Healthcare workers, looking for your next informative – and entertaining – infection control resource?! Look no further, the Washington State Department of Health’s Project Firstline Podcast covers a variety of infection control topics, from healthcare-associated infections to multi-drug-resistant organisms. The podcast is part of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)’s Project Firstline, which provides all healthcare workers the infection control training and resources they need to protect themselves, their patients, and their coworkers from infectious diseases. With 17 episodes to choose from, you’ll be sure to learn something new. Let’s dive in!
A Glimpse at the Episodes
Dating back to the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the opening episodes ...
November is National Family Caregivers Month (NFCM)! NFCM is an opportunity to recognize family caregivers across the country and “raise awareness of caregiving issues, educate communities, and increase support for caregivers,” according to the Administration for Community Living. This year, Mental Health America has shared new resources for both caregivers and employers. “We know caregivers need support in balancing their personal and professional obligations, and employers need resources to better support their caregivers on staff,” according to Mental Health America. Let’s dive deeper into these educational tools and find out how they can benefit Latino and all caregivers.
Latinos and Caregiving
41.8 million Americans provided unpaid care to an ...
Spending on health is rising in America. Yet, ironically, health outcomes are getting worse. In fact, people here experience the worst health outcomes overall of any high-income nation. U.S. residents are more likely to die younger, and from avoidable causes, than residents of peer countries, according to a 2023 report from The Commonwealth Fund. Let’s compare health outcomes with peer countries to provide an important baseline for where we are in health outcomes and set a target for where we could be.
The U.S. and 5 Important Domains of Healthcare Systems
A 2021 study by The Commonwealth Fund compared five performance domains of health care systems across 11 high-income countries. Researchers found the U.S. ranks last on four of five domains: access to care (last)
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Researchers need your help as they seek to better understand how lung cancer impacts people differently and how to improve treatment and quality of life. That’s why the GO2 Foundation for Lung Cancer started its Lung Cancer Registry. The international Lung Cancer Registry, available to join now, aims to double the 5-year survival rate of lung cancer patients from 20% to 40% by 2025. “By sharing your lung cancer story, contributing your experiences as a person with lung cancer or a caregiver of someone with lung cancer, you are helping the research community develop new treatments,” according to GO2. Let’s dive into more about the registry, how you can join, and how it can help Latinos.
Joining the Lung Cancer Registry
Participants interested in ...
The amount of Americans who are food insecure — without enough food for a healthy life for all family members — is on the rise, according to a new USDA report. 12.8% of Americans struggled with food insecurity in 2022, up from 10.2% in 2021. Latino households experienced the largest spike. “Too many of our neighbors struggle to put healthy food on the table," said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. "[The data] paint a picture of just how many Americans faced the heartbreaking challenge last year of struggling to meet a basic need for themselves and their children." Let's explore the report and the issue of food insecurity among Latinos.
How Many Latinos Experience Food Insecurity?
U.S. food insecurity had been in decline for several years. But, after the food ...
Did you know 1 in 5 people with liver cancer in the United States are Latino? The rise of liver cancer in Latinos is happening for many reasons. Some of the big reasons include excess body weight, alcohol use, smoking, and metabolic disorders. Latinos are often diagnosed at more advanced stages of liver cancer. With this in mind, let’s explore helpful resources for Latinos and all people on liver cancer.
Liver Cancer Connect
With liver cancer impacting so many Latinos, it’s crucial that they have educational tools and resources to help navigate through their diagnosis. Liver Cancer Connect is a program by the Hepatitis B Foundation that provides liver cancer patients and their families with information and support. “Although this is a serious ...
We know that Latinos are impacted by Alzheimer’s, dementia, and other health conditions like Parkinson’s disease. That is why it’s important to have support and resources for those who are impacted, as well as their families and caregivers. Let’s explore various support groups from the Glenn Biggs Institute for Alzheimer’s and Neurodegenerative Diseases at UT Health San Antonio!
Support for Those with Lewy Body Dementia
The Biggs Institute hosts an in-person support group, Living Together with Lewy: Support group for Individuals Living with Lewy Body Dementia and their Care Partners. Lewy Body Dementia is the second-most common form of dementia, behind Alzheimer’s. It results in irreversible cognitive decline and movement problems like Parkinson's ...
Where in San Antonio can you find a list of health clinics? Mental health resources? Health coverage resources? Organizations with community health workers? Fortunately, the local Health Confianza health literacy team led by UT Health San Antonio has the answers (and more) on its new bilingual resource website, WellnessCultura.org and WellnessCultura.org/esp. Let's explore the need for health literacy and how the new website will help improve preventive care!
What Is Health Literacy?
Health literacy is "the degree to which individuals have the capacity to obtain, process, and understand basic health information and services needed to make appropriate health decisions," according to the CDC. In today’s world, health literacy is crucial for community members and health ...
One of the many factors that contributes to the differences within mental health in the Latino community is lack of accurate and relevant resources. With this need in mind, Mental Health America (MHA) has launched a Spanish Mental Health Resource Center complete with Spanish-language resources and tools. Let's examine what these resources have to offer and why materials like these are important for Latinos.
Spanish Mental Health Resource Center
Fostering mental health awareness and support for all is crucial. “Language [hurdles] can make communicating with providers difficult, or even impossible, particularly when a person is seeking counseling for sensitive or uniquely personal issues,” according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). “These ...
