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• NCQA honors Dr. Ed Wagner for improving chronic illness care nationally

  Dr. Ed Wagner, director of the MacColl Institute for Healthcare Innovation at Group Health Cooperative, is among four winners of the 2007 Health Quality Awards from the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA). The awards, presented every two years, honor individuals and organizations whose energy, efforts, and vision have substantially helped improve U.S. health care quality.
• Regular follow-up important during antidepressant treatment

  Because individuals can react differently to antidepressant medications, regular follow-up is important during the first few weeks of treatment, according to an editorial by Group Health psychiatrist and researcher Greg Simon, MD, MPH.
• Good physical function linked to Alzheimer's delay: Research suggests mind-body connection

  The first signs of dementia—including Alzheimer's disease—may be physical, rather than mental, according to a joint study between Group Health Cooperative and the University of Washington.
• Reactions to last DTaP vaccine not prevented

  A red splotch forms where most preschoolers get their fifth, and last, shot of the acellular diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis (DTaP) vaccine, and it can last a few days. Neither of two common over-the-counter drugs—ibuprofen (Advil) and acetaminophen (Tylenol)—help prevent this side effect, according to a Group Health Cooperative study appearing in the March issue of Pediatrics.
• Exercise linked to later onset of dementia

  Regular exercise is associated with a delay in the onset of dementia and Alzheimer's disease, according to a Group Health Cooperative/University of Washington study that appeared in the Jan. 17 issue of Annals of Internal Medicine. The study—the most definitive investigation of exercise and dementia to date—also found that the more frail a person is, the more he or she may benefit from exercise.
• Yoga is more effective than conventional exercise for low back pain, Group Health study finds

  Yoga appears to be more effective for low back pain than conventional exercise or getting a self-care book, according to a first-of-its kind study conducted by researchers at Group Health Center for Health Studies and published in the December 20, 2005 issue of Annals of Internal Medicine.
• Bone density returns when teens stop using popular contraceptive, Group Health study finds

  A new study of the popular injectable contraceptive Depo-Provera shows that teenagers' bone density recovers after they stop using the drug. Several previous studies have linked Depo-Provera to bone loss, raising concerns about its use among teens, a population in their peak bone-building years.