Health Sciences In The Media

Many chemotherapy treatments can be safely transitioned from inpatient to outpatient settings, reducing inpatient stays and slashing hundreds of thousands of dollars from the drug budget. “Institutions can save money they may otherwise lose in the inpatient setting by seeking reimbursement based on a buy-and-bill model, purchasing therapies under 340B if they’re eligible, billing for waste, and gaining access to patient assistance programs,” said Dr. Ali McBride, clinical coordinator of Hematology/Oncology at the Cancer Center and a clinical assistant professor at the College of Pharmacy.

In Arizona and Pima County, COVID-19 cases have fallen for the second consecutive week after trending upward from the end of March through much of April. “It’s not a big decline, but it’s there, it’s noticeable,” said Dr. Joe Gerald, an associate professor of public health policy and management in the Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health.

A University of Arizona sleep expert says insomnia has been on the rise for decades, but anxiety related to the COVID-19 pandemic has made it worse. Dr. Sairam Parthasarathy, director of the Center for Sleep and Circadian Sciences and a professor at the College of Medicine – Tucson, calls it “coronasomnia.”

Dr. Kelly Reynolds, professor and chair of the Department of Community, Environment and Policy at the Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, shares information that can be used to make more informed decisions about the need for improved water treatment options.

Fully vaccinated people mostly no longer need to wear masks or stay six feet apart when indoors, per the CDC. Masks also aren't needed outdoors, even in crowded areas. “It’s a step in the right direction in terms of showing people how powerful the vaccines are. It also helps to show another reason why you should get vaccinated, so it provides another incentive," said Dr. Farshad Fani Marvasti, a physician and associate professor at the College of Medicine – Phoenix.

UArizona has several public health measures in place for the 18 in-person outdoor graduation ceremonies going on until next Tuesday. Joseph Demirjian, a graduate of the College of Medicine – Tucson and Victor Ruiz, a graduate of the College of Pharmacy, are interviewed.

At the start of the pandemic, College of Nursing student Susi Vidal found herself stuck at home with her family. She began watching videos on the popular social media platform TikTok, and soon began making her own content. She has now reached 1 million followers. Vidal’s future plan is to balance both sides of her life: her professional career as a nurse and her social media career as a comedic cooking influencer.

The College of Medicine – Tucson said farewell to the 50th graduating class on May 12, 2021, at the Cole and Jeannie Davis Sports Center. About 100 graduates took a big step in their medical career.

Neuroscientists explain how diseases, including Alzheimer's, are linked to hormones and stress. Roberta Diaz Brinton, PhD, the director of the Center for Innovation in Brain Science, says a paradigm shift is happening in terms of how neuroscientists and doctors are thinking about women’s brain health. Rather than treating symptoms when women are older and cognitively too far gone, they need to take brain-health boosting steps now.

The FDA has given emergency use authorization to allow the use of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine in teens as young as 12. Dr. Shad Marvasti, with the College of Medicine – Phoenix, believes the vaccine is safe for teens. "Everything that we know about the virus so far, particularly for teenagers which is why this age group was the next in line to be able to get data, they really do look a lot more like adults in terms of how they react to the virus. So, the same holds true for the vaccine," says Dr. Shad.