Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Teaching Kids 'Soft Skills' To Strengthen Emotional Intelligence Can Have Long-Lasting Benefits
Academic learning is usually in the spotlight at school, but teaching elementary-age students 鈥渟oft鈥 skills like self-control and how to get along with others might help to keep at-risk kids out of criminal trouble in the future, a study finds. (Shallcross, 12/17)
The bustle of office parties, gift-giving and family get-togethers are usually part of the build-up to a joyful holiday season but, for some, the season sometimes brings with it a feeling of sadness. In fact, the holiday blues are not all that uncommon at all. Tim Bono, assistant dean and lecturer in psychology at Washington University, joined 鈥淪t. Louis on the Air鈥 on Wednesday to discuss these feelings of depression during the holidays鈥攁s well as what to do if you know someone who seems a bit more down during this time of year. (Moffitt, 12/16)
Depression very early in life can affect the way a child鈥檚 brain develops. A new study by researchers at Washington University is the first to link early childhood depression to physical changes in the developing brain. As part of the research, Washington University child psychiatrist Dr. Joan Luby and her colleagues followed the development of approximately 200 St. Louis-area children for up to 11 years, giving them behavioral assessments and a series of three brain scans. About half of the children had episodes of depression, most starting when they were only 3 to 6 years old. (Lacapra, 12/16)
In patient care news, long delays during breast cancer treatment聽and less-intensive physical therapy after聽joint replacement surgery take a toll -
Excessive delays in breast cancer treatment may compromise patients' survival, according to two major studies published Thursday in JAMA Oncology. What's more, the women most likely to experience long delays were black or Hispanic, and one analysis found a correlation with lower incomes. (McCullough, 12/12)
People who got joint replacements only a few years ago might be surprised by what happens now after patients get their new hips and knees. Now that new payment schemes encourage surgeons and hospitals to pay more attention to the cost and effectiveness of the care patients get when they leave the hospital, postsurgical rehab has become a target for cuts. Where - and how - joint-replacement patients get physical therapy is changing rapidly. Far fewer are going to inpatient facilities for rehab. A growing number are skipping home care and going straight to outpatient therapy. Some hip and knee patients are getting no professional physical therapy at all. (Burling, 12/13)
