With the new year just around the corner, the lists of what is “in” and what is “out” for 2023 are hitting the news. Thinking of painting a bathroom? According to interior designers, bright whites, grey and pastel paints are out of fashion. They suggest bold colors, like Pantone’s recently released 2023 Color of the Year, Viva Magenta. Fashion, tech, food, and aficionados of all kinds are on high alert for the news of what will be on trend for 2023. It will be out with old and in with the new!
Not all new trends are truly new. Sometimes the latest trend brings back something that was popular in a prior era – like today’s many fashion looks are a throwback to the 1990s. Loved or despised past trends often reappear. But whether it’s fashion, house decorating or something else, there are “classics” that are always “in” regardless of changing trends!
Like classics that are always in trend, viral infections such as the flu never completely disappear – and in some years are the leading trend. This year the trend is the “tridemic” – high rates of flu, RSV and COVID. Cases of other diseases like measles and Strep A, although small in number, are currently being carefully watched. Will these illnesses and other diseases ever be a thing of the past?
This Weekend Reading begins with What’s Going On?, with current news on a variety of healthcare related topics. In Never Ending, you will find articles on the holiday suicide myth, an ancient lung disease and asbestosis. Next explore the articles in Say What? on health literacy and the value of enhanced communication on patient safety. Finally, do not miss Going Viral and my personal favorite – Scientists Revive 48,500-Year-Old Virus!
I hope you enjoy the following:
1. What’s Going On?
- The White House unveils a new system to track and better prevent opioid overdoses (NPR)
- LASIK Should Carry Warnings of Possible Complications, FDA Says (Health Day)
- “Sandwich generation” study shows challenges of caring for both kids and aging parents (Univ. of MI Health)
- A Twitter data tracker inhabits tens of thousands of websites (The Washington Post)
2. Never Ending
- Holiday-suicide myth just won’t go away (Futurity)
- Workers Across America Break Their Silence on Decades of Asbestos Exposure (ProPublica)
- Ancient lung disease strikes countertop cutters in LA (Capital Public Radio)
3. Say What?
- If doctor says ‘X’, patients often hear ‘Y’, study suggests (United Press International)
- Cancer surgeons should avoid these three words, researchers warn (Washington Post)
- Improved Hospital ‘Handoffs’ Cut Adverse Events by Almost Half (Harvard Medical)
4. Going Viral?
- Scientists Revive 48,500-Year-Old Virus, Setting World Record (The Smithsonian Magazine)
- Dogs Are Impacted by an Intense Flu Season, Too (The Smithsonian Magazine)
- What Is Viva Magenta, Pantone’s ‘Brave’ and ‘Fearless’ Color of the Year? (The Smithsonian Magazine)
- The Healy Is Old Woo in New Clothes. This “frequency” medical device is big with “mamas” on Instagram, but it’s just the latest iteration of a debunked theory (McGill University)
Enjoy your weekend!
Best,
Suzanne
Suzanne Daniels, Ph.D.
AEPC President
P.O. Box 1416
Birmingham, MI 48012
Office: (248) 792-2187
Email: [email protected]
