Physicians hit back at NRA criticism of their role in gun control debate
The National Rifle Association posted a mocking tweet telling doctors who voice their support for gun control to “stay in their lane.”
The NRA was responding to a new position paper from the American College of Physicians that argues that reducing the impact of gun violence is a public health imperative. Physicians hit back at the group on social media under the hashtag #ThisIsOurLane.
“We are not anti-gun. We are anti-bullet holes in our patients,” Esther Choo, a professor of emergency medicine at Oregon Health & Science University, tweeted. “Most upsetting, actually, is death and disability from gun violence that is unparalleled in the world.” (National Public Radio)
Georgia regulators OK new 446-bed children’s hospital
Georgia officials have given their stamp of approval to Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta’s plans for a new, 446-bed hospital.
The plan was not opposed by any other of the state’s hospitals. Children’s Healthcare intends to relocate from its current facility to the new hospital.
The $1.5 billion hospital will be the most expensive ever approved under Georgia’s certificate of need program. Construction of the 70-acre campus is expected to be completed in 2020, and Children’s Healthcare has promised to invest $40 million in infrastructure improvements around the site. (Georgia Health News)
U.S. heart guidelines updated with new medicine options, risk factors
The American Heart Association and American College of Cardiology have updated their recommendations on heart health to push providers to offer more individualized assessments of patient’s risk factors.
The updated guidelines, which were first issued in 2013, also noted two newer mediations that aim to reduce patients’ cholesterol levels.
Both groups maintain, though, that a healthy diet and exercise are the frontline keys to heart health. (Reuters)