OPINION COMMENTARY:

Approximately 3% of deceased undocumented immigrants donate kidneys, yet only 0.2% receive kidney transplants. Dr. Joel Adler highlights this stark disparity and calls for a reexamination of the organ transplant system, advocating for eligibility based on fairness and medical need.

OPINION COMMENTARY:

Much of the American diet consists of ultra-processed foods (UPF) that fuel metabolic diseases, ill-health, and unnecessary suffering. We must implement strategies to reduce UPF for our collective well-being.

Did you know you can take care of your brain and reduce the risk of developing dementia, stroke, or depression through simple lifestyle changes? Massachusetts General Hospital’s McCance Center for Brain Health lays out a bold vision for reducing the risk of brain disease and scaling it globally.

As you create New Year’s resolutions for 2024, consider applying some of the current research presented at the inaugural Leadership and Happiness Symposium, hosted by the Leadership and Happiness Laboratory Founded by Professor Arthur Brooks at the Harvard Kennedy School’s Center for Public Leadership, to make yourself, your communities, and the world a happier place.

The surge in New York City's homeless population, exacerbated by the expiration of pandemic-related measures, poses a critical challenge, with numbers reaching unprecedented levels. Christine Quinn urges upholding the "right to shelter," faster transitions to permanent housing for cost savings, and collaboration to address the multifaceted crisis.

Did you know that there exist inexpensive generic drugs and supplements that might be effective as novel treatments for many diseases? Yet, pharmaceutical companies lack financial incentives to develop them. Could the creation of a federal agency designed to fund and oversee such efforts lead to new affordable treatments for unmet medical needs?

OPINION COMMENTARY:

To combat the homeless crisis in America, bureaucratic obstacles that hinder those in need must be overcome. Harvard ALI Fellows Melinda Giovengo and Betsy Schwartz critically examine HUD's Homeless Emergency Assistance and Rapid Transition to Housing (HEARTH) Act and showcase how the Coalition for the Homeless of Houston, Texas has successfully implemented a multi-stakeholder approach.

Mental health disorders are costly to society and devasting to the individuals who suffer. By demonstrating that mental disorders are metabolic disorders, Dr. Chris Palmer offers new solutions and hope to address the mental health epidemic.

This week marks the one-year anniversary of the Supreme Court's decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, which overturned Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey. The decision has had a devastating impact on women's health in the U.S. Cecile Richards, a national leader for women’s rights and social and economic justice and former President of Planned Parenthood Federation of America and Planned Parenthood Action Fund for 12 years, reflects on the decision, its impact, and an urgent path forward.

OPINION COMMENTARY:

Fierce political polarization is threatening democracy in the world and acting as a barrier to crafting effective solutions to critical social challenges. Alice Lombardo Maher, MD, psychiatrist and psychoanalyst, has succeeded in bridging the divide by bringing together people on opposite sides of the political spectrum and modeling the skills that are core to effective dialogue.

HEALTH & HOMELESSNESS SERIES:

The Biden Administration’s plan to reduce homelessness by 25% by 2025 is focused on preventing homelessness before it occurs in the first place. Jeff Olivet, executive director of the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness, discusses how they are urgently addressing basic needs of people in crisis, and expanding housing and support to help people get and stay housed.

HEALTH & HOMELESSNESS SERIES:

Many think mental illness leads to homelessness, but a bidirectional relationship exists, and homelessness can lead to mental illness as well. Katherine Koh, MD, a practicing psychiatrist at the Boston Health Care for the Homeless Program and Massachusetts General Hospital, discusses how her innovative practice of street psychiatry supports our unhoused neighbors.

HEALTH & HOMELESSNESS SERIES:

Inside Safe, Los Angeles’s program to reduce homelessness, recently achieved its ambitious goal of housing 1,000 people in its first 100 days. Dr. Va Lecia Adams Kellum, CEO of Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority, discusses the nature of the challenge, the approach, and the city’s early progress.

OPINION COMMENTARY:

In low-and middle-income countries, the stigma of mental illness and the lack of resources keep up to 90% of those in need from receiving appropriate care. Tsion Andine, an MD/MPH student inspired by personal experience living with someone with a mental disorder, wants to improve this number by tapping caretakers and the media.

INNOVATIONS IN ORGAN DONATION SERIES:

Across the globe, the need for organ transplantation has far outpaced the supply of organs. Mary Sauer shares her personal story and describes pioneering innovations that could solve the organ shortage crisis.

INNOVATIONS IN ORGAN DONATION SERIES:

In the United States, the number of people on the transplant waiting list and those who die waiting for an organ continues to rise. James Lytle explains why policy changes are not, by themselves, likely to solve this crisis and why technological advances are necessary to save lives.

FUTURE OF WORK SERIES:

Quality jobs that provide local living wages and equitable access to career pathways have become a critical part of the “future of work” conversation. Richard Kane and Barry Puritz of the Harvard Business School Club of New York’s Skills Gap Initiative, and Kenneth Adams, President of the LaGuardia Community College, discuss the creation of a non-degree program that is providing life-changing career pathways for individuals from low-income communities.

Climate change, natural resources depletion, COVID-19 pandemic, Russia–Ukraine war, and the possibility of a nuclear accident are some of the world-wide crises that we are facing. Some say these potential challenges underlie a mental health crisis. True for some, but for the majority of us, it is not an illness, but rather, a crisis of ambiguity and loss.

More and more, the provision of healthcare is crossing state lines. Allison Whelan argues that a fractured state-by-state approach to healthcare regulation exacerbates disparities among various populations. As a partial solution, she discusses whether Congress should amend the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to pre-empt state pharmaceutical bans and restrictions.

OPINION COMMENTARY:

Emily Weinstein and Carrie James, researchers from Harvard’s Graduate School of Education, encourage parents and caregivers to assess when and why kids might be most vulnerable to social media – and how social media may also make teens feel connected and supported. Effective interventions require “tuning into the particular” and challenging assumptions.