KPWHRI in the Media
News media often cover Kaiser Permanente Washington research.
Here are selected mentions.
2019
AUGust 1-31
Six Building Blocks help small rural clinics to manage opioids better
Read story.
Led by Michael Parchman, MD, MPH, researchers at Kaiser Permanente and the University of Washington have developed an innovative program to provide small rural clinics with practice support to reduce patients’ use of opioids:
- KOMO TV, Aug 15, 2019
Local research finds ways to cut opioid use in rural clinics
Kids need to lose weight? Set goals and work together
Read story.
Dori Rosenberg, PhD, says physical activity has been shown to improve academic performance—and improves attention and concentration:
- KUOW (NPR), Aug 26, 2019
White kids usually get the most recess in Seattle. Black kids, the least
JUly 1-31
Post-traumatic stress disorder
Ben Balderson, PhD, shared information on fireworks trigging post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD):
- Q13 - KCPQ TV, Jul 3, 2019
PTSD triggers and 4th of July.
Financial incentives increase stool testing
Research by Beverly Green, MD, MPH, explores how to help decrease disparities in screening for colon cancer:
- ACP Internist Weekly, Jul 9, 2019Financial incentives associated with increased FIT uptake but not increased CRC screening overall.
CT scan use in pregnancy rose in U.S. and Canada over two decades
Read news release.
Diana Miglioretti, PhD, Erin Bowles, MPH, and colleagues conducted the first large, multicenter study of advanced imaging during pregnancy. They found that use of scans that expose women and fetuses to ionizing radiation has risen significantly over 21 years:
- HealthDay (translated into Spanish and syndicated in U.S. News & World Report, etc.), Jul 24, 2019
Pregnant women exposed to more risky CT scans. - UPI, Jul 24, 2019
Study: CT scans during pregnancy rise in U.S., exposing fetuses to excess radiation. - KCBS, Jul 24, 2019
Why more pregnant women are having scans. - Sacramento Bee, Jul 24, 2019
CT scans of pregnant women on the rise despite radiation risk, Kaiser-UC Davis study finds. - Aunt Minnie, Jul 24, 2019
More pregnant women are undergoing imaging. - Medscape, Jul 24, 2019
Increased use of CT scans during pregnancy in US and Canada
Using breast MRI after cancer may lead to unneeded biopsies
Read news release.
Karen Wernli, PhD, found that when breast cancer survivors were screened using breast magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), they had more than twice as many biopsies as did those screened using mammography alone.
- MedPage Today, Jul 24, 2019
MRI screening finds more breast cancers, but at what cost? - Diagnostic Imaging Europe, June/July 2019 (page 43)
Surveillance MRI in breast cancer survivors.
Six Building Blocks help small rural clinics to manage opioids better
Read story.
Led by Michael Parchman, MD, MPH, researchers at Kaiser Permanente and the University of Washington have developed an innovative program to provide small rural clinics with practice support to reduce patients’ use of opioids:
- The Daily of the University of Washington, Jul 30, 2019
The Six Building Blocks: Redesigning opioid management. - CQ Researcher, Jul 12, 2019 (subscription required)
Suicide crisis: Can the rising rate be stemmed? - UW Medicine Newsroom, Jul 9, 2019
Six ways to manage opioids in small, rural clinics.
Your brain is a reservoir: Replenish it with these 10 healthy habits
Read Live Healthy story.
Eric B. Larson, MD, MPH, outlines steps you can take to help prevent brain function from declining with age:
-
3rd Act magazine, Spring 2019
Your brain is like a reservoir. Replenish it with healthy activity.
JUNE 1-30
Using breast MRI after cancer may lead to unneeded biopsies
Read news release.
Karen Wernli, PhD, found that when breast cancer survivors were screened using breast magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), they had more than twice as many biopsies as did those screened using mammography alone:
- Reuters (via Medscape), Jun 7, 2019
Breast MRI may up biopsy, cancer-detection rates in women with breast-cancer history - HealthDay (syndicated, including U.S. News & World Report and WebMD), Jun 4, 2019
Is MRI screening worth it for breast cancer survivors? - Aunt Minnie, Jun 4, 2019
Surveillance breast MRI is double-edged sword
Top pediatric physician-scientist chosen to lead Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute
Read story.
