Kara Gavin
Science/medical writer & media relations for University of Michigan (Michigan Medicine/Institute for Healthcare Policy & Innovation) focusing on #primarycare, #mentalhealth, aging & #healthpolicy Mom, wife, baker, French horn player, AAAS Fellow, J! bronze
- Reposted by Kara GavinImportant paper. Schools are high-risk environments for respiratory disease transmission MAINLY because classrooms are underventilated. This problem has a workable solution - it just needs political will. Air quality is as important as water quality for public health. MT @martinmckee.bsky.social
- This post would be perfect in modern English. Somehow having it in middle English makes it even better....
- I'm running a session for health care researchers on writing op-eds and commentaries today at @umich.edu and just added a slide citing this...
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- 1. Pay for your news if you can. It costs money to produce. Donations to nonprofit news sites & broadcasters count too. 2. Share news from sources you trust, so good information travels. If you can share a gift link so those who can’t afford a subscription can access it, great. 3. See steps 1 & 2.
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- Reposted by Kara Gavin“Health officials in New Mexico are warning against consuming raw dairy products after a newborn baby in the state died from a listeria infection that they say was likely contracted when the baby's mother drank raw milk during pregnancy.” @jackiantonovich.bsky.social
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- Reposted by Kara GavinIn a new Q&A from Michigan Ross, IHPI member @smiller.bsky.social discusses her ongoing research on guaranteed income for families, the potential impact of the H.R. 1 Act on people who use #Medicaid, and the implementation of Rx Kids in Michigan. Read it here: ihpi.umich.edu/news-events/...
- Reposted by Kara GavinWhy aren’t more older adults getting flu or COVID-19 shots? ihpi.umich.edu/news-events/...
- New poll data out today from @umich.edu shows that 42% of Americans over 50 haven't gotten either an updated flu or COVID shot recently. The leading reason why? They didn't think they needed it. The poll, conducted in recent weeks, shows a need for better awareness: ihpi.umich.edu/news-events/...
- Reposted by Kara Gavin⚠️WOKE CONTENT⚠️ 🧵 It was the first all-Black protest in America that most people never heard of. It was the loudest protest ever—all without saying a word.🤫 Let me tell you about The Silent Parade of 1917. (cont) #ProudBlue #ResistanceRoots #USDemocracy #Voices4Victory
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- Argh I always get the hashtag wrong. It’s #histmed
- Watching #tcmparty and a bit of #medhistory came up that I wasn’t aware of - a short movie about the first ovarian cyst operation on a living patient in the US, in 1809 in Kentucky: www.facs.org/for-medical-...
- Watching #tcmparty and a bit of #medhistory came up that I wasn’t aware of - a short movie about the first ovarian cyst operation on a living patient in the US, in 1809 in Kentucky: www.facs.org/for-medical-...
- Reposted by Kara GavinExcited to share the findings from Therese Christensen's and my article! In a nutshell: living in Denmark doesn't prevent you from experiencing a motherhood earnings penalty, but it does give you access to government benefits that help offset those financial losses.
- #Umich @umichstonecid.bsky.social Director @sashakillewald.bsky.social asks, “Can government programs that provide financial support to parents offset the motherhood penalty in earnings?” Learn more in the article in the @us.theconversation.com 🧵 (1/2) #SocialInequality myumi.ch/P3Xqe
- Strange women lying in ponds distributing swords is no basis for a system of government. Rodents plucked from burrows are no basis for accurate seasonal weather forecasts. Skin tone and accent are no basis for deprivation of civil rights.
- The truth is marching on.
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- US-Canada partnership in space…
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- Reposted by Kara GavinBecause I'm talking about measles. It is also A VERY VERY VERY CONTAGIOUS VIRUS. If someone is in a room and has measles and then leaves that room and you enter that room within TWO HOURS (depending on humidity) you can get measles. And people are contagious for four days before the rash appears.
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- Looks like a great opportunity for #umich grad students in STEM fields!
- Reposted by Kara GavinJust a few months ago, a child in the US developed the most feared complication of measles (subacute sclerosing panencephalitis) from an infection they had years ago when they were too young to be vaccinated. I hate to think about what is being unleashed by this virus as a future tragedy.
- Reposted by Kara GavinThis trend is giving me life. College is cool, knowledge is great. The liberal arts is rad. Being well rounded is the GOAT. Fund all colleges and universities. We should be throwing money at them. Make it affordable for all. Let people take underwater basket weaving if they choose.
- Never mind the jobs you had, tell me five classes you took in college Aqueous Chemistry Risk Communication Intro to Virology Fairy Tales as Literature Science & Technology Policy
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- If you know a U.S.-based young person between the ages of 14 and 24 who might be interested in answering short text-message surveys each week from @umich.edu researchers about health, wellness and safety topics, and earning gift cards, share this link with them! umich.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_...
- Reposted by Kara GavinA new study from the University of Michigan found that a used EV can save owners as much as $13,000 during the car’s lifetime. insideevs.com/news/785921/...
- I get to pick the stock images for my stories. This one was especially fun. www.michiganmedicine.org/health-lab/n... (But seriously, I hope the new guide that this story describes will help people!)
- Reposted by Kara GavinShould you use AI for that? Our new post is about how and when to use AI in arts and culture work (and why the answer is almost always no). It comes complete with an AI decision tree for cultural workers to help you make hard choices! sidracollaborative.com/2026/01/29/i...
