Kara Gavin
Research and Policy Media Relations Manager
Gavin draws on more than 25 years of experience in communicating about science, medicine and health policy. She focuses mainly on the health services research done by members of the U-M Institute for Healthcare Policy and Innovation, who work to understand and improve the safety, quality, equity and affordability of health care. As part of the Michigan Medicine communication team, she has lead responsibility for primary care and mental health topics. Contact: [email protected]; Twitter: @Karag
Health Lab
What Will Future Historians Say About COVID-19?
Research on the history of pandemics shaped COVID-19 response, and studying the current pandemic could help reduce future death tolls.
Health Lab
12 Mental Health Tips as Life Gets 'Back to Normal'
The anniversaries of COVID-19 lockdowns, deaths, and other milestones may hit you and others hard. Tips for coping or preventing distress.
Health Lab
Big Shift Seen in High-Risk Older Adults’ Attitudes Toward COVID-19 Vaccination
Black, Hispanic and chronically ill adults over 50 are much more likely to say they’ll get the COVID-19 vaccine than before, showing a reduction in vaccine hesitancy in just three months.
Health Lab
Troubling Trio: Many with Dementia Take Risky Combinations of Medicines
People with Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia often receive medications for depression, anxiety, agitation, sleep problems, apathy and other behavioral issues. But combinations of three or more can be dangerous.
Health Lab
Most Older Adults, Especially Women, Haven’t Gotten Checked for Hearing Loss
Hearing loss often goes undetected, but many adults over 50 haven’t been screened or tested for hearing problems.
Health Lab
Most Dollars Spent on Top-Selling “Orphan Drugs” Don’t Go to Treat People with Rare Diseases
Pharmaceutical companies get special protection from the FDA for orphan drugs aimed at rare diseases, but a study shows high spending for common diseases for some such drugs.
Health Lab
Older Adults and Antibiotics: Study Shows Healthy Attitudes but Unhealthy Practices
Many take leftover doses from previous prescriptions, and expect new prescriptions for non-bacterial illness.
Health Lab
As Insurers End Grace Period for COVID-19 Hospital Costs, Study Estimates Potential Bills
Hospital care for COVID-19 has been free to most patients but insurance companies may be ending that; a study of flu-related hospital bills suggests a coronavirus hospital stay could now cost $1,000 on average.
Health Lab
Irregular Sleep Connected to Bad Moods and Depression, Study Shows
Irregular sleep schedules can affect mood and risk of developing symptoms of depression according to a study of first-year medical residents that used Fitbits and smartphones.
News Release
U-M Depression Center enters 20th year with new director and focus on next-generation research
U-M Depression Center’s leadership passed to a new generation, as the U-M Board of Regents approved Srijan Sen, M.D., Ph.D., as its next director.
Health Lab
A Double Dose of Good News on Health Insurance
A special Open Enrollment period for healthcare.gov insurance plans, and new price transparency rules for hospitals, mean good news for health insurance consumers.
Health Lab
Cold is gold for COVID-19 scientists
A biorepository of samples from people with COVID-19 is on ice in the same kind of -80 freezers that are used to store vaccines.
Health Lab
Indoors and Outdoors, COVID-19 Reveals Unequal Access
Isolation of a person with COVID-19 within a house or apartment is important for keeping coronavirus from spreading to the people they live with, but a study shows disparities in access to isolation spaces.
Health Lab
Your Smartphone Can Help Fight COVID. Here’s How.
COVID-19 vaccine reaction trackers and exposure alerts are just two of the ways to use the smartphone in your pocket against the coronavirus pandemic.
Health Lab
County by County, Study Shows Social Inequality in COVID-19’s Toll
Counties that score worst on measures of poverty, economic inequality, housing, food access, family structure, transportation, insurance and disability had far more cases and deaths from coronavirus in the first months of the pandemic.
