News
MPH’s Gonzales to speak at Southern LGBTQ Health Symposium
Feb. 13, 2019—The Vanderbilt Program for LGBTQ Health is very excited to announce that we are hosting our Second Annual Southern LGBTQ Health Symposium on Saturday, March 2, 2019. We will engage providers, students, and community members throughout the region on a variety of topics to better serve sexual and gender minority patients and families. 12:45 PM...
MPH’s Buntin looks ahead at health policy in Washington
Feb. 13, 2019—Three months following the 2018 midterm elections, a panel discussion at AcademyHealth National Health Policy Conference, held February 4-5 in Washington, DC, outlined how much healthcare did, or didn’t, play a role in the elections, as well as what healthcare trends to expect in 2019. Looking at results from the midterm elections, they weren’t heavily...
MPH’s Dusetzina comments on prescription buying habits
Feb. 13, 2019—The analysis, by GoodRx, a company that tracks prescription drug prices, looked at how often residents of different neighborhoods filled prescriptions for different categories of drugs. Patients in wealthier neighborhoods were much more likely to pick up prescriptions for lifestyle problems: erectile dysfunction, baldness, anti-wrinkle Botox injections and an eye medicine that thickens eyelashes. This...
VUSM Symposium shines light on research by MPH’s Banerdt
Feb. 13, 2019—The Vanderbilt University School of Medicine Medical Scholars Research Symposium was held February 4 and highlighted the work of eight medical students who spent the 2017-2018 academic year immersed in research experiences under the guidance of faculty mentors. Justin Banerdt, whose mentors were E. Wesley Ely, MD, MPH, professor of Medicine, and Kondwelani Mateyo, MD,...
MPH Student Receives Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Award
Feb. 13, 2019—On Monday, January 21, M.P.H. candidate Sonya Reid-Lawrence, M.D. received the annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Award. This award is given to a faculty or staff member in the School of Medicine, School of Nursing, or Vanderbilt University Medical Center who emulates the principles of King through his or her work. The award was...
New recommended immunization schedule released by MPH alumna on CDC Advisory Committee
Feb. 8, 2019—At its October 2018 meeting, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP)* voted to recommend approval of the Recommended Immunization Schedule for Children and Adolescents Aged 18 Years or Younger, United States, 2019. The 2019 child and adolescent immunization schedule summarizes ACIP recommendations, including several changes from the 2018 immunization schedule,† on the cover page,...
Society of Urologic Oncology honors MPH alumnus contributions
Feb. 4, 2019—Daniel Barocas, MD, MPH, associate professor of Urology, is being recognized with a national award from the Society of Urologic Oncology (SUO) for his efforts to develop urologic cancer quality measures. The SUO’s Distinguished Service Award is given to a urologist whose actions at work or in the community exceed job expectations and reflect values...
MPH’s Heerman: In utero antibiotics and obesity risk
Feb. 4, 2019—Identifying risk factors for childhood obesity is necessary for developing prevention strategies. Previous studies of a potential association between antibiotic use during pregnancy and childhood obesity have had conflicting results. William Heerman, MD, MPH and colleagues in the National Patient Centered Clinical Research Network (PCORnet) have now conducted a large retrospective cohort analysis to evaluate...
MPH’s Patrick: Long-term unemployment linked to increase in babies born with drug withdrawal
Jan. 29, 2019—Babies born after being exposed to opioids before birth are more likely to be delivered in regions of the U.S. with high rates of long-term unemployment and lower levels of mental health services, according to a study from researchers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center and the RAND Corporation. The study, published in the Jan. 29...
Dusetzina comments on new Part D demo
Jan. 25, 2019—CMS revealed a new innovation center model Friday that aims to encourage Part D as well as Medicare Advantage plans to choose drugs with lower list prices by shifting more risk to payers when patients enter the catastrophic phase of the Part D benefit. Stacie Dusetzina, a drug pricing expert at Vanderbilt, said that most...
MLK Lecture focuses on diversity, inclusion, equity and responsibility
Jan. 25, 2019—The 19th annual Martin Luther King Jr. Commemorative Lecture was held on Monday and commenced with the United Voices of Vanderbilt choir’s stirring rendition of “The Battle Hymn of the Republic.” Vanderbilt University Schools of Medicine and Nursing, in conjunction with the 2019 Martin Luther King Jr. Commemorative Series, presented keynote speaker Deborah Deas, MD,...
MPH’s Schaffner discusses vaccines as anti-vaxxers are added to WHO’s list of 10 Global Health
Jan. 23, 2019—From climate change to superbugs, the World Health Organization has laid out 10 big threats to our global health in 2019. One of the most controversial recent health topics in the US is now an international concern. “Vaccine hesitancy — the reluctance or refusal to vaccinate despite the availability of vaccines — threatens to reverse...
MPH’s Schaffner comments on NY measles outbreak
Jan. 18, 2019—The World Health Organization (WHO) just released its annual list of the top 10 global health threats for 2019. The list includes some more obvious health issues like air pollution, Ebola, HIV and dengue, but one in particular stood out: vaccine hesitancy. “I’m surprised and gratified by this,” William Schaffner, MD, an infectious disease specialist...
Deas to deliver Jan. 21 Martin Luther King Jr. lecture
Jan. 17, 2019—Deborah Deas, MD, MPH, the Mark and Pam Rubin Dean of the School of Medicine and chief executive officer for Clinical Affairs at the University of California, Riverside, will speak from noon to 1 p.m. Monday, Jan. 21, in conjunction with the 2019 Martin Luther King Jr. Commemorative Series at Vanderbilt. Deas will speak in...
It’s not too late to get a flu shot says MPH’s Schaffner
Jan. 5, 2019—This time last year, most people with flu were getting sick from H3N2 strain, which was a major factor in the severity of the 2017 to 2018 flu season. This year, a different strain is making most people sick: H1N1, the same strain that caused the flu pandemic in 2009. But because H1N1 has now...