Research by Fikadu Tafesse, Ph.D., and Marcel Curlin, M.D., finds immunity against COVID-19 gathers strength with more time between vaccination and infection and suggests vaccine boosters should be spaced no more frequently than a year apart.

An essay published on Ruffwear shares the touching story of a hospital volunteer and his therapy dog, known at OHSU for bringing a calming and joyful presence to patients and staff.

OHSU is mentioned in a New York Times story on U.S. hospitals beginning to charge patients for exchanging electronic messages with their providers. To both help patients receive the best and most appropriate kind of care for their specific situation as well as to help providers better balance patient care responsibilities, OHSU began a pilot in September 2022 that involves billing some patients for the time it takes clinicians at two outpatient clinics to respond to more complex inquiries that are submitted through the OHSU MyChart electronic health portal.

Researchers at OHSU are contributing to an international clinical trial exploring possible treatments for Alzheimer’s, specifically focusing on earlier intervention. The AHEAD Study looks at the treatment of a drug called Lecanemab, which could delay memory decline before symptoms of the disease appear.

In a story about FDA advisers possibly making the overdose-reversing nasal spray naloxone available over the counter, Emily Skogrand, Pharm.D., says it can be made more available by reducing its cost or even making it free, adding: “I also do think on some level, making it [available] over the counter so you don't have to go to the pharmacy and potentially feel judged or stigmatized. You can just buy it like you buy Tylenol or Ibuprofen that would still have a cost associated, should associated [be] with it, but hopefully less."

In a story about FDA advisers possibly making the overdose-reversing nasal spray naloxone available over the counter, Emily Skogrand, Pharm.D., says it can be made more available by reducing its cost or even making it free, adding: “I also do think on some level, making it [available] over the counter so you don't have to go to the pharmacy and potentially feel judged or stigmatized. You can just buy it like you buy Tylenol or Ibuprofen that would still have a cost associated, should associated [be] with it, but hopefully less."

A partnership between OHSU and Sky Lakes Medical Center will allow for expanded physician resident training in Klamath Falls, thanks to new Medicare funding. The partnership is an important step toward improving access to primary care and mental health services in the region.

OHSU and Oregon State University researchers are developing a new approach to gene therapy for inherited forms of blindness that uses lipid nanoparticles to deliver gene-altering mRNA.

News briefing held by Oregon Health Authority cites Jan. 6 statewide forecast by Peter Graven, Ph.D., predicting a small increase in the number of people hospitalized with COVID-19 due to the XBB.1.5 variant.

Free OHSU skin cancer screening was available at the Salem Kroc Center’s annual health fair.