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
In First Test, Specially Timed Signals Ease Tinnitus Symptoms
A new treatment device is taking aim at the root cause of ringing in the ears. Next up: an additional clinical trial to further refine the approach.
Health Lab
Poll: Nursing Homes Should Require Flu Shots for All Staff and Patients
High rates of unvaccinated nursing home staff might even affect decisions about where to seek long-term care, according to a new poll of older Americans.
Health Lab
Walking the Tightrope Between Risk and Reward in Studying Deadly Viruses
The lifting of a three-year ban on gain-of-function research revives the critical goal of averting disaster — but may also increase the risk of accidental or deliberate pandemics.
Health Lab
Study: Better Treatment, Not More Spending, Saves Heart Attack Patients
Increases in early stenting treatments have paid off in lives and dollars, but some hospitals lag behind, a new study finds. Meanwhile, total costs have grown without reductions in mortality.
Health Lab
After Searching 12 Years for Bipolar Disorder’s Cause, a Team Concludes It Has Many
A long-term study in more than 1,100 people yields a new seven-factor framework that could help patients, clinicians and researchers.
Health Lab
As States Explore Medicaid Work Requirements, Study Shows Most Enrollees Either Already Work or Can’t Work
Work requirements proposed in some states would probably apply to only a small group of Medicaid enrollees and may disrupt care for the chronically ill.
Health Lab
These Surgeons Cut Opioid Prescriptions Dramatically, With No Increase in Pain
Guidelines developed from gallbladder patient data and interviews form the basis of a new effort to right-size opioid prescribing for many operations.
Health Lab
Lack of Communication Puts Older Adults at Risk of Clashes Between Medicines
Many adults haven’t talked to their doctors, pharmacists or nurses about drug interactions, a new national poll finds.
Health Lab
A New Way to Track How Deadly ‘Superbugs’ Travel Could Slow Their Spread
Using a real-world outbreak as a test case, a team combined patient transfer data and whole-genome sequencing to identify hot spots for antibiotic-resistant bacteria transmission.
Health Lab
New Approach to Studying Centromeres May Reveal Link to Down Syndrome and More
A PCR-based approach to a frontier of the human genome could speed discovery in chromosome-based diseases and birth defects.
Health Lab
Taking Care of Someone with Dementia? Take Care of Yourself, Too
Help is available to manage the stress of caregiving. A leader of the U-M poll that recently surveyed dementia caregivers shares some of the top places to turn.
Health Lab
Bacteria May Help Babies’ Digestive Tracts More Than Suspected, Scientists Find
Helpful forms of E. coli may trigger steps that keep infections out, new experiments in dish-grown gut organoids show.
Health Lab
To Make Surgery Safer and Less Expensive, Follow Michigan’s Lead
Dozens of hospitals across Michigan have teamed up to improve surgical care, saving lives and dollars. Now, the leaders propose ways to take the model national.
Health Lab
Stress, Reward and a Few Surprises Found in Poll of Those Who Take Care of Loved Ones with Dementia
Despite demands that impact their own lives and health, only 1 in 4 caregivers use support resources meant for them.
Health Lab
Turn a Cell into Any Other Kind of Cell, No Magic Wand Required
By harnessing massive amounts of data on activity within and between snippets of DNA, researchers aim to one day reprogram both healthy and diseased cells.
