Insights

You learn a lot when you spend months reporting on a given issue or community, as our fellows can attest. Whether you’re embarking on a big new story or seeking to go deeper on a given issue, it pays to learn from those who’ve already put in the shoe leather and crunched the data. In these essays and columns, our community of journalists steps back from the notebooks and tape to reflect on key lessons, highlight urgent themes, and offer sage advice on the essential health stories of the day. 

Author(s)
By William Heisel

MRSA outbreaks among sports teams might be more common than we're led to believe. To get a handle on both health care-associated infections and community-acquired infections, we need to know more about where they originate and what works to fight them.

Author(s)
By Collin Tong

Navigating the challenges of caring for a loved one with dementia or Alzheimer’s disease need not be a solitary journey. It is impossible to surmount the hurdles without reaching out to others.

Author(s)
By Ryan White

The Los Angeles Times took an impressive deep dive into the problems plaguing California’s foster care system, detailing the extent to which perverse incentives and a lack of monitoring among private agencies overseeing foster homes has led to disturbing patterns of child abuse.

Author(s)
By Debra Sherman

Exercise is good for cancer patients, doctors these days say. That’s an about-face from just a decade ago when they urged patients to conserve their flagging energy. 

Author(s)
By William Heisel

I wouldn’t blame you if you thought the only thing that happened in the health sphere this year was the implosion of Healthcare.gov. There was some excellent reporting on the problems with the Affordable Care Act, but here are some stories you might have missed.