News

Three UAB Medicine leaders are included on the 2023 list, and recently they were recognized and promoted by B-Metro magazine: Mark Stafford, M.D., Rodney Tucker, M.D., and M.R. Chambers, DVM, M.D.

The holiday season often serves up more calories than we normally consume, thanks to family dinners, party spreads, and game-day get-togethers. So, health experts suggest easing back on weight loss plans during the holidays and concentrating on weight maintenance instead. These tips from UAB Weight Loss Medicine may help.

During holiday gift shopping, it’s often a struggle to find the “perfect” present for older friends or loved ones who say they already have everything they want or need. But experts agree there’s one gift that’s sure to please friends and loved ones of advanced age: spending time with them.

UAB Medicine, home to Alabama’s leading transplant program, the University of Alabama at Birmingham Comprehensive Transplant Institute, has been named the presenting medical partner of the Transplant Games of America when the biennial event comes to Birmingham in July 2024. Additionally, UAB’s Sports and Exercise Medicine team will be providing medical coverage for all athletes at the games.

Making connections with friends and family, managing expectations, setting emotional goals, and finding out what means the most to you and your loved ones are good ways to find more holiday joy. Learn more about maximizing your joy this season.

The holidays may not be “the most wonderful time of the year” for people struggling with a loss. Learn about the stages and types of grief, and get some tips on coping and for supporting someone else through the season.

Congratulations to the most recent winners: Adam Wilson, RN, and Taylor Turner, RN! What makes Adam and Taylor DAISY winners?
“Adam Wilson, RN, and Taylor Turner, RN, are assistant nurse managers (ANMs) in the UAB Hospital Emergency Department. Traci Watkins, a call center operator, transferred a call to Adam from a distraught individual who was expressing suicidal and homicidal thoughts and said they planned to kill everyone in the home, including children. Adam and Taylor talked through the situation and remained on the phone with the caller for more than two hours, until help could arrive.

Girl Talk, led by nurses at the UAB Women & Infants Center (WIC), is a safe space for group learning and conversations about puberty that is available for girls ages 8-12 and their mothers (or a trusted adult).

The study found that 70-75 percent of all participants, regardless of whether they were already on blood pressure medications or not, were likely to see a reduction in their blood pressure if they lowered the sodium in their diet.

Immunotherapy is a common type of treatment that uses the patient’s own immune system to fight cancer and other diseases. Gynecologic cancers are treated in different ways, but immunotherapy is becoming more common in treating cervical cancer, uterine (endometrial) cancer, and other cancers that start in women’s reproductive organs. At the O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center at UAB, physicians and researchers are improving the use of certain immunotherapies, and many patients are seeing better treatment results.

Alzheimer’s disease is a brain disorder that slowly destroys memory, thinking skills, and other important mental functions. More than 6 million Americans are living with the disease, and over 11 million are providing unpaid care for people with Alzheimer’s or other types of dementia.
During Alzheimer’s Awareness Month in November, the medical professionals with the UAB Memory Disorders Clinic share their insight about the role of caregivers in managing the disease.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) once again has named Viva Medicare the only Alabama-based overall 5-out-of-5-Star Medicare Advantage (MA) plan. This is the third consecutive CMS top rating for the health plan, which is joined this year by only 30 of 545 total rated plans in the country and resulted in a U.S. News and World Report “Best Medicare Advantage Insurance Company” gold badge.