and community collaborations.”
Panelists include Pulitzer Prize-winner Isabel Wilkerson, the author of the best-selling book Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents; David R. Williams, an internationally recognized scientist and the presenter of the TED Talk, “How Racism Makes Us Sick;” and Daniel Dawes, a key figure in shaping the Mental Health Parity Act and the Affordable Care Act.
When/Where: January 19-20, 2022 (Online)
Cost: Free
For more details visit the organization’s website.

Health tech forecast for 2022: What's in store?
2022-01-19 01:00
SAVE THE DATE: Jan. 19, 1 p.m. ET
The COVID-19 pandemic prompted a surge in health technologies such as telehealth and devices to monitor patients’ health at home during 2020 and 2021. Our panel of experts will discuss some of the trends in health information technology and what we’re likely to see in 2022. What will remain part of our lives, and what didn’t make the cut?
View the webcast
Timothy Aungst
Kat Jercich
Santosh Mohan
Mintu Turakhia
Karen Blum

Timothy Aungst, Pharm.D., is an associate professor of pharmacy practice at the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (MCPHS) University in Boston and a clinical pharmacist in the home health setting. He has over a decade of experience in the digital health space focused on digital therapeutics, remote patient monitoring, medication adherence, and digital biomarkers. He serves as an advisor and consultant to digital health and pharmaceutical companies, and is a recognized expert with multiple publications and international and national speaking engagements.

Kat Jercich is the senior editor at Healthcare IT News and has more than a decade of journalism experience. Her bylines have appeared in the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Advocate, and others. Previously, she was an award-winning managing editor at the Rewire News Group.

Santosh Mohan, M.M.C.I., C.P.H.I.M.S., F.H.I.M.S.S., is the vice president of digital in the Department of Digital Innovation at Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa, Fla. He is launching the digital organization within Moffitt’s Center for Digital Health, to help leverage information technology and health data science competencies to advance the cancer center’s overall strategy. Previously, he served as the managing director of the Innovation Hub at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston.

Mintu Turakhia, M.D., M.A.S., is professor of medicine and director and co-founder of the Center for Digital Health at Stanford University School of Medicine in Palo Alto, Calif. A cardiac electrophysiologist, outcomes researcher and clinical trialist, he has an active multidisciplinary program in heart rhythm and digital health research, where he uses biostatistics, health economics, artificial intelligence, and data science approaches to examine quality, outcomes and risk of heart rhythm disorders. He has served as principal investigator of several multi-center trials of digital health tools and wearables for heart disease diagnosis and treatment, and he collaborates closely on research with medical device and technology companies. At the Center for Digital Health, Turakhia leads several large public-private partnership efforts to develop tech-enabled disease management programs for heart disease.

The Post-COVID Newsroom
2022-01-20 01:00
Journalists continue to work from home as media organizations repeatedly postpone calling employees back to the office. When the pandemic finally subsides, what will newsrooms look like? Will journalists continue to work from home, at least for part of the week? How will employers make sure offices are safe for the next pandemic? The Press Club of Long Island, a chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists, will host a panel discussion in January to explore these questions. Panelists will include a union leader, a news executive and an infectious disease specialist.
When/Where: 7:00 p.m. EST, January 20, 2022 (virtual)
Cost: free
Panelists:
Zachary R. Dowdy, an assistant professor of practice at Stony Brook University’s School of Communication and Journalism, was formerly a rewrite and criminal justice reporter and United Nations correspondent for Newsday. He serves as vice president of the Editorial Unit of Local 406, the union representing employees at Newsday.
Audrey Gruber, an award-winning news executive, is vice president of news for News 12 Networks where she oversees operations, personnel and overall network efficiency. Gruber has won numerous top honors in journalism, including multiple Emmy Awards, a Peabody Award and DuPont Award, among others.
Aaron E. Glatt, M.D., M.A.C.P., F.I.D.S.A., F.S.H.E.A., is the chairman of medicine, chief of infectious diseases and hospital epidemiologist at Mount Sinai South Nassau and a full professor of medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York City.
For more information, visit the organization’s website.

