Insights

If the doctor wasn't careful, she explained, she could tear up the inside of my nose with the swab designed used to test for one of the diseases that might be causing my violent coughs. Almost a month later, I still don't know the source of the cough.

While away on a business trip, I woke up at least every 15 minutes in the hotel room coughing so forcefully that I was having convulsions. My body was drenched in sweat, and my mind started racing toward all the possibilities. Tuberculosis? Hantavirus? Valley fever?

What got me interested in San Lucas was contaminated drinking water there, but my reporting revealed deeper issues like the ability of local government to function, how to do business in a town without water, and tense dynamics between government and the private sector.

This week, a non-profit is looking for an experienced editor for its award-winning bimonthly journal. Also, take a look at the newest listings for health reporters and editors, as well as intern and fellowship opportunities.

Subtle changes in the climate -- warmer winters, wetter and earlier springs, and greener environments because of more rainfall -- contribute to increasing pest populations. Sometimes deadly pathogens hosted by these vectors are now moving to warming regions, too.

Hollywood stars, like Glee’s Cory Monteith, aren’t the only Americans struggling with addiction that kills. Monteith, who died of a heroin and alcohol overdose earlier this month, exemplifies the public health tragedy that is opioid overdose deaths in America.

According to Medical Board of California records, a doctor under investigation for other professional infractions, ultimately got in trouble for prescribing his wife with addictive drugs. Still they seemed to give him a partial pass.

Why family members and schools should be paying attention to indicators of mental health problems in teenagers and their potential links to violent behavior.