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Gaslighting in medicine occurs every day in doctor’s offices around the country when physicians ignore, discount or dismiss a patient’s pain or symptoms. Research has documented how women’s medical issues in particular are diminished. It’s time to call these behaviors out and for physicians, educators and health care institutions to take steps to change. (Laurie Reed, 3/28)

If 2015 was the year the period went public, 2023 is the year male politicians are seeking to silence it. As if having a uterus didn’t come with enough challenges in our society, House Bill 1069, in the Florida Legislature, would muzzle any talk of periods in school — something roughly half of the population experiences. (Jolene Brighten, 3/28)

It’s no secret that kids in the US are struggling with mental health issues in increasing numbers. Now, a new study in the Journal of the American Medical Association emphasizes the severity of the situation: Pediatric mental health hospitalizations are rising, and many more kids are being hospitalized for attempting suicide. (Lisa Jarvis, 3/28)

Parkland Health’s new mobile children’s vaccination clinic will soon be rolling out to schools in Dallas County neighborhoods with low immunization rates. Students with consent forms from their parents will be escorted from class to the vehicle so they can receive their shots. (3/29)

It’s estimated that up to 2.4 million people in the United States are chronically infected with the hepatitis B virus, but two-thirds of them don’t know it. Hepatitis B is a silent killer — without treatment, as many as 1 in 4 people with chronic hepatitis B will die of liver cancer or liver failure. (Mimi Zheng, 3/28)

New research reveals that poor mental and emotional health puts Americans at much greater risk of heart disease, the leading cause of death for men and women across almost all racial and ethnic groups. (Dr. Phil McGraw and Dr. John Whyte, 3/29)