Some 70 million people in the U.S. are affected by sleep disorders of one kind or another. Chronic or severe insomnia, narcolepsy, restless leg syndrome, and sleep apnea affect the health and safety of millions of people. Many people put themselves and others at risk – on the job, at home, or behind the wheel [...]

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Some 90 million Americans now live with serious and life-threatening illnesses, such as cancer, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases, and the number is expected to double in the next 25 years as our population ages. The medical specialty dedicated to relieving the pain and suffering of patients with serious illness and providing them with the best [...]

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Drug-resistant infections are rising dramatically, from tuberculosis to MRSA to C.diff. The war against the “superbugs” continues. In Massachusetts in 2007, the Centers for Disease Control recorded 2,500 cases of MRSA – a bacterial strain that can be fatal. CDC estimates that half a million cases of C.diff – Clostridium difficile – occur every year [...]

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In Massachusetts, domestic violence deaths were three times higher in 2007 than in 2005. Nationally, a 2003 Centers for Disease Control study estimated that each year domestic violence involving an intimate partner results in 1,200 deaths, 2 million injuries among women, and 600,000 injuries among men – at a cost of $8.5 billion annually including direct [...]

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