Bay Area surge appears to be leveling off as U S hits 400,000 deaths from COVID-19 lmtonline.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from lmtonline.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
San Francisco leaders clash over timing of opening mass coronavirus vaccination sites
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1of2Mario Jones (left), with the Oakland Fire Department, gets his second dosage of the Pfizer vaccine from nurse Virginia Barrett (right) at St. Rose Hospital on Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021 in Hayward, California. They were administering both the first dosage and second dosage of the vaccine.Gabrielle Lurie / The ChronicleShow MoreShow Less
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Dr. Gina Yam, Director of the Operations at Chinese Hospital fills a syringe with a Moderna vaccine dose as staff was vaccinated at On Lok in San Francisco on Jan 5. City officials are debating how best to distribute vaccines to a broader population.Carlos Avila Gonzalez / The ChronicleShow MoreShow Less
Can you pay someone to stop using meth? Proposed California legislation would boost drug treatment option
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Isaac Jackson said he tried contingency management a couple of years ago, and it helped him stay sober from meth for about a month. But, he said, it was hard to eventually stay away from the drug because he also struggles with depression.Jana Asenbrennerova / Special to The Chronicle 2019
As overdose deaths soar throughout California, proposed state legislation would legalize a program that encourages people to curb their methamphetamine use with incentives like gift cards and cash.
The approach, called contingency management, is a controversial but effective practice. Researchers have found it helps people control their substance use, particularly for methamphetamine. It’s yet another approach that San Francisco officials hope they can use to address the deadly drug epidemic that killed approximately two people a day in the city last year.
Colwell said nearly every COVID-19 bed is full and computer modeling suggests the worst is yet to come, probably by the weekend, with those infected over the new year starting to get seriously sick. We are concerned, and the modeling is raising that concern, realizing that that impact is still coming and that impact is probably going to be very significant, Colwell said.
Colwell said he hopes people behaved better over the holidays than computer models anticipate.
He did say vaccinations are raising the spirits of the employees who treat COVID-19 patients. About 98% of the medical staff have now received at least the first of two vaccine doses, but Colwell is asking everyone to be vigilant with masking and social distancing.
New traumatic brain injury test is game-changing, concussion experts say
• 7 min read
What is a concussion?
A concussion is an injury to the brain caused by physical contact. STOCK PHOTO/Getty Images
In a world first, a newly authorized handheld device will allow doctors to detect traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) in under 15 minutes, potentially saving lives by dramatically shortening the time it takes to properly diagnose the issue.
The device is made by Abbott, a medical device company based in the United States.
“This is a huge milestone that has never been done before a blood test for the brain,” said Dr. Beth McQuiston, medical director for Abbott’s diagnostic businesses. “Until now, health care providers have needed to rely on subjective measurements for TBIs, but we finally have a more objective tool to help evaluate patients.”