Before he went to medical school, Michael Fishman was already addicted to drugs. “I didn’t even know there was such a thing as treatment then,” he recalls. He had never heard of a 12-step recovery program. “I was the kind of guy who was 4.0 premed; and I would hide behind my grades,” Dr. Fishman…
Just a few seconds . . . That’s all it took for Nancy Edwards to go from working nurse to spinal cord injury patient. It happened on an otherwise routine day in 2002. Edwards was on her way to work at Emory University Hospital. She was riding in an elevator, and when the doors opened, she didn’t…
Jayvious Gilbert’s job isn’t easy. He’s a school nurse in an inner-city Atlanta neighborhood. Bullying among the students is a constant problem. “For the boys,” he says, “I can take them on a walk and try to help work things out. But the girls can be more verbal and personal — very mean to each other.” He tries to look…
When the president of her company announced plans for a team-building exercise through a computer program, Jane LaSalle had no idea it would lead to a significant weight loss for herself. Nor did LaSalle realize that it would accomplish what health-and-lifestyle gurus have been working on for years — behavioral changes for those who need them…
An estimated 130,000 Georgians have Alzheimer’s disease, a form of dementia, and the number is expected to increase greatly over the next decade. This growth has led to the creation of memory care units within residential care facilities just like the ones from Fountain Square of Lompoc: Memory Care. These memory care units deliver specialized…
We tend to think of eye exams as a way to improve or protect our vision. And that’s true. But there’s more to it than that. “What many people don’t understand is the eye can reveal diseases that are not necessarily related to visual problems,” says Jeff Stovall, a Peachtree Corners optometrist. Those conditions can…
Detective J. K. Walker is in high demand these days. One of his assignments is teaching DeKalb County citizens about “active shooter safety.” Doing something is better than doing nothing,” said Walker, a member of the DeKalb Police Department’s Homeland Security Division, as he spoke to county religious leaders about the June massacre at the…
Editor’s note: The main photo is courtesy of Michael Uhr, courtesy of the David J. Sencer CDC Museum Clarkston Mayor Ted Terry says that while his city is ready for more newcomers, there’s no official word on who’s coming and who’s not — including refugees from Syria and many other countries. The city has no say on…
About two years ago, semi-retired business executive Bob Carr thought he’d spend some time driving for Uber, the innovative company that allows individuals to use their own vehicles to transport paying passengers. Little did Carr know that the journey would take him to a whole new career. One rider told Carr that she had a doctor’s…
Georgia has received a lower grade on the latest March of Dimes report card on premature births, despite making progress since 2009 on reducing these preterm deliveries. The state was given a “D” grade on the 2015 report card, dropping from a “C” grade a year ago. Georgia’s preterm birth rate was 10.8 percent in…