Dartmouth Medicine Winter 1999
Dear Reporter, Editor, or News Director:
Inside the Winter 1999 issue of Dartmouth Medicine, (to request a printed copy, call 603-653-0772 or e-mail dartmed@Dartmouth.edu), read about:
Whether care costs more at nonprofit or for-profit hospitals: A new take on this much-debated question has emerged from Dartmouth. The numbers--crunched by an interdisciplinary group of doctors and economists--appear to favor the nonprofit model. See page 9.
Caffeine chemotherapy?: Well, not really. But a Dartmouth researcher did find that caffeine boosts the tumor-killing action of a chemotherapy agent, and then his lab identified a caffeine analog that does so even more effectively. The result of 20 years' work is now in clinical trials. See page 19.
A promising new treatment for multiple sclerosis and other autoimmune diseases: Dartmouth microbiologist Randy Noelle has identified an antibody that appears to counter the ill effects of renegade antibodies when the immune system goes awry. See page 7.
The need to be wary of statistics: Three Dartmouth researchers questioned the presentation of data in a paper in the New England Journal of Medicine that purported to show significant racial bias in the care patients received. It turns out their suspicions were well founded. See page 11.
High drama in high places: When Dartmouth otolaryngologist Dudley Weider set out to climb North America's highest peak, it was supposed to be an adventurous vacation. He soon got drawn into a series of medical dramas that kept him from Denali's summit but saved several lives. See page 20.
Why the recent "patients' rights" bill isn't much to crow about: Dartmouth Medical School's dean believes the much heralded "patients' bill of rights" passed by Congress does little more than affirm access to care for those who already have it. He issues a call for action of the sort that resulted in the real, 1789 Bill of Rights. See page 56.
Facing the end of life: The health-care system has not historically been as supportive as it could be of terminally ill patients and their families. Two features in this issue offer insight into the problem and describe what's being done about it at Dartmouth-Hitchcock. See pages 28 and 32.
Why scientists should step out of their labs into school classrooms: Mae Jemison, a member of the Dartmouth faculty, a physician, and America's first African-American woman astronaut, feels it's essential for scientists to participate in elementary and secondary science education. See page 18.
How Dartmouth undergraduates are determining if medicine is the right career choice: Premeds at Dartmouth College are getting a better look at what's really involved in practicing medicine than ever before, thanks to such activities as shadowing physicians at Dartmouth-Hitchcock. See page 40.
If you'd like to pursue any of these stories, contact:
- Hali Wickner, communications coordinator for Dartmouth Medical School, at (603) 650-1520.
- The Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center Office of Public Affairs, at (603) 650-7041.
Or feel free to give me a call, especially if you'd like to reprint an article; my direct line is (603) 650-4058.
Dana Cook Grossman,
Editor