IAPHS Research to Action Seminar Series
2022-01-20 01:00
This webinar series addresses four issues that affect population health scientists who wish to conduct public facing science. Following each webinar, there will be small group discussions focused on specific skills

January 20, 2022:Communicating research through print/broadcast media Small Group Discussion: Writing an op-e
March 31, 2022: Making research actionable for state & local policymakers Small Group Discussion: Writing a policy brief
July 21, 2022: Bridging research with community practice Small Group Discussion: Developing a community engagement plan
October 20, 2022: Securing funding for applied research Small Group Discussion : Developing a concept proposal or a set of specific aims.

All webinars will be held Thursdays at noon Eastern time.
Visit the organization’s website for more information and to register.

Lunch and Learn (Virtual)
2022-01-20 01:00
AHCJ’s Freelance Committee is starting up a monthly series of informal Zoom sessions intended to build skills and community. These Lunch and Learn get-togethers will take place at 1 p.m. ET every third Thursday. Each session will focus on a specific skills-building theme. No slides, just informal meetups where we can spend time together and learn from one another. Sessions will not be recorded or archived.
Join us for the first Lunch and Learn on Thursday, Jan. 20, at 1 p.m. ET where we’ll talk about how to plan work for the year, including some overlooked areas where you can generate income.
Join the webcastMeeting ID: 961 8036 2044

LPS Conservatorship Meeting
2022-01-22 01:00
Laws regulating when a person with mental illness can be admitted to a psychiatric hospital vary by state, but commonly set a high bar for proving that someone needs to be committed. The National Alliance on Mental Illness’ Los Angeles chapter is hosting a virtual mentoring meeting about state’s laws regarding what’s known as conservatorship; other states call it guardianship.
When/Where: 1:00 p.m., Saturday, Jan. 22 (Zoom)
For more information and to register, visit the organization’s website.

Successful aging at home: what reporters should know
2022-01-26 01:00
SAVE THE DATE: Jan. 26, noon ET
Nearly 90% of older adults want to remain in their home or community as they age, according to the Bipartisan Policy Center. Aging at home, or in the community, can help reduce health costs and improve outcomes. But it also requires more affordable housing, additional home and community services, better integration of these supports in the health system, and advanced planning by seniors and their families to create a safe, suitable environment. For some, it may also mean finding a different community-based solution.
Webcast panelists will discuss “aging in the right place,” what it means for the future of health care, and what older adults and families can do now to get ready for the future.
View the webcast
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Katelyn Jetelina
Joshua Schiffer
Liz Seegert
–>

Stephen M. Golant, Ph.D., is a Professor Emeritus at the University of Florida (Gainesville) and was earlier associate professor at the University of Chicago. His research focuses on the housing, mobility, long-term care, and technology needs of older adults. Dr. Golant is a Fellow of the Gerontological Society of America and a Fulbright Senior Scholar award recipient. In 2012, he received the Richard M. Kalish award from the Gerontological Society of America in recognition of his insightful and innovative publications on aging and life development in the behavioral and social sciences. Dr. Golant has written or edited more than 140 papers and books. His latest book, Aging in the Right Place, was recently published by Health Professions Press.

Krithika Srivats is the SVP of Clinical Practice and Product Innovation for HGS AxisPoint Health, an HGS Company, having served in the role for over 11 years. She is an accomplished, driven and results-oriented healthcare professional with 25 years of diverse experience in patient care, strategic disease management in the field of Alzheimer’s and related dementias, and healthcare technology and integrated solutions in medical management and population health management. As an occupational therapist, Krithika believes in holistic person-centric care, which is reflected in all facets of her approach to solutions and issue resolution. Kritika’s key accomplishments include setting up first of its kind day care and specialized dementia care in India, USA and WA, working closely with the local health departments, and the centers of excellence. Her focus on functional independence to building resilience has been translated in the innovative products and aging in place solutions.

Andrea King Collier is an award-winning journalist and author based in Lansing, Mich. Collier has been writing about health and health policy issues for the past 20 years. In the last few years she has also cast her eye on food and food systems. Her work has appeared in the Washington Post, the New York Times, The Lansing State Journal and the PostTribune. Her work appears regularly in Essence, More, Ladies Home Journal, Woman’s Day, O, the Oprah Magazine, Real Health, Heart Healthy Living, Heart Insights, the National Medical Association Magazine, Better Homes and Gardens, AARP Magazine, More, and others. She is the author of two award winning books, The Black Woman’s Guide to Black Men’s Health, and Still With Me… A Daughter’s Journey of Love and Loss.

