Fight of the Navigators
Connecting homeless to health care saves money in the ER
Regina Vasquez ended up homeless after her father passed away. Embarrassed by incontinence caused by Crohn’s disease, she found living out of her car a more dignified alternative to life in a public shelter. She worried constantly about her next visit to Sutter’s emergency department, and whether she would need yet another surgery. She estimates she made six to eight ER visits per year during her time on the streets.
Opportunity of a Lifetime
Fetal surgeons at UC Davis are repairing birth defects in babies — before their patients are even born
Too many pregnant mothers know the feeling of horror: The ultrasound reveals something wrong. Perhaps it’s nothing. But maybe it’s life-threatening, a disease or a disability. Maybe it’s the unthinkable. For hundreds of thousands of years, the unthinkable — babies doomed to die or develop impairments before drawing their first breath — meant only tragedy and heartache. Now there is hope.
Bedside Manner
Teacher Nicole Castles brings education to patients at UC Davis Children's Hospital
Nicole Castles teaches UC Davis Children’s Hospital in Sacramento. Castles is the sole instructor for all school-aged children in the pediatrics ward, as well as school-age patients in other wings of the hospital. In a given week she’ll schedule bedside sessions with as many as 30 students.
Restraining the Titans
California's insurance commissioner on the importance of veto power over rate hikes
California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones has spent much of the past decade looking to enact rate regulations on the health insurance industry, first as an Assemblymember and now as the state’s top insurance regulator. We sat down with him recently to talk about Proposition 45, a November ballot measure he supports that would give him the power to reject health insurance rate hikes.
Growth and Prosperity
UC Davis is the keystone to the Capital Region’s economic success
In civic and business circles, we often hear the lament that Sacramento has never been a corporate headquarters. Many believe this hampers our ability to fully prosper and grow. But, in addition to the attractive traits Sacramento does possess, it has a powerful economic catalyst in its backyard: a top-10 public research university that can be the lifeblood of a stronger, deeper and more resilient regional economy.
Brain-Powered Bionics
How technology is using mind control to help people walk again
There are 6 million people in the United States who are paralyzed. Wide-spread, thought-controlled medical solutions won’t be available tomorrow or next month or even next year. But what if, some day, all of those people could walk again?
Convenient Care
How concierge medicine is changing the health care marketplace
Think of your best friend, a friend that knows all your ticks, hobbies and vices. Now imagine this friend happens to be a doctor, and she’s your doctor.
Sweet Sorrow
California Senate leader Darrell Steinberg prepares for departure
Darrell Steinberg has been front and center on some of the biggest issues facing the state and our region, from historic land-use reform to mental health care funding.We sat down with him to discuss his current legislative priorities and possible future plans as he enters his final year in the Senate.
Avoiding the Pop
Why do so many women tear their ACL, and how can they prevent it?
In one of the crueler twists of sports, ACL tears often happen in freak accidents that you can’t really control. Seventy percent occur without contact. Even more cruelly, a woman is four times more likely than a man to tear the ligament — especially if she’s young and active.
Waterborne Disorder
In the event of flood, area hospitals are at risk
In the hours before Hurricane Sandy hit New York last year, the country’s oldest public hospital thought it was ready.