News
Swedish opens new pediatric specialty care unit
Swedish Medical Center has opened a new 27-room pediatric specialty care unit in its First Hill facility. All but one of the rooms will be private. One double room will be used for twins or siblings. Each room has a built-in daybed for parents who which to stay overnight. Every room will have advanced cardiac, [...]
Protecting yourself from ticks this spring
Compared to other parts of the U.S., Washington state sees relatively few cases of diseases caused by tick bites. Still, these infections, which include such things as Rocky Mountain spotted fever, Lyme disease and tick paralysis, are not something you want to catch.
Vaccines: not just for kids
Each year 50,000 Americans die from a vaccine-preventable infections, and almost all of them—95%—are adults. Influenza, for example, causes an average of 36,000 deaths and 200,000 hospitalizations in the U.S. every year, but less than half of the adults for whom the vaccine is recommended get the shot. Pneunococcal infections, when can cause lung, blood [...]
Need help deciding to get your colonoscopy?
The Puget Sound Health Alliance has posted a short video of Diane from West Seattle who talks about going for a colonoscopy. The preparation is worse than the procedure, she says, and catching colon cancer when its easier to cure or just knowing you’re OK is worth it. The Puget Sound Health Alliance is a [...]
Genentech withdraws psoriasis drug Raptiva
The psoriasis drug Raptiva is being withdrawn from the U.S. market after reports that three patients on the drug had developed a serious brain disease called progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML) that is almost always fatal. A third patient on Raptiva died of a progressive neurological disorder but it is not known whether the disease was PML. [...]
Hospital News: Virginia Mason
Virginia Mason Medical Center has opened a Headache Clinic at its Federal Way facility. The facility will be for adult men and women who have recurring headaches of all kinds, including migraine, tension and menstrual headaches. Dr. Dennis Rochier and Linda Johnston, an advanced registered nurse practitioner, will provide care at the clinic. Both are [...]
Pistachio recall expands after Salmonella found in California processing plant
A California company has expanded its recall of its pistachio products after California and federal health officials found certain critical areas of its processing plant to be contaminated with several strains of the bacterium Salmonella. The company’s pistachios are used in pistachio products sold nationwide. The company, Setton Pistachio of Terra Bella Inc., Terra Bella, California [...]
What’s the best treatment for you?
“In health care, one size does not fit all, and treatments that are good for one patient aren’t necessarily good, or even safe, for you,” writes Dr. Carolyn Clancy, director of the U.S. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. To try to find out which treatments are best for which patients, Clancy’s agency has been [...]
America Has Gone Quiet on HIV/AIDS – Opinion
A survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation has found that Americans’ concern about the threat of HIV/AIDS has dropped sharply in recent years with just 6 percent of adults surveyed now naming HIV/AIDS as the most urgent health problem facing the country, down for 44 percent in 1995. The drop comes at the same time [...]
Free services to help you quit smoking
Smoking just got a lot more expensive in Washington state. The a new federal tax that went into affect April 1 added 62 cents to the cost of a pack making the total federal tax on a pack to $1.01. With the new federal taxes plus state taxes, the pack of brand name cigarettes at [...]
Do not eat any brand of pistachios or foods products containing pistachios, FDA warns
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is advising consumers not to eat any brand of shelled or unshelled pistachios or any food products containing pistachios until FDA investigators determine which pistachios and pistachio products should be recalled because of possible Salmonella contamination. This warning includes such products as baked goods, trail mixes and snack [...]
Homeless housing program that lets residents drink saves money, reduces alcohol use – UW study finds
A Seattle homeless housing program that allows residents with severe alcohol problems to continue to drink in their rooms substantially reduced their healthcare use and costs, University of Washington researchers report. In addition, the residents gradually reduced their alcohol intake as well, the researchers said.
Swedish opens “medical home” clinic in Ballard
The idea is to create a primary-care team that provides coordinated care to patients at one location so that patients do not need to scurry from doctor to doctor.
FDA warns consumers to avoid pistachio products
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is warning consumers to avoid eating pistachio products while it investigates reports that some have been found to be contaminated with Salmonella bacteria.
Kroger recalls pistachios due to Salmonella risk
Kroger Company is recalling its store brand Private Selection Shelled Pistachios sold at QFC, Fred Meyer, City Market, Pay Less and other Kroger-operated stores because they may potentially be contaminated with Salmonella.
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