The first time I went hiking, I thought I was going to die. 

OK, that’s an exaggeration. But before this outing near my home in upstate New York, I hadn’t given the particulars too much thought. To me, the word “hiking” inspired images of strolling along paved paths through the peaceful woods. Boy, was I wrong.

By AACOM

BETHESDA, Md., Jan. 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Long before COVID-19, decades of societal, systemic inequalities have contributed to health disparities and educational inequities for ethnic minorities and communities of color. Now, results from a first of its kind, national medical education empathy study, co-sponsored by the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine (AACOM), could provide medical schools with an evidence-based assessment to help them not only improve diversity in admissions, but also help address the long-standing health disparities plaguing our nation and harming patient health.

In a new C.D.C. survey, 18- to 24-year-olds reported the highest levels of symptoms of anxiety and depression, and a quarter of them said they had seriously considered suicide.

By Gina Kolata

Denese Rankin, a 55-year-old retired bookkeeper and receptionist in Castleberry, Ala., did not want the Covid-19 vaccine. Her opinion toward the vaccine was like many Black, rural Americans: The vaccine had come about too quickly to be safe.

Writing in The Atlantic, Caitlin Flanagan describes her 17-year battle with metastatic breast cancer, starting with her shock and fear when she was diagnosed:  “Stage IV cancer! Could it get any worse?”