University of Colorado Hospital is closing its in-patient psychiatric ward. Hospital officials say overwhelming demand for general beds is forcing them to convert the psychiatric ward’s 22 beds to non-psychiatric uses. Mental health advocates say there’s already a critical shortage of these services in Colorado, and that University Hospital’s decision will only make things worse. KCFR Health Reporter Eric Whitney has more.
The candidates for Colorado’s open seat in the U.S. Senate squared off over health care this weekend. Democrat Mark Udall and Republican Bob Schaffer appeared at the Colorado Medical Society’s annual convention. KCFR Health Reporter Eric Whitney was there and has this report.
Students started class at a brand new medical school in Colorado Monday, only the second in the state. Rocky Vista University College of Medicine, in Parker, has been in the works for three years. With Colorado suffering a shortage of physicians, the state’s medical community welcomes the new school. KCFR Health Reporter Eric Whitney has this story.
Colorado Democrat Diana Degette is trying to win more support for food safety legislation. Her plea comes after state health officials say a jalapeno pepper purchased in Southwest Colorado was linked to a multi-state outbreak of salmonella. Sara Sciammacco reports from Washington.
Talking about Colorado’s homeland security in Denver, and break dancing in the Springs. Plus, Senator John McCain returns to the state, the Colorado Department of Education releases test scores, and Governor Ritter seeks federal assistance.
Fort Carson is struggling to find enough nurses to care for injured soldiers– partly because of a new Army requirement to hire more health care workers. KCFR Health Reporter Eric Whitney has the story.
A recent federal government survey on health and nutrition estimates that well over half of the adults living in the U.S. are either overweight or obese. A discussion at this year’s Aspen Institute Ideas Festival asked the question, why are Americans so overweight and what can we do about it. Bente Birkeland talked to Professor Adam Drewnowski at the Festival. He’s one of the world’s leading obesity researchers.
When scientists finally sequenced the entire human genome five years ago, it was a huge step forward for science. It has the potential to revolutionize the way medicine is practiced, allowing doctors to tailor diagnoses and treatments to individual patients.
Some of the researchers leading that revolution are right here in Colorado. They’re ushering in what’s being called “the new era of ‘personalized medicine’.” KCFR Health Reporter Eric Whitney met some of those researchers at National Jewish Medical and Research Center in Denver, which is investing heavily to be at the forefront of the revolution.
In today’s news, a Ft. Carson soldier died in Iraq earlier this week, a wildfire continues to burn in Park County, and Colorado health officials confirm the first human cases of West Nile Virus in the state.
The entire graduating class of the medical school at the University of Colorado was in court recently. It wasn’t a real case, but an exercise to expose new doctors to what a malpractice trial is like. With an estimated 85,000 malpractice suits filed every year in the U.S., it’s likely that some of C.U.’s class of 2008 will one day find themselves in court for real. KCFR Health Reporter Eric Whitney has this story.
A new high-security laboratory opens today at Colorado State University. Researchers there are experimenting with some of the most dangerous microbes on the planet. The lab is the first of 13 new facilities the federal government is building nationwide. Their charge is to prepare for and respond to attacks with weaponized versions of biological agents like anthrax, plague and cholera. KCFR Health Reporter Eric Whitney visited the lab and brought back this story.
Troops from Ft. Carson have been busy in recent weeks in Iraq. They’ve been seeing combat every day after a period of relative calm.
Families back home are ticking off the fifth month that their loved ones have been away. It will be another ten months before they come home.
Recently some soldiers families got together to celebrate a new program that helps them fight the long deployment blues, and keep them in shape at the same time. KCFR Health Reporter Eric Whitney has the story.
With the end of this year’s legislative session just over a week away, lawmakers are scrambling to pass a bill many say is crucial to moving health care reform forward. It could open the door to requiring all Coloradoans to buy health insurance. But KCFR Health Reporter Eric Whitney says that the bill is being attacked on multiple fronts.
The University of Colorado’s medical school got a $3 million gift, Monday, April 14th. It’s to establish a center for the study and treatment of depression. KCFR Health Reporter Eric Whitney has more.
The health department in Colorado’s most populous county is “at the breaking point.”
El Paso County’s top health official says more people are getting sick in Colorado Springs and the surrounding area because her department is dangerously underfunded. KCFR Health Reporter Eric Whitney has more.