Medical Social Sciences in the press....

New faculty member Mitesh B. Rao, MD, MSH and MSS staff member Robin Morrissey are profiled in the May 2013 issue of FSM Research Newsletter. see pg. 6 & 9.

Richard Gershon, PhD is profiled in Rehabilitation Institute-Center for Rehabilitation Outcomes Research Newsletter, Spring 2013 article "Richard Gershon: A Pioneer in Patient-reported Outcomes”

Special supplement issue of Neurology^® , March 2013 marks the unveiling of the multi-year effort to develop the NIH Toolbox for Assessment of Neurological and Behavioral Function.  See the special issue>>

WTTW’s Chicago Today recently aired segment on “A Healthy Chicago for LGBT Youth” . The segment interviews Dr. Brian Mustanski, highlight ing theIMPACT Program’s recent publication on LGBT health disparities in Chicago, White Paper: A Healthy Chicago for LGBT Youth. Study was also highlighted in the Chicago Tribune, Dec. 24, 2012

Michael Bass, MSS Lead Software Developer presented "Computer Adaptive Testing (CAT) Approach to Patient Reported Outcomes" at the mHealth Technology Summit, December 3-5, Washington DC.  View video of presentation>>

David Victorson, PhD and non-profit True North Treks are featured in video magazine produced by Chicago4Community.  View video>>  December, 2012

Brian Mustanski, PhD is profiled in FSM Researcher, December 2012 (pg. 4 of FSM Research newsletter)

Lynne Wagner, PhD, Associate Professor, is quoted in the Chicago Tribune, December 12, 2012 regarding cancer patients who suffer from “chemo brain”, or struggling with concentration and memory.  Wagner comments that chemo brain symptoms include mental fog, slowed-down thinking, problems with multitasking, and difficulties finding the right word.  She adds that the symptoms are common and usually temporary and she recommends chemotherapy patients maintain a calendar and take notes on things they must do and remember.  http://www.chicagotribune.com/health/ct-x-chemo-brain-1212-20121212,0,5247230.story 

White Paper: A Healthy Chicago for LGBT Youth,   Mustanski, B.S., Clifford, A., Bigelow, L., Andrews, K., Birkett, M.A., Ashbeck, A., & Fisher, K. (2012) A Healthy Chicago for LGBT Youth: An IMPACT Program White Paper on Health Disparities in Chicago’s LGBT Youth. Chicago, IL: The IMPACT Program at Northwestern University. Retrieved from http://www.impactprogram.org/youth/whitepaper .

Dr. Patricia Ganz and Dr. Lynne Wagner discussed the most recent studies in cognitive dysfunction at the eighth annual Chicago Supportive Oncology Conference. Video available on Journal of Supportive Oncology site. November 2012

Medical Social Sciences Celebrates Three Years of Collaboration
Medical Social Sciences hosted a Coming of Age Celebration on October 23 to recognize the culmination of its third year as a department. 

Quality of Life and Survivorship for Patients with Cancer. 
David Cella, PhD comments about Lurie Cancer Center’s Supportive Oncology Program and how the patient’s voice helps shape treatment.  Northwestern Memorial Health Connections newsletter, September 26, 2012.

Mustanski Awarded $5.2 million in Fight against HIV/AIDS , Northwestern News Center, September 17, 2012. More>>

David Victorson, PhD's  work with young adult cancer survivors is featured in True North Treks helps young adult cancer survivors get back on trail Northwestern Magazine, Fall 2012

Neuroscience Just Got Faster, Cheaper and Easier . On Sept. 10-11, Richard Gershon, PhD, Cindy Nowinski, MD, PhD and others from Medical Social Sciences will introduce the new NIH Toolbox to hundreds of researchers at a special National Institutes of Health (NIH) conference in Bethesda, MD. Northwestern News Center, August 30, 2012

Lauren Wakschlag, PhD,  Margaret Briggs-Gowan, PhD, University of Connecticut Health Center, and colleagues examined temper loss among preschoolers as a spectrum of behaviors ranging from mild or normal to “problem indicators” that may be signs of a greater, underlying mental health issue.  Read more from the National Institute of Mental Health, August 29, 2012

Sally Jensen, PhD is on a collaborative team to assess quality of life for hand transplant recipients. “Hand transplants are not life-saving, they are life-enhancing, so they should really be driven primarily by quality of life goals.”   Project Could Result in First Hand Transplant in Illinois, Protocol to Guide Others, Northwestern Feinberg School of Medicine News, August 15, 2012

Dr. David Cella's interview on OncLive website.  Defining Quality of Life: Psychologist’s Questionnaires Play Growing Role in Cancer Research.  Published on June 15, 2011

Melissa Simon, MD, MPH, Assistant Professor in Obstetrics and Gynecology-General/Preventive Medicine and Medical Social Sciences is profiled in the the Feinberg School of Medicine newsletter, FSM Researcher, June 2012. pg. 5 Dr. Simon's research on health disparities is highlighted.

David Victorson, PhD and his work with young adult cancer survivors and non-profit organization True North Treks are featured in Lurie Cancer Center Newsletter, May 2012. Pg. 4

MSS post-doctoral fellow Vered Hankin, PhD, published Talking Treasure: Stories to Help Build Emotional Intelligence and Resilience in Young Children, Dr. Vered Hankin, et al. Research Press Publishers, 2012. More>>

Assistant Professor Started Nonprofit to Help Young Adult Cancer Survivors, Northwestern News Center, March 30, 2012 

Diagnosis of ADHD on the Rise.  Northwestern study by Craig Garfield, MD and his team of researchers quantified changes in the diagnosis of ADHD and its pharmacologic treatment from 2000 through 2010. The number of American children leaving doctors’ offices with an attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) diagnosis has risen 66 percent in 10 years. Study is published in the March/April issue of the journal Academic Pediatrics.

Medical Social Sciences provides leadership and consultation to the Northwestern University Transplant Outcomes Research Collaborative (NUTORC)  Zeeshan Butt, PhD and Sally Jensen, PhD are highlighted in the NUTORC newsletter

Such great heights.... David Victorson, PhD started the non-profit organization True North Treks to support young adult cancer survivors during their transition from diagnosis and treatment into survivorship. More>>

Family ties cut suicide rate for LGBT youth, Dawn Turner Trice, Chicago Tribune, February 15, 2012, Sec.5, pg.1

Family Acceptance Key In Preventing Gay Youths From Considering Suicide ...read more about this study by Brian Mustanski, PhD .   Watch the video of Brian Mustanksi's interview on Suicidal Ideation and Self-Harm in Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Youth. February 14, 2012

Digitizing the fight against HIV - Brian Mustanski, PhD interviewed about the program "Keep It Up" ; WBEZ "Eight Forty Eight", January 11, 2012

Why Women Quit Taking Breast Cancer Drugs Early. Lynne Wagner research in  of Robert Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center Newsletter, January-February 2012 issue

Nasty Side Effects Make Breast Cancer Patients Quit Drugs Early More than one third of women taking a certain class of breast cancer drugs are so bothered by side effects that they stop taking the pills before their treatment is complete. Read more about the study by Lynne Wagner, PhD.