Rita Mangione-Smith, MD, MPH, is the new leader of Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute:
- GeekWire, Jun 20, 2019
Tech moves: Kaiser Permanente names head of research in Washington state
Post-traumatic stress disorder
Ben Balderson, PhD, shared information, tips, and treatment for Post-Traumatic Disorder Awareness Month:
- Q13 - KCPQ TV, Jun 7, 2019
Identifying and treating PTSD
MAY 1-31
Fewer heart attacks, strokes, and deaths after weight-loss surgery
Read news release.
Research led by KPWHRI is cited. Published in JAMA, it showed that patients who had bariatric surgery had a significantly smaller risk of coronary artery disease and stroke compared with patients who did not have surgery:
- AARP magazine, May 13, 2019
Weight-loss surgery can benefit people into their 60s, 70s and 80s
10 things you can do to prevent devastating falls
Read story.
Eric B. Larson, MD, MPH, commented on a new study suggesting that older people who fall may not always be stumbling over things in the dark:
- Reuters Health (syndicated in Washington Post, etc.), May 30, 2019
Many older adults fall at home in well-lit rooms
April 1-30
Chronic illness care
Ed Wagner, MD, MPH, gave the C. Wesley Eisele Lecture (Practice Transformation Using
the Chronic Care Model) to the American College of Physicians’ annual Internal Medicine Meeting:
- Medical Economics, Apr 13, 2019
ACP 2019: Chronic care patients improve through teamwork
How to keep guns—and troubled teens—safe
Read story.
David Grossman, MD, MPH, co-leads Kaiser Permanente’s Firearm Injury Prevention task force:
- New York Times, Apr 16, 2019
Gun research is suddenly hot - Modern Healthcare, Apr 13, 2019
Kaiser Permanente a leader in hospital industry self-funded gun violence research
Stand up for your health!
Read Live Healthy story.
Dori Rosenberg, PhD, says exercising consistently can help prevent heart disease and muscle weakness; control and treat various chronic conditions; increase bone and muscle strength; improve brain function and sleep; and boost mood and enhance overall quality of life.
- Washington Post, Apr 29, 2019
Even a little exercise can mean big improvements in your health
March 1-31
Proactive boomers will ‘choose their own adventure’ in growing old
Read blog post.
Eric B. Larson, MD, MPH, advises the boomer generation—which includes pioneers of the self-care movement—to thrive by carrying their activism into the process of aging:
- 3rd Act magazine, Spring 2019
8 ways to be an activist ager for your health
Enlightened Aging book
Read about the book.
Book by Eric B. Larson, MD, MPH, and Joan DeClaire, is reviewed:
- Permanente Journal Spring issue, Mar 22, 2019
Enlightened Aging: Building Resilience for a Long, Active Life
February 1–28
Esketamine: How to assess new antidepressant’s efficacy
Read blog post.
Gregory Simon, MD, MPH, is quoted about whether the new antidepressant treatment, which the FDA approved on March 4, decreases suicide attempts:
- Bloomberg Businessweek, Feb 5, 2019
Ketamine could be the key to reversing America’s rising suicide rate
Cost-of-care conversations: How can health care be more transparent?
Read blog post.
Based on her research, funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Nora Henrikson, PhD, discusses three pathways that clinicians can use to integrate cost of care conversations into their clinical workflows:
- Avalere podcast, Feb 22, 2019
E3 – A guide to integrating cost-of-care conversations into workflow
Proactive boomers will ‘choose their own adventure’ in growing old
Read blog post.
Eric B. Larson, MD, MPH, discusses the broader perspectives and achievable goals that come with aging:
- 3rd Act magazine, Winter 2019
Life can get better as we age
January 1–31
ACT study: Long-running study of aging examines changes in Kaiser Permanente patients over time
Read story.
Eric B. Larson, MD, MPH, will participate in a panel at the UW about the latest research on Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and other neurodegenerative diseases:
- Tacoma News Tribune, Jan 3, 2019
Learn about latest Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s breakthroughs and more from UW Forum
10 things you can do to prevent devastating falls
Read story.
