Annotated Bibliography by Alice Chen, M.D.

Annotated Bibliography

New Orleans considers Boston model for preventive, primary care

A group of community leaders and health care professionals from New Orleans are traveling to Boston to learn about implementing clinics for primary and preventive care. The group says a network of neighborhood-based care clinics could provide a medical home for patients and also serve as community centers to help rebuild the city.  Times-Picayune (New Orleans), [...]

Study: Racial disparities in cancer treatment still evident

Black patients consistently were less likely than whites to receive recommended treatments under the Medicare program, according to research that looked at more than 143,000 U.S. cancer patients over age 65. The study found that the disparities had not changed from 1992 to 2002.  Reuters (1/7)

Survey links cultural beliefs to blacks’ avoidance of hospice care

Many blacks tend to avoid hospice care because of a preference for curative treatment, a mistrust of the health care system and certain spiritual beliefs, according to a survey. Researchers say hospices may have to become more inclusive and open to different attitudes on death and illness to attract a more diverse group of patients.  Forbes/HealthDay [...]

Hospital program helps minorities, immigrants navigate health care

Some Maryland hospitals are adjusting to the increase in immigrant and minority patients by developing education programs that focus on these populations to improve care and reduce emergency room admissions. The programs discuss prevention within the context of the immigrants’ cultures and languages, using community leaders and laymen. Washington Post, The (2/5)

Travelers in Search of Mexico’s Magic Find Town of Witches and Warlocks

Travelers in Search of Mexico’s Magic Find Town of Witches and Warlocks
By JAMES C. McKINLEY Jr.
To the dismay or joy of hard-core practitioners, witchcraft has become a big tourist draw in Mexico.

Folk Medicines Contain Lead

HOUSTON (AP) – Maria didn’t mean to poison her children. Quite the opposite. Worried about her daughters’ lack of appetite, the young Houston mother was merely following her grandmother’s advice when she gave the two girls and a niece a dose of “greta” – a Mexican folk medicine used to treat children’s stomach ailments.
Link to [...]

Views on health care quality differ by race

A survey of more than 4,300 U.S. adults finds minorities are more likely than whites to view their health care as fair or poor. When asked how quickly they were able to get medical care and whether their provider explained health issues so they could understand, whites rated their experience higher than minorities, especially Chinese-Americans, [...]