Medical Treatments

Getting health care to rural areas may involve tough decisions about the role of hospitals.

Rethinking Rural Health Solutions To Save Patients And Communities

3:14pm February 28, 2018

by Adrienne St. Clair

Hospitals have long been linchpins of rural communities, providing jobs as well as health care. But policy analysts say some hospitals may have to change or close to better serve rural health needs.

Maxine Stanich celebrated her 90th birthday with friends and family in 2010, more than two years after her implanted defibrillator was deactivated by Dr. Rita Redberg to comply with Stanich's "do not resuscitate" directive.

Health & Safety

Too Late To Operate? Surgery Near End Of Life Is Common, Costly

12:42pm February 28, 2018

by Liz Szabo

Nearly 1 in 3 Medicare patients undergoes an operation in the final year of life. The benefits are often limited, but the costs and side effects can be substantial.

Confused about whether your health plan is ACA-compliant? To be sure you're using your state's official marketplace, start with HealthCare.gov, and click on "see if I can change."

Your 2018 Health Plan Must Comply With ACA Rules Or You Risk Tax Penalties

7:59pm February 27, 2018

by Michelle Andrews

The tax reform law passed in December did repeal the Affordable Care Act's penalties for not having comprehensive health insurance. But the penalties are still in effect until 2019.

Cover detail of Blue Dreams, by Lauren Slater

Long-Term Effects Of Psychotropic Drugs Are 'Cloaked In Mystery'

5:18pm February 27, 2018

by Terry Gross

When it comes to antidepressants and other psychotropic drugs, author Lauren Slater says, "We don't really know what we're taking into our bodies." Her new book is Blue Dreams.

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It's easy to mistake adolescent depression for something else, child psychiatrists say; the signs can include misbehavior, eating problems or sleep trouble.

Pediatricians Call For Universal Depression Screening For Teens

5:11pm February 26, 2018

by Allison Aubrey

The nation's leading group of pediatricians has updated its guidelines for tackling teen mental health issues. One recommendation: Annual depression screening for all adolescents 12 and older.

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Ashley Copeland (right) talks to her mom Sue Iverson in the Swedish Medical Center emergency department, near Denver. Copeland got a nerve-blocking anesthetic instead of opioids to ease her severe headache. At discharge she was advised to use over-the-cou

These 10 ERs Sharply Reduced Opioid Use And Still Eased Pain

11:18am February 23, 2018

by John Daley

Collaboration was key for the 10 emergency rooms that cut opioid prescriptions by 36 percent. Doctors say they now use less addictive medicines to manage pain and have shifted patients' expectations.

Arik Hartmann: Why Is There Still Lingering Shame And Prejudice Around HIV?

10:04am February 23, 2018

by NPR/TED Staff

As treatments for HIV have advanced, the stigmas surrounding it have not diminished as quickly. Arik Hartmann argues for more transparency to tackle misperceptions surrounding HIV.

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Rosemary Grant is a registered nurse and helps coordinate sepsis care at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle. The center's goal, she says, is to get a patient who might be developing sepsis antibiotics within three hours.

Synergy Between Nurses And Automation Could Be Key To Finding Sepsis Early

6:45pm February 22, 2018

by Richard Harris

A bedside computer loaded with software that tracks vital signs in the ICU can pick up early warning patterns, specialists say. But it takes a human care provider to sort the signal from the noise.

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Kristopher Kelly near his home in Concrete, Wash., in February. He broke his pelvis and all his ribs in a work accident last year. The resulting infection he developed in the hospital almost killed him.

Did An IV Cocktail Of Vitamins And Drugs Save This Lumberjack From Sepsis?

5:42pm February 21, 2018

by Richard Harris

A 51-year-old man nearly died from septic shock, when a crushing injury led to overwhelming infection. After getting an experimental treatment, he's recovering well, but some doctors want more proof.

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Shaorong Deng gets an experimental treatment for cancer of the esophagus that uses his own immune system cells. They have been genetically modified with the gene-editing technique known as CRISPR.

Doctors In China Lead Race To Treat Cancer By Editing Genes

11:58am February 21, 2018

by Rob Stein

More than a third of patients with cancer of the esophagus responded to experimental treatment in China with the gene-editing technique CRISPR. Several CRISPR studies are underway there.

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