From Survival to Quality of Life:
PodcastDX
FROM SURVIVAL TO QUALITY OF LIFE: WHY OUTCOMES ARE BEING REDEFINED THE FUNDAMENTAL SHIFT IN MEDICINE For decades, medicine measured success through a singular lens: survival. Did the patient live? Did the procedure work? While these metrics remain important, healthcare is undergoing a profound transformation that redefines what "winning" actually means[1]. The new standard is no longer just extending life—it's enabling patients to live purposefully, functionally, and with dignity[2]. This shift reflects a critical insight: surviving is not the same as living well. WHY OUTCOMES ARE BEING...
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Ai in Medicine Tool Partner or Problem
PodcastDX
AI in medicine is best understood as a powerful tool and a conditional partner that can enhance care when tightly supervised by clinicians, but it becomes a problem when used as a replacement, deployed without oversight, or embedded in biased and opaque systems. Whether it functions more as a partner or a problem depends on how health systems design, regulate, and integrate it into real clinical workflows. Where AI Works Well Decision support and diagnosis: AI can read imaging, ECGs, and lab patterns with very high accuracy, helping detect cancers, heart...
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Medicine in Transition:
PodcastDX
Medicine has transitioned due to massive tech adoption (Electronic Health Records EHRs, Artificial Intelligence AI, Telehealth), shifting patient expectations (consumerism, convenience), the rise of value-based care, new treatments (precision medicine), and increased focus on population health and prevention, all while grappling with rising costs, data security, and persistent access/equity gaps, making healthcare more data-driven, personalized, and digitally integrated but also more complex and fragmented. We try to break it down to try and understand the changes and how they might...
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A Primer on Stem Cells
PodcastDX
This week we discuss stem cells. Having great therapeutic and biotechnological potential, stem cells are extending the frontier in medicine. Not only replace dysfunctional or damaged cells, the so-called regenerative medicine, stem cells may also offer us new perspectives regarding the nature of aging and cancer. This review will cover some basics of stem cells, their current development, and possible applications in medicine. Meanwhile, important remaining challenges of stem cell research are discussed as well. Stem cells are unique, unspecialized cells that can divide to create...
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Functional Fitness
PodcastDX
This week we will discuss the topic of "functional fitness" With the new year upon us many people want to add fitness or getting healthy as goals and we are here to help! Functional fitness is a simple, effective way to keep your body moving and reduce restlessness. It focuses on exercises that help you perform everyday activities more easily and safely—like getting up off the floor, carrying groceries, or reaching for items on a shelf. By training your muscles to work the way you actually use them in daily life, functional fitness reduces injury risk and improves overall quality of...
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Why New Year Resolutions Often Fail
PodcastDX
By the end of the first week of the new year, nearly 77% of New Year’s resolutions have already failed (Norcross, 1988). That’s discouraging—but it doesn’t mean you should stop trying. It means most of us are setting resolutions in ways that don’t work. You aren’t weak or lazy. More often, the problem is a misaligned system—one that relies too heavily on willpower and short-lived motivation. Motivation naturally fades over time, even when our intentions are good. Think about how often you enthusiastically agree to plans weeks in advance, only to feel tired or unmotivated when...
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The Lymphatic System
PodcastDX
The lymphatic system, or lymphoid system, is one of the components of the circulatory system, and it serves a critical role in both immune function and surplus extracellular fluid drainage. Components of the lymphatic system include lymph, lymphatic vessels and plexuses, lymph nodes, lymphatic cells, and a variety of lymphoid organs. The pattern and form of lymphatic channels are more variable and complex but generally parallel those of the peripheral vascular system. The lymphatic system partly functions to convey lymphatic fluid, or lymph, through a network of lymphatic channels,...
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Pancreatic Cancer
PodcastDX
This week we are talking about Pancreatic cancer. This is a type of cancer that begins as a growth of cells in the pancreas. The pancreas lies behind the lower part of the stomach. It makes enzymes that help digest food and hormones that help manage blood sugar. The most common type of pancreatic cancer is pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma. This type begins in the cells that line the ducts that carry digestive enzymes out of the pancreas. Pancreatic cancer rarely is found at its early stages when the chance of curing it is greatest. This is because it often doesn't cause symptoms until...
