New research may allow diagnosis of CTE in living people

Guest: Robert Stern, PhD, Co-Founder and Director Of Clinical Research, Boston University CTE Center

Football is back. Along with the growing unease many fans and players have about the damage being done to players’ brains. The State of New York just passed a law requiring youth tackle football programs to distribute information about concussions to player’s parents. The repeated head trauma that happens in impacts sports is believed to cause Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy–or CTE. But at the moment, doctors can only diagnose CTE by cutting open a person’s brain after they’ve died. Boston University’s CTE Center is at the forefront of research to diagnose CTE in living patients.

50 Iron Mans in 50 States in 50 Days

Guest: James Lawrence, Motivational Speaker, Triathlete, Author of “Iron Cowboy: Redefine Impossible

When you reach a point in life where you just aren’t sure you can go a step further, what do you do? If it’s a physical challenge, maybe you stop and catch your breath. If it’s a mental or emotional challenge, well that’s what sleep, chocolate and Netflix are for, right? Well, when James Lawrence hit a personal rough patch in 2015, he decided to push his body beyond what anyone thought was possible. He did 50 Ironman triathlons and 50 consecutive days. And then he wrote a book about it called “Iron Cowboy: Redefine Impossible.”

Why Veterans Experience Culture Shock When Transitioning to College

Guest: William Howe Jr is a Doctoral Candidate Studying Communications at The University of Oklahoma

When someone enters the US military, they spend two to three months in boot camp, where the civilian culture they’ve known gets replaced by military culture –the physical and mental changes are major. But when someone leaves the military, there’s no transition. It’s just – “Thank you for your service. Good luck with civilian life!” US Army Veteran William Howe Jr says that’s irresponsible.

Brown University is Seeking to Teach Its Medical Students a Better Way to Treat Opioid Addiction

Guest: Paul George, MD, Associate Dean for Medical Education at the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University

One distinct aspect of the opioid epidemic in America is that it often starts and ends in a doctor’s office. Over-prescription of pain killers like Oxycontin fuels the epidemic. And on the other end of the spectrum, the most effective treatment for opioid addiction is with prescription medication that dulls craving and prevents withdrawal symptoms. So medical schools have a big job in making sure new doctors are equipped to treat opioid addiction without contributing to the problem. Brown University has pioneered a program to make sure its medical students enter the field fully trained –and even licensed by the state –to treat opioid addiction.

What Happens When Healthcare is 100% Free

Guest: Jonas Dahl, Former Member of Danish Parliament, CEO of Randers Regional Hospital

Healthcare is one of the top voting issues in the 2020 election, and there is a fundamental disagreement in this country about how involved the government should be in providing healthcare. But there’s widespread agreement that the system we’ve got right now is broken. Drug prices, hospital expenses and insurance premiums are all too high and rising too quickly. As a result, America spends twice as much per-person on health as other wealthy countries do, on average. Places likes the UK, Germany or Denmark.

Treating Traumatic Brain Injuries in the Criminal Justice System

Guest: Dr. Kim Gorgens, Professor of Psychophysiology, Clinical Neuropsychology and Psychology of Criminal Behavior, University of Denver

Among the millions of people currently incarcerated in America, mental illness and substance use disorders are common. So, too, are traumatic brain injuries, it turns out.