Moderator: Liz Seegert, AHCJ topic leader/aging

Variants, Vaccines and Medications: What journalists need to know to improve coverage
2022-01-27 01:00
The Knight Center has joined forces with UNESCO and WHO to offer an opportunity for journalists around the world to improve their coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic. A group of science journalists, scientists and other experts will offer a three-hour webinar to help journalists cope with the evolving COVID-19 crises coverage. The webinar will also address ways to combat disinformation.
When: 9:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m. CT, Thursday, Jan. 27.
Check out this website to register.

2022 Virtual Cancer & Aging Symposium
2022-02-03 01:00
More Americans 65 and older are being diagnosed with cancer. This symposium hosted by the University of Florida Health Cancer Center will delve into current transdisciplinary research in cancer and aging, bringing together scientists and advocates from across the nation working to accelerate work in this field.
When/Where: 1:30 p.m-5:30 p.m. Thursday, February 3, 2022
Cost: Free registration.
To learn more, visit the organization’s website.

AACR report on the impact of COVID-19 on cancer research and patient care
2022-02-09 01:00
Feb. 9, 2022, 1 p.m.
Please join the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) for a virtual congressional briefing to release the AACR Report on the Impact of COVID-19 on Cancer Research and Patient Care. This report will describe the significant impact the pandemic has had on patients with cancer and the field of cancer research; highlight how cancer researchers have responded to the challenges posed by COVID-19; and document lessons learned during the pandemic that can be used to improve cancer research and patient care moving forward.
Speakers for the briefing will include Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Sen. Roy Blunt (R-MO), AACR CEO Margaret Foti, AACR Past President Antoni Ribas, and Ana María López of Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center and Jefferson Health New Jersey. The briefing will also feature a live panel discussion with survivors of cancer whose stories are included in the report.
Webinar registration …

COVID-19 and the Future of American Public Health
2022-02-10 01:00
Bloomberg Philanthropies is hosting a live update on the COVID-19 pandemic with Michael R. Bloomberg, WHO Global Ambassador for Noncommunicable Diseases and Injuries; Vivek Murthy, M.D., Surgeon General of the United States; and Kelly Henning, M.D., Bloomberg Philanthropies Public Health Program Lead.
Following opening remarks from Michael R. Bloomberg, Henning will talk to Murthy about COVID-19 developments, including the post-Omicron landscape. They will also discuss the stress of the pandemic on the U.S. health care system and health care workers, on children’s mental health, and the rising deaths from drug overdose.
When: 1:00-1:30 pm ET, Thursday, February 10 (Virtual)
Go to this link to register.

Hospital CEO compensation: Why are they paid so much?
2022-02-15 01:00
Feb. 15, 1 p.m. ET
The nonprofit Lown Institute will host a webinar about the compensation paid to chief executives of hospitals. Join health care experts as they discuss what’s behind the recent trends in hospital CEO pay and how we can better align executive compensation with hospitals’ social mission. Speakers include:

Shannon Brownlee, co-creator of the Lown Hospitals Index. Brownlee was senior vice president at Lown from 2012 to 2021. She is the author of “Overtreated: Why Too Much Medicine is Making Us Sicker and Poorer.”

Merrill Goozner, who served as editor of Modern Healthcare from 2012 to 2017. He now writes and edits GoozNews, an online newsletter.

Vikas Saini, M.D., president of the Lown Institute. He is a clinical cardiologist trained by Bernard Lown M.D., at Harvard. Saini leads the Lown Hospitals Index, the first ranking to measure hospital social responsibility.

Alan Weil, editor-in-chief of Health Affairs, a leading journal at the intersection of health, health care, and policy. For the previous decade he was the executive director of the National Academy for State Health Policy.

For more information and to register, visit this webpage.

