Biology professor Colleen Carpenter-Swanson (Photo courtesy University of Richmond)
As new COVID-19 cases in Virginia continue to be measured daily in the low hundreds (259 today) instead of the thousands and the positivity rate hovers under 3%, the pandemic eases out of the medical news spotlight in Richmond. What else has been happening? Here’s a sampling.
- The tiny zebrafish is a powerhouse in research laboratories across the world for an amazing array of studies. University of Richmond biology professor Colleen Carpenter-Swanson is using the fish in a study of a severe form of child-onset epilepsy, Lennox-Gastaut syndrome. Carpenter-Swanson recently received a $35,000 grant for her work from the LGS Foundation. She uses zebrafish in her study of the genetic basis of comorbidities that are associated with the syndrome. She’s looking at factors including social deficits, motor dysfunction and cognitive impairment, according to a release. Zebrafish are apt subjects for such research because of their genetic similarities to people, and they’re small and inexpensive.
- Wellness visits and vaccinations were delayed during the height of the pandemic, and the VCU Massey Cancer Center is encouraging parents to get their children and also young adults to the doctor for the vaccine that wards off HPV, human papillomavirus. The virus is a factor in six kinds of cancer, affecting 36,000 Americans each year. Around a quarter of the population, about 80 million people, is infected with HPV. About 54% of adolescents were current on the HPV vaccine pre-pandemic, but the percentage may well have declined in the past year. The vaccine is recommended at age 11 or 12 and is recommended for everyone through age 26.
- A groundbreaking was held Tuesday for the Bon Secours-Chester Emergency Center, a 24,000-square-foot facility with an 11-bed emergency department and imaging center on U.S. Highway 1, south of the intersection with Moores Lake Road in Chester. The emergency center is set to open in summer 2022. Its imaging services include CT, MRI, radiography and ultrasound for emergency patients and for scheduled outpatient procedures. It also will offer occupational health.
- Healthgrades patient safety excellence award recipients for 2021 include several metro Richmond facilities. The honors go to facilities that score in the top 10% in 14 measures of patient safety. Local recipients include three HCA Richmond facilities, Henrico Doctors’ Hospital, Parham Doctors’ Hospital and Retreat Doctors’ Hospital. Henrico was also honored as a top achiever, ranking in the top 5% in the assessment.
- In-home health and hospice care will be offered in metro Richmond by VCU Health at Home by BAYADA, a collaborative project announced Thursday. VCU Health System is teaming with BAYADA, which is described in a release as the nation’s largest nonprofit provider of home health care. The partnership marks BAYADA's entry into the metro Richmond market. The new company will begin taking patients in six to nine months and will offer services including care for those recovering from an illness or injury or a recent stay in the hospital and for those in need of end-of-life care.
- Perhaps stating the obvious, a survey released Tuesday by the National Recreation and Parks Association reported that 93% of adults surveyed found that their mental health got a boost from visiting the parks. The top three activities: Enjoying nature, taking time with friends and family, and getting exercise.
Mark Your Calendar
- Through Sunday: The folks you see on the run this weekend in Byrd and Dorey parks may well be participants in the Ukrop's Monument Avenue 10K presented by Kroger. The event has been moved from Monument Avenue to the parks this year as a pandemic precaution. Read more about Sports Backers, the folks behind the event.
- Monday: The founding of Central State Hospital is commemorated in a new historic highway marker that will be unveiled in a ceremony at 10:30 a.m. Monday in the parking lot of Mt. Tabor Baptist Church, 2011 Fairmount Ave. The hospital is currently located in Petersburg. The facility for Virginia’s black residents during Reconstruction and the Jim Crow era, Central State Hospital marked its 150th anniversary in 2020. Learn more about the hospital’s history.
- Tuesday: CrossFit Night with the Richmond Flying Squirrels includes workouts before and during the game, and the first 1,000 fans (ages 15 and up) can pick up a free T-shirt (adult extra-large size only). Oh, yeah, they’re playing ball, too, with the Squirrels facing the Harrisburg Senators.
- Through Aug. 29: The touring exhibit "Mental Health: Mind Matters" continues at the Science Museum of Virginia.