This story, on whether increasing falls among older people may be due to more use of prescription medications, quotes Eric B. Larson, MD, MPH. It also discusses current research by Karen Sherman, PhD, with University of Washington (UW) colleagues to find ways to reduce the risk, including daily exercises and reducing or eliminating use of benzodiazepine medications:
- Everett Herald, Jan 6, 2019
Deaths from falls in seniors are up—Are prescriptions to blame?
Kaiser Permanente Research Affiliates Evidence-based Practice Center
Read webpage.
The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality newsletter features two articles by KPWHRI researchers: David C. Grossman, MD, MPH, on U.S. Preventive Services Task Force priorities for prevention research; and Nora Henrikson, PhD, on cost-effectiveness of age-specific screening intervals for people with family histories of colorectal cancer:
- AHRQ News Now, Jan 22, 2019
AHRQ in the professional literature
Gun safety is crucial for families with high-risk teens
Read blog post.
David C. Grossman, MD, MPH, is quoted about Kaiser Permanente’s commitment of $2 million toward research to prevent gun injuries and death, which he is helping to lead:
- Annals of Emergency Medicine, Jan 24, 2019
A balancing act, the emergency physician role in firearms safety
Home tests and automated reminders cut colon cancer screening costs
Read news release.
Beverly Green, MD, MPH, says Kaiser Permanente’s fecal immunochemical test (FIT) kit direct-mail program has led to some of the United States’ highest colorectal screening rates:
- ACP Internist, Jan 29, 2019
Increasing colorectal cancer screening
How should we screen for gestational diabetes?
Read blog post.
In this podcast, Sascha Dublin, MD, PhD, and Gaia Pocobelli, PhD, discuss how they discovered that switching to a new screening approach increased diagnoses of gestational diabetes without improving health outcomes—leading Kaiser Permanente Washington to switch back.
- NIH Collaboratory Living Textbook of Pragmatic Clinical Trials, Jan 29, 2019
A learning health system story: perinatal outcomes associated with a major change in gestational diabetes screening
Suicide prevention: Research network finds new way to predict risk
Read news release.
Julie Richards, PhD, writes about how Kaiser Permanente Washington’s behavioral health integration pilot showed how primary care providers can best help identify and treat suicidal patients. Her coauthors are Rebecca Parrish, LICSW, Amy Lee, MPH, Katharine Bradley, MD, MPH, and Ryan Caldeiro, MD:
- Psychiatric Times, Jan 31, 2019
An integrated care approach to identifying and treating the suicidal person in primary care
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KPWHRI News
September 2019
- Healthy Hearts Northwest helps smaller primary care clinics improve care
- Weight-loss surgery linked to fewer heart attacks and deaths
- Medical imaging rates keep rising despite push to reduce them
- The ACT study: Looking toward the future
- Implementation scientists to meet in Seattle Sept. 12-14
- Accountable Communities of Health have made strides
- The House of God at 40
For the media
Are you a member of the news media?
Our goal is to make your job easier. We can quickly arrange for you to interview our scientists about their research or the work of others. We can also provide news releases, photographs, videos, and backgrounders—and access to patients who participate in our research and would like to be interviewed.
Media contact
For more on Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute news, please contact:
Rebecca Hughes
Rebecca.F.Hughes@kp.org
206-287-2055
After-hours media line: 206-448-4056
@KPWaResearch
About Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute
Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute (KPWHRI) improves the health and health care of Kaiser Permanente members and the public. The Institute has conducted nonproprietary public-interest research on preventing, diagnosing, and treating major health problems since 1983. Government and private research grants provide our main funding. Follow KPWHRI research on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, or YouTube. For more information, go to: www.kpwashingtonresearch.org.
About Kaiser Permanente
Kaiser Permanente is committed to helping shape the future of health care. We are recognized as one of America’s leading health care providers and not-for-profit health plans. Founded in 1945, Kaiser Permanente has a mission to provide high-quality, affordable health care services and to improve the health of our members and the communities we serve. We currently serve more than 12.2 million members in eight states and the District of Columbia. Care for members and patients is focused on their total health and guided by their personal Permanente Medical Group physicians, specialists and team of caregivers. Our expert and caring medical teams are empowered and supported by industry-leading technology advances and tools for health promotion, disease prevention, state-of-the-art care delivery and world-class chronic disease management. Kaiser Permanente is dedicated to care innovations, clinical research, health education and the support of community health. For more information, go to: kp.org/share.
