By Nicholas S. Imperato DO, MPH and Kamini Doobay MD, MS For any community initiative or legislative effort to be successful, it is tantamount to solicit input from the those living within the area. Focus groups and community engagement are powerful tools that can help shape the development of potential initiatives. By bringing together [...]
Last week, in commemoration of Black History Month, Gov. Phil Murphy and Lt. Gov. Tahesha Way announced the release of the state’s Wealth Disparity Task Force report, “New Jersey – Building a State of Opportunity: A Report of the Wealth Disparity Task Force to Close Opportunity Gaps and Repair Structural Disparities.” The task force and [...]
By Taylor Hughes The United States continues to experience a drug overdose crisis, but evidence suggests a change is happening. Provisional data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimated about 107,000 drug overdose deaths nationwide in 2023, a 3% decrease from 2022 and the first annual decrease since 2018. The majority [...]
By Ojobo Agbo Eje, Michael Akinwumi, Itzhak Yanovitzky, and Kristoffer Shields When people think of scientists, engineers, or healthcare professionals, they likely imagine them working in labs, hospitals, or industrial buildings. Some, however, are also policymakers at all levels of government, shaping and enacting consequential policies that impact crucial sectors of our society including [...]
By James Davy and Momina Chaudhry. With funding from the New Jersey State Policy Lab, the Rutgers University School of Public Affairs and Administration, in partnership with the New Jersey Reentry Corporation, launched an innovative initiative to transform mental health and addiction treatment services [...]
By Yonaira Rivera and Vivek Singh In today's digital world, large language models like ChatGPT are important sources of healthcare information, particularly for those who face barriers like insurance issues or language constraints. As part of the IMPACT-NJ project, we are working to make sure that chatbot technologies are accessible to everyone in New [...]
By Taylor Hughes The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) is the United States' most extensive integrated healthcare system, providing care at more than 1,300 facilities to over 9 million enrolled veterans nationwide. New Jersey has two major VA medical centers offering hospital services and several VA community-based outpatient clinics (CBOCs) dotted throughout the state. In [...]
By Nicholas S. Imperato DO, MPH and Kamini Doobay MD, MS There are numerous states throughout the country which have identified poor health insurance literacy as a crucial issue that impacts the physical, mental, and financial well-being of their citizens. There have been a few innovative interventions to address this issue that have been [...]
By Taylor Hughes Maternal mortality is a crucial indicator for assessing the quality of healthcare access and delivery for pregnant and postpartum women, and it is receiving much-needed attention in New Jersey. The World Health Organization defines maternal mortality as “the death of a woman while pregnant or within 42 days of termination of [...]
By Candace Harrison November 20th, Transgender Day of Remembrance, commemorates the transgender, nonbinary, and gender non-conforming people who have lost their lives due to anti-transgender hate crimes. It is a day to affirm the human rights of transgender persons. The transgender community can face substantial barriers, such as violent hate crimes, family neglect, lack [...]
