Hospital-acquired infections and deaths from superbugs — drug-resistant bacteria, viruses, fungus and parasites — increased dramatically during the first year of the pandemic, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control & Prevention said in a report this week.
Emily Bader
Emily joined the Sun Journal in April 2021 on the health beat. She previously reported for the Lakes Region Weekly, covering nine towns in Cumberland County. She enjoys taste testing chai lattes at local cafes, attempting to beat her personal best on the NYT’s mini crossword puzzle and watching thunderstorms. She’s on the fence about the Oxford comma.
Emily grew up in Los Angeles and graduated from Wellesley College in 2018. She’s lived in lots of places for little bits of time but now calls Portland home. She welcomes coffee shop recommendations, cookie recipes and news tips in her inbox.
Posted inHealth, Local & State
Hospital workers say they experience assault, threats of violence nearly every day
While the circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic have contributed to a rise in incidents, violence against health care workers was an issue long before it started.
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Posted inHealth, Local & State
Medical professionals say gun violence a ‘public health concern’
Medical professionals and gun safety advocates say gun violence an “epidemic.”
Posted inHealth, Local & State
Maine, with one of the highest cancer rates in the country, is struggling to attract oncologists
Finding young physicians willing to move to Maine, especially to rural areas, is next to impossible, some providers say.
Posted inHealth, Local & State
Struggling to find baby formula? Here’s who can help.
What local experts and doctors are telling parents struggling to find baby formula as the shortages persist.
Posted inHealth, Local & State
Maine’s community college nursing programs to double enrollment thanks to $5 million funding boost
New funding from a public-private partnership between the state and two of Maine’s largest health care providers to allow the Maine Community College System to increase nursing enrollment as soon as this fall.
Posted inLewiston-Auburn
CMMC surgeon realizes dream of becoming Naval officer
Dr. Richard King, a former U.S. Army medical officer and trauma surgeon at Central Maine Medical Center, received a direct commission to serve as a commander in the U.S. Navy Reserves.
Posted inHealth, Local & State
The opioid epidemic is putting immense pressure on Maine’s child welfare and education systems
In half of all cases in Maine in which a child is removed from the home, an Office of Child and Family Services investigation identified the parent or caregiver’s substance use a risk factor.
Posted inHealth, Local & State
At the root of an epidemic in Maine: a prescription pad
Twenty years after Purdue Pharma introduced its pain medication, OxyContin, Maine lawmakers passed a bill that significantly stemmed the flow of pain pills into the state. A Sun Journal investigation found the new restrictions may have been too little, too late: A generation of Mainers were already grappling with substance use disorder and a growing illicit drug trade was ready to meet the demand.
Posted inHealth, Lewiston-Auburn
Violence against hospital staff has ‘more than doubled’ in past few years, St. Mary’s psychiatry chief says
Staff at St. Mary’s Regional Medical Center’s behavioral emergency department are seeing more psychiatric patients than ever before. And sometimes, those patients get violent with staff.