Insights

<p>Consumer genetic tests for kids, problem drinkers and hospital infections, staph bacteria in meat and budget problems ahead for community clinics: all in today's Daily Briefing.</p>

<p>My two articles (I was originally writing three, but ended up with two lengthy articles) for the Fellowship were definitely acquired through an illuminating process.</p><p>Over and over I encountered heads of medical institutions in the area who gave me their polished spin on why there weren't enough physicians in the area and why our huge Medi-Cal population wasn't being served. The two are intertwined as not having enough doctors/resources for the privately insured means that the physicians who DO live here will flock to the patients who pay. Which are not Medi-Cal patients.</p>

<p>Dr. David C. Martin may be onto something. In three Antidote posts last week, he made the case that health care workers should not wear surgical scrubs out in public. If seen doing so, they should be confronted. Now, doctors are talking back.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Decision makers in Sacramento have 4 months to settle their differences about the state's chemical regulations</p>

<p>Before we get to prescription drugs, Noozhawk is fixing the city of Santa Barbara's budget</p>

<p>Natomas is the largest and, at one time fastest-growing, neighborhood in Sacramento, California. This master-planned community was designed with healthy living in mind: centrally located shopping, smaller neighborhood schools, ample bike and walking trails, and longterm plans for a public transportion network. Then the people moved in - thousands and thousands of them.</p>

<p>Last summer, Paul Balcerak slept on the Internet, and experience that showed him new ways that social media can be useful to journalists. This week at <em>Career GPS</em>, Balcerak answers questions about what he learned. Also find new health media job opportunities.</p>

<p>It takes a certain kind of stubbornness and stick-to-it-ness to develop a successful online news site or a popular blog, especially if you are writing about the civic life of your community — not fashion tidbits or celebrity gossip. We are working with these news innovators to expand their health reporting.</p>

<p>Using New Tools to have New Conversations, Noozhawk hopes to establish a New Framework on our community's most pressing issues.</p>

<p>Are community health experts and policy makers looking in the right places as they analyze America's health woes? A team of interviewers took to the streets in Philadelphia, cameras in hand, to find out what ordinary people think about health in their neighborhoods.</p>