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Diabetes Type 1 & 2
PodcastDX
This week we discuss diabetes mellitus, a group of diseases that affect how the body uses blood sugar (glucose). Glucose is an important source of energy for the cells that make up the muscles and tissues. It's also the brain's main source of fuel. The main cause of diabetes varies by type. But no matter what type of diabetes you have, it can lead to excess sugar in the blood. Too much sugar in the blood can lead to serious health problems. Chronic diabetes conditions include type 1 diabetes and type 2 diabetes. Potentially reversible diabetes conditions include prediabetes and gestational...
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Mast Cell Activation Syndrome MCAS
PodcastDX
Mast cell activation syndrome (MCAS) is when you have unexplained episodes of severe symptoms like swelling, diarrhea, vomiting, flushing and itching. Unlike that happen with a specific exposure, MCAS episodes happen without a clear trigger. In some cases, mast cell activation can cause , a severe allergic condition that can be life-threatening. It can cause you to have trouble breathing and drop your to dangerously low levels. Call 911 (or your local emergency service number) or go to the nearest emergency room if you’re experiencing severe anaphylaxis. are a type of immune cell...
info_outlineWastewater monitoring is a valuable, efficient, and robust tool that public health officials can use to guide public health decision making across the nation.
When we turn on the tap or flush the toilet, we often don’t think about where all that water goes. Wastewater, the used water from our homes, schools, and businesses, holds valuable information about the health of our community. Wastewater monitoring can help cities manage wastewater effectively and also creates a safer, healthier, and more responsive living environment for their communities. This blog takes a closer look at five important things to know about wastewater monitoring and how it can help city leaders ensure the health of their communities.
1. Wastewater is more than just water
Wastewater is a mix of bits and pieces that go down our drains – soap, food bits, medicines, toilet paper, and even poop. When this mix is let loose into the environment without proper cleaning, it can mess up our lakes, rivers, and oceans. And not only that, it can be bad for our health too.
2. Wastewater monitoring gives communities a health checkup
Just as doctors examine us to catch early signs of illness, experts examine wastewater to see what’s in it. They look for things like diseases that can affect our health. Wastewater monitoring data can help city leaders identify disease spread early and take steps to keep everyone safe.
3. Wastewater monitoring is an early warning system for disease spread
Wastewater holds clues about outbreaks of diseases like COVID-19, polio, flu, and more before they happen. When experts test wastewater, they can notice if diseases are starting to spread more. This helps them catch possible outbreaks early and take action to keep everyone safe. They don’t leave anyone out—every home, business, and neighborhood connected to the sewage system is included in the process.
4. Monitoring wastewater involves sampling, testing, and analysis
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Sampling: Small amounts of wastewater are collected from different points in the treatment process. Experts use these samples to see what’s in the water.
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Testing: Using various tools and equipment, they test the samples to find out the levels of chemicals, bacteria, and other substances.
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Analysis: Experts analyze the data to understand the changes in disease spread and whether new diseases are starting to appear. Analysis results enable city leaders to make proactive decisions to protect community health and well-being.
5. Wastewater monitoring is a special tool for city leaders that benefits everyone
City leaders can use information from monitoring wastewater to make important decisions that protect the health of everyone in their communities. Wastewater monitoring data can help city leaders:
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Talk to the public in better ways
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Promote actions to keep the community safe (like wearing masks and staying apart)
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Send medical tests, vaccines, and treatments to the people and places that need them the most
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Make sure hospitals and clinics have enough staff
Wastewater might not be dinner table conversations, but it impacts our lives more than we realize. Wastewater monitoring is an important tool that can help city leaders make good decisions and take early action to prevent disease spread to keep the people they serve healthy. So, next time you flush, remember that what you send down the drain has important information that can help create and maintain healthy communities where everyone thrives.
About the authors:
Sara Zeigler and Aliyah Ali are freelance writers at the National League of Cities.
This article is a product of NLC’s partnership with WastewsterSCAN. The National League of Cities (NLC) is partnering with WastewaterSCAN, a national initiative to monitor wastewater for a growing list of infectious diseases including COVID-19 and its variants, flu, and RSV gives communities reliable, sensitive, and actionable data to help them make public health decisions. As a national partner, NLC is raising awareness about the important role of wastewater monitoring in guiding public health responses, creating learning opportunities for NLC members interested in wastewater monitoring, and sharing information with communities across the country about WastewaterSCAN.