Jeffrey S. Hoch, Ph.D.

Dr. Melnikow Leads Team Reviewing Long-term Consequences of Peripheral Neuropathy After Chemotherapy For Breast Cancer

CHPR Director, Joy Melnikow, MD, MPH, led a systematic review published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute exploring the impacts of peripheral neuropathy on breast cancer patients one or more years after treatment. The review identified only five papers on studies that followed patients for a year or more, with widely variable results.  “The most striking finding from the review was how little data was out there,” Melnikow said.  She continued, “This is a call to action. We can’t definitively define the frequency of peripheral neuropathy or understand the differences between chemotherapy regimens with the data we have.”

For more information, please see:
http://www.newswise.com/articles/view/680184/?sc=top
https://academic.oup.com/jnci/article/ChemotherapyAssociated-Peripheral-Neuropathy

Nature Commentary by Dr. Daniel Tancredi Discusses Stunning Protective Effects of Probiotics for Newborns in Rural India

CHPR faculty member, Daniel Tancredi, PhD, published a commentary in Nature accompanying a groundbreaking clinical trial evaluating whether a probiotic/prebiotic intervention could prevent life-threatening infections early in life for a sample of mostly full-term newborns in rural India. 
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Center for Healthcare Decisions and Center for Health Policy and Research, University of California, Davis, to Join Up

The Center for Healthcare Policy and Research (CHPR), University of California, Davis, and the Center for Healthcare Decisions (CHCD) are pleased to announce their merger, effective September 2017. The two organizations have teamed on projects for many years, and leadership of both organizations are enthusiastic about combining their respective bodies of work going forward.
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Dr. Melnikow Weighs in on Effect of ACA Uncertainty in Northern California

CHPR Director, Joy Melnikow, MD, MPH, recently responded to a public radio reporter’s inquiry about the 33% health insurance premium increase projected for 2018 in California’s northern counties. Proponents of an ACA repeal cites this burdensome increase as justification for a repeal; however, Dr. Melnikow notes that this increase is projected for enrollees with insurance through Covered California, and many of these enrollees are eligible for federal subsidies that will blunt the increased cost of premiums. “Even though the rates are slated to go up for premiums, if people are eligible for subsidized premiums, then those subsidies will compensate for the increased rates.” Adia White, reporter for North State Public Radio, states that north of the Sacramento suburbs, fewer than five percent of the population would likely pay the full premium hike because their income is above the subsidy threshold (income above 400% of the federal poverty line). The projected premium increases are related to uncertainty about the Trump Administration’s intention to continue federal subsidies. “If you are an insurance company and you are deciding whether to participate in the exchange and you’re not sure you’re going to get that support, you may decide to continue with higher premiums or to drop out,” observed Dr. Melnikow. Click here for the interview.

CHPR welcomes Sun Y. Jeon, PhD
 
Sun joined the center as a statistician in 2017. Prior to CHPR, she worked as a Presidential Doctoral Research Fellow at Utah State University from 2012 to 2017, and conducted research on socio-demographic contributors to health outcomes, particularly suicide, mental health, and obesity, using national health surveys such as National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), and National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY)  datasets.  She also has experiences of studying the application of multivariate models, statistical machine learning techniques, and age-period-cohort (APC) models to health research.
 
She has Master’s degrees in Statistics and Sociology, and a Ph.D. in sociology from the Utah State University.

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