Patti Neighmond
Award-winning journalist Patti Neighmond is NPR's health policy correspondent. Her reports air regularly on NPR newsmagazines All Things Considered, Morning Edition, and Weekend Edition.
Based in Los Angeles, Neighmond has covered health care policy since April 1987. She joined NPR's staff in 1981, covering local New York City news as well as the United Nations. In 1984, she became a producer for NPR's science unit and specialized in science and environmental issues.
Neighmond has earned a broad array of awards for her reporting. In 1993, she received the prestigious George Foster Peabody Award for coverage of health reform. That same year, she received the Robert F. Kennedy Award for a story on a young quadriplegic who convinced Georgia officials that she could live at home less expensively and more happily than in a nursing home. In 1990, Neighmond won the World Hunger Award for a story about healthcare and low-income children. She received two awards in 1989: a George Polk Award for her powerful ten-part series on AIDS patient Archie Harrison, who was taking the anti-viral drug AZT; and a Major Armstrong Award for her series on the Canadian health care system. The Population Institute, based in Washington, DC, has presented its radio documentary award to Neighmond twice: in 1988 for "Family Planning in India" and in 1984 for her coverage of overpopulation in Mexico. Her 1987 report "AIDS and Doctors" won the National Press Club Award for Consumer Journalism, and her two-part series on the aquaculture industry earned the 1986 American Association for the Advancement of Science Award.
Neighmond began her career in journalism in 1978, at the Pacifica Foundation's DC bureau, where she covered Capitol Hill and the White House. She began freelance reporting for NPR from New York City in 1980. Neighmond earned her bachelor's degree in English and drama from the University of Maryland, and now lives in Los Angeles.
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Advances in online tech are revolutionizing health care, with patients now emailing doctors, filling prescriptions or even getting therapy via a video session. But what if you can't afford broadband?
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Knowing how to differentiate between symptoms of each can be important, especially if you're at high risk for flu's complications. Influenza can lead to pneumonia, hospitalization and even death.
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Boys are more likely to be diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder than girls, though both sexes are equally affected. Women are increasingly seeking treatment as young adults.
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The children of parents who struggle with anxiety are much more likely to develop it themselves. Therapy for both parents and children can help keep the often-debilitating disorder at bay.
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Once a drug is approved by the FDA, doctors can use it as they see fit. That can be brilliant or risky, depending on the medication and the patient.
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It sounds so simple; slap on a testosterone patch and you're feeling young again. But for many men, the problem may really be obesity or diabetes. Here's how to know.
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When adults are absorbed in their mobile devices, the consequences for children are not good. Research shows kids act out more if they are competing with a mobile device for their parent's attention.
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Patients undergoing chemotherapy need to eat to stay strong. But the drugs can cause nausea and damage taste buds. New flavors and spices can help a lot, a chef says.
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It used to be parents worried that their kids were hanging out with the wrong crowd. Now they need to worry about hanging out with the wrong crowd on Instagram. But do online influences matter?
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One of the big arguments for cigarettes is that they are a safer alternative to smoking tobacco. But an analysis of teens finds that the rise of vaping hasn't led to a big drop in tobacco use.