Reporting on the care and costs of diabetes
2022-02-16 01:00
SAVE THE DATE: Feb. 16, 1 p.m. ET
High costs for doctor’s visits, medications and supplies force many diabetes patients to forgo or delay routine care. Patients and lawmakers have expressed outrage at the rising price of insulin, which Type 1 diabetes patients must take their entire lives and is sometimes required to keep Type 2 patients’ disease under control. Last month, the National Clinical Care Commission endorsed limiting insulin price increases to the rate of inflation.
Experts in the care and costs of diabetes will debate the need for a more comprehensive approach to this deadly disease and outline some of the ways the U.S. health care system can make care for patients with diabetes more affordable.
View the webcast
Karen Van Nuys
Ted Doolittle
Sanjoy Dutta
Estelle Everett
Joseph Burns

Karen Van Nuys, Ph.D., focuses on funding in the pharmaceutical supply chain and the effect of commercial practices such as copay coupons and copay clawbacks on the cost of prescription drugs. Her work has been published in leading journals in economics, medicine, finance and health policy. In addition to her work at the USC Schaeffer Center, she is also a research assistant professor at the USC Price School of Public Policy.

Ted Doolittle is an attorney and former federal prosecutor who has had a long career in health care, legal practice and law enforcement, including service as the Deputy Director of the Center for Program Integrity at federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Service (CMS). In this role, Doolittle had oversight of Medicare and Medicaid health care fraud investigations and was responsible for leading the implementation of a variety of programs under the Affordable Care Act.

Sanjoy Dutta, Ph.D., is the chief scientific officer at JDRF where he oversees all of JDRF’s efforts to cure Type 1 diabetes, including beta cell therapies, immunotherapies, glucose control and complications. Before joining JDRF in 2009, Dutta was the associate director of translational medicine and clinical biomarkers at Bristol-Myers Squibb and principal scientist of cardiovascular and metabolic diseases at Hoffmann-La Roche.

Estelle Everett, M.D., is an endocrinologist and health services researcher at the Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. Her research involves addressing the barriers to care among patients with diabetes, inequities in diabetes care and outcomes and the disparities in access to diabetes treatment for vulnerable populations with Type 1 diabetes. She completed medical degree at UCLA and then completed her Internal Medicine residency and Endocrinology fellowship at Johns Hopkins University.

Lunch and Learn (Virtual)
2022-02-17 01:00
Join AHCJ for next week’s Lunch and Learn get-together where you’ll learn how to apply for grants and fellowships. Don’t miss out on this exciting opportunity to mix and mingle with fellow freelance journalists.
When/Where: 1:00 p.m. ET, Feb. 17. (virtual)
View the webcastMeeting ID: 961 8036 2044

Using Academic Research to Keep Politicians Honest: A Free Online Training Session for Journalists
2022-02-17 01:00
This 50-minute training session sponsored by Harvard’s Shorenstein Center on Media, will show reporters and editors how to use academic research studies to hold governments and politicians accountable and to fight disinformation. Topics to be covered include:

How to tell good studies from questionable ones.

The best places to find the best research.

The dos and don’t’s of explaining study findings to your audience.

Tips for applying findings to the specific issue or community you’re covering.

Where journalists on deadline should look to find the “golden nuggets” in lengthy research articles.

Moderator: Denise-Marie Ordway, managing editor of center’s The Journalist Resource
When/Where: 12:00 p.m. ET on February 17, 2022 (virtual)
Cost: Free
For more Information, check out this webpage. To register, visit this website.

Deadline: USC Center for Health Journalism 2022 California Fellowship
2022-02-22 01:00
The University of Southern California Center for Health Journalism is offering a California Fellowship to support reporters “as they pursue ambitious, enterprising projects on overlooked health and health equity issues,” according to the center’s website. Admitted Fellows will receive a $2,000 stipend to defray reporting costs, one week of extensive training and five months of professional mentorship.
This fellowship is open to California-based professional journalists, including freelancers, from the smallest rural newspapers to national outlets. Preference is given to journalists with a minimum of three years of experience and reporters pursuing collaborative projects between mainstream and ethnic news outlets.
Sponsor: University of Southern California Center for Health Journalism
Training dates: April 18-22, 2022
Application deadline: February 22, 2022, at 11:00 pm
Check out the organization’s website for more information.

Addressing suicide disparity in rural communities
2022-02-23 01:00
This webinar, hosted by the Mental Health Technology Center Network, is mainly for mental health providers, but is open to the general public.
When: 10:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m. MT, Feb. 23 (online)
For more information and to register, visit this website.
