Health

Many people in Hawaii suffer from food insecurity and delays in health care access largely due to pandemic-induced financial woes, according to a survey released Tuesday. Nearly six in 10 respondents, or 58%, said they had experienced health care delays in the past year, with 21% characterizing the wait time as “significant.” The survey showed that 52% said they had cut their food and grocery budgets, while 36% reporting cutting back on medical care or medicine because of financial reasons, with 40% blaming the coronavirus pandemic for increasing their economic problems. The findings were based on a mostly online survey of 3,287 residents and 324 health care providers, which was conducted from April 1 to May 9 by Community First Hawaii, a nonprofit health advocacy group. Shorta...

WATERBURY, Conn. (WFSB) - A group of students are seeing the operations at St. Mary’s Hospital in Waterbury.The students were shadowing all kinds of health care workers and are seeing demonstrations first-hand.The students are from the Brass City Charter School, and they are shadowing health care professionals to inspire them to get into the health care field.“My mom went to medical school, and my dad works at a hospital. I’ve been interested in the medical field for a long time,” says Zaria Lucas a Brass City Charter student.She says her interest in the field has grown with the hands-on learning they’ve had over the past couple of days.“Then we got to see a real baby. We got to see a real patient and we got to be in the real experience,” says Lucas.This is the first time St. Mary’s hos...

COVENTRY, Conn. (WFSB) - Health experts are warning Connecticut residents about blue-green algae blooms after one lake in Coventry closed due to health concerns.Swimming is off limits for the next couple of weeks at Coventry Lake because of algae blooms growing in the water.Rob Miller with the health district says you want to avoid the algae at all costs. He says you don’t want to touch it or accidentally swallow it.“Eyes ears and nose irritation. If you happen to ingest the water for some reason, you may experience gastrointestinal illnesses such as cramps, nausea, and vomiting,” says Miller.Miller wants people to avoid lakes if the water looks like spilled paint, is discolored, or has green globs floating below the surface.The algae normally die during the cold weather but last Decemb...

Veteran health official Sharon Lewis has been named interim director of DC Health, following the recent resignation of Dr. LaQuandra Nesbitt. Veteran health official Sharon Lewis has been named interim director of DC Health, following the recent resignation of Dr. LaQuandra Nesbitt. Lewis, a registered nurse who holds a doctorate in health care administration, was appointed by Mayor Muriel Bowser to lead the agency while the city conducts a nationwide search to officially replace Nesbitt. “No one can fill her shoes, but I will say that she has set forth a great foundation for us that we will continue,” Lewis said. Lewis has served more than three decades in D.C. government and most recently has held high-ranking posts at DC Health, ove...

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Clinics that treat sexually transmitted diseases — already struggling to contain an explosive increase in infections such as syphilis and gonorrhea — now find themselves on the front lines in the nation’s fight to control the rapidly growing monkeypox outbreak. After decades of underfunding and two-and-a-half years into a pandemic that severely disrupted care, clinic staffers and public health officials say the clinics are ill-equipped for yet another epidemic. “America does not have what it needs to adequately and totally fight monkeypox,” said David Harvey, executive director of the National Coalition of STD Directors. “We are already stretched to capacity.” Monkeypox — a cousin of smallpox — is not technically considered a sexually transmitted infec...

With the after-effect of the pandemic set to play out for years, VCs specializing in health, wellness and general ‘joy’ would appear to have rising fortunes. Funds such as Able Partners and Joyance have appeared in recent years to invest in startups that make people’s lives healthier, or at least more fun. In Europe this sector has taken off with Nina Capital in Barcelona, Heal Capital in Berlin, InHealth Ventures London, and Apollo Health Ventures in Germany, among others. Into this space is launching a new fund out of Europe to take advantage of the continent’s prodigious health tech and wellness talent. Exceptional Ventures is a new Venture Capital firm based out of London, investing in technologies that give people “happier, healthier, and longer lives, while supporting planeta...