Ryan Shields, assistant professor in the School of Criminology and Justice Studies, is sharing a $1.5 million, four-year grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to study a unique approach to deterring child sexual abuse.

In the U.S., about 34 million people suffer from varying degrees of hearing loss, and about 10 million of them have to use hearing aids, according to Ketan Muni ’87. 

“Hearing loss is more common as we age, and it is accelerated by exposure to excessively loud sounds,” says Muni, senior director of research and development at Earlens Corporation, a privately held medical technology company based in Menlo Park, California.

Cleft lip and cleft palate are birth defects that occur when a baby’s lip or mouth do not form properly during pregnancy. About 1 in every 1,600 babies is born with these defects in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Children with these debilitating conditions often experience problems with feeding, teeth development, speaking and hearing as well as loss of self-esteem.

Helen Tsiagras, RN, first-year Doctor of Nursing Practice student in the Graduate School of Nursing’s Graduate Entry Pathway Program Family Nurse Practitioner track, began her nursing career during the COVID-19 pandemic. In November, she started work as a community health nurse at Edward M. Kennedy Community Health Center in Framingham, coordinating care for patients and supporting their needs.

I have had the opportunity to work with Speaker DeLeo on many complex issues over the years, and have always found him to be sharply focused on how a new policy or law would affect Main Streets and neighborhoods in every region of the state. He recognized that Massachusetts was not just one economy but a collection of regional economies with different needs and opportunities. I think that is why he has been an especially good friend to UMass as he recognized how important the state’s only public research university is to the prosperity of every region of the Commonwealth.

Prompted by a health issue that his grandmother had, MD/PhD student Eric Ding is studying how smart watches monitor heart rhythms and detect atrial fibrillation in older adults. His work is supported by a three-year National Institutes of Health grant.

Esi A. Asare, MBA, will join UMass Medical School next week as the new director of admissions for the School of Medicine.

People with Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia are frequently prescribed medications such as sleeping pills, antipsychotic medication and drugs for bladder control. Sometimes it is too much.

According to Jerry Gurwitz, MD, potentially inappropriate or excessive prescribing is a “morbidity multiplier,” which can lead to adverse drug events, falls, worsening cognitive impairment and emergency hospitalizations.

Parth Chakrabarti, MPH, MBA, an experienced strategic leader in the pharmaceutical and biotech industry, will serve as UMass Medical School’s new executive vice chancellor for innovation and business development, joining UMMS this week, according to Chancellor Michael F. Collins.

If you’ve been feeling depressed, worried or lonely; you have a hard time getting motivated; or you feel more tired during pandemic life, you’re not alone. COVID fatigue is real and is affecting mental health, said UMass Medical School behavioral health specialists.