- So proud to be part of this team. From running the National Poll on Healthy Aging to helping faculty use powerful health care data sources to connecting faculty to one another and to opportunities to impact policy and clinical care, IHPI staff make a difference.
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- Who should care for older adults, especially when dementia is involved? New ISR research led by @spattersearch.bsky.social finds strong expectations for family caregiving, even as families shrink and needs grow. Learn more about this study on caregiving expectations: myumi.ch/kPEqj
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- Need a distraction? Got access to the TCM Movies channel? Tune in now for a tribute to Rob Reiner. #TCMParty
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- I learn so much from the @marketplace.org morning report many days. But today they managed to weave planetary alignment, a song excerpt from a 60s Broadway musical, and stock values into a single story. Kudos. And also, please get Age of Aquarius out of my head now, someone.
- Give blood to honor Minneapolis. Give blood to make up for drives canceled by winter weather. Give blood to get new moms through birth-related bleeding, kids through cancer or teens through transplants. Just do it now, if you possibly can. Supplies are very, very low. www.redcrossblood.org
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- Reposted by Kara Gavin“Over the course of a lifetime, we face only a few moments where the decisions we make and the actions we take will shape our history for years to come. This is one of them. If we give our freedoms away after 250 years, we might never get them back.” — President Bill Clinton, 1/25/26
- Despite the snow, the show must go on! Come in person if you can!
- This Sunday, an orchestra of doctors, scientists, nurses, dentists, engineers, pharmacists, and people training to be all of the above will play an amazing concert - come hear it live or watch online! events.umich.edu/event/143129 (I'll be playing the role of stage manager.)
- Reposted by Kara GavinWilliam Foege has died. He was a central architect of smallpox eradication, pioneering surveillance-driven ring vaccination when vaccine supply was limited. That strategy helped eliminate the deadliest human pathogen we’ve ever known. www.nytimes.com/2026/01/24/u...
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- This Sunday, an orchestra of doctors, scientists, nurses, dentists, engineers, pharmacists, and people training to be all of the above will play an amazing concert - come hear it live or watch online! events.umich.edu/event/143129 (I'll be playing the role of stage manager.)
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- Reposted by Kara Gavin80% of Success is Showing Up
- Reposted by Kara GavinPrepare now. Prepare now. Prepare now. Prepare now. Prepare now. Prepare now. Prepare now. Prepare now.
- So if kids flush ice cubes down the toilet and put white crayons on the windowsill to try to get a snow day, what are they supposed to do in order to get a cold day?
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- Of all the weeks for @jeopardyofficial.bsky.social to ask about these island nations…
- Today I learned the @nws.noaa.gov now has something called an "extreme cold watch/warning" (i.e. no wind required, just dangerously cold air) and we're now in one in Michigan. (Thanks @mlive.com weather guru!) Now accepting bets on Fri. school/university closures... www.mlive.com/weather/2026...
- Reposted by Kara GavinPlease share - multiple summer 2026 in-person undergrad internship opportunities at @pewresearch.org! - religion - digital - social trends - data journalism - global - news - internet - AI - admin - race - science - methods - politics Apply soon! pewtrusts.wd5.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/Center...
- It’s 3 degrees with a wind chill of -12 in Ann Arbor right now. I just saw a guy in shorts and a Carhartt jacket. #puremichigan @midwestvseverybody.bsky.social
- Probably won’t get to see the aurora in light-polluted metro Detroit so this will have to do!
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- Kudos to the journalists covering the mistaken arrest & release of the Hmong-American _citizen_ in Minneapolis. But please note: A) 57 is not “elderly” B) “elderly” is not a preferred term even for someone much older than 57 C) no person should be dragged from their home unclothed in freezing temps
- The choir was just a warmup - the NAACP president and MLK's godchild are issuing strong challenges to U-M and academia as a whole in their remarks. Please watch later if you can't watch live. #MLKDay
- The Detroit Youth Choir is giving an absolutely amazing performance as part of the @umich.edu #MLKDay Symposium right now: oami.umich.edu/mlk-symposium/ Keep on keeping on.
- The Detroit Youth Choir is giving an absolutely amazing performance as part of the @umich.edu #MLKDay Symposium right now: oami.umich.edu/mlk-symposium/ Keep on keeping on.
- Hey everyone interested in #healthpolicy and improving #healthcare through data-driven research and implementation science, follow this account! It used to be branded as the U-M Institute for Healthcare Policy and Innovation, but it's now in the IHPI director's name and voice, with help from staff.
- @statnews.com Your STAT Madness submission form is not working and I have some great @umich.edu research to submit before the deadline! Have tried two browsers, deleting cookies, etc. Please advise!
- Some important context for the new federal dietary guidelines… @standupforscience.bsky.social
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- Reposted by Kara GavinA real “tell your parents” paper (since everyone on Bsky is canonically 38). Review of 21 studies of ppl over 50: • Shingles vax associated w/47% lower risk of Alzheimer’s, 24% lower risk of any dementia • Pneumonia vax had 36% lower risk of Alzheimer's • Tdap had 33% lower risk of any dementia
- #scicomm opportunity!
- How many good mothers on Bluesky ARE the expert? I have been translating biomedical research into layperson’s language for 30+ years, first at a national lab and then at a top 10 academic medical center. My teen is fully vaccinated (including all flu and covid doses). Let’s hear from others!
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