Derrick Coleman Jr., one of the running backs for the Seattle Seahawks, shows that defining people by what they can’t do is much less compelling than defining people by what they can do.
Once addicted to crack cocaine, Sabrina Heard now works with Women's Collective, a D.C.-based organization that seeks to meet the health needs of low-income women, girls and those living with HIV/AIDS by reducing the barriers to care and strengthening networks of support.
Lung cancer is the most virulent killer, but there is a big difference between being diagnosed with lung cancer and, say, cancers of the breast, skin or prostate. People who contract those cancers do not face the inevitable question, “Did you smoke?” or put another way, "Isn't it your own fault?"
When experienced health journalist Joanne Silberner realized she had a "huge" misconception about cancer in the developing world, she reported from three countries to shed light on the subject for readers and listeners.
Recent developments in Richmond, Va., made a story looking at how where you live affects your health a timely endeavor. Through the lens of housing projects in the city's East End, Tammie Smith explains how she reported that residents there have a lower life expectancy than other Richmonders.
What does aging with HIV look like? The Graying of AIDS: Portraits from an Aging Pandemic seeks to challenge cultural stereotypes about both aging and HIV/AIDS by exploring diverse perspectives from around the world through a participatory documentary arts installation.
Stanislaus was one of the first counties in California to submit a plan for funding from the Mental Health Services Act, the voter-supported tax on millionaires to expand the state’s mental health services.
When I first pitched a series of stories exploring access to mental health care in the wake of state budget cuts, I expected to encounter some difficulty finding subjects.
At this month's AHCJ convention, blogger Sonya Collins tells us "speaker after speaker reminded us that we medical journalists shouldn’t lead with the numbers that quantify the reach of a disease or its cost to taxpayers. We should lead with the face of someone who lives with that condition. Show our readers that she’s just like them."
She goes on to give a wonderful example of how stigma can be reduced through good storytelling.
But what if the stigma begins in part with journalists?
In the wake of the Oikos University mass shooting in California earlier this week, it's time to reconsider media coverage of mental health issues in the Asian-American community.