Jan 28, 2013, 12:09 PM, Posted by
Beth Toner
One look at the latest flu map from the Centers for Disease Control tells you everything you need to know: We are smack-dab in the middle of flu season. Make no mistake: Influenza, at best, can make you miserable—and, at worst, kill you. If you are one of the many Americans suffering from the flu this season, you will probably try anything to get relief from your sore throat, high fever, body aches, and chills. But do us a favor: Please don’t ask your doctor for an antibiotic. There are medications—called antivirals—that may decrease your symptoms and shorten your illness by a day or two. Antibiotics, however, won’t help you if you have the flu.
Antibiotics don’t fight infections that are caused by viruses, including influenza. Yet every year flu sufferers are prescribed antibiotics. According to a policy brief from Extending the Cure (ETC), a project funded by the Pioneer team, that researches and examines solutions to address antibiotic resistance, between 500,000 and 1 million antibiotic prescriptions are filled each flu season for patients who have the flu and no bacterial illness.
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Jan 3, 2013, 12:53 PM, Posted by
Al Shar
Before retiring, Al Shar, vice president and senior program officer, reflected on his time with Pioneer and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
Along with a few others here, I’ve been on the Pioneer team since it began in 2003. What makes my case somewhat unique was that I didn’t have to be on the team. I had a “day job,” and no one asked or told me to join; I was there exclusively because I wanted to be. Looking back, what’s interesting about that is how little I, and others, understood about what Pioneer should be.
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Oct 25, 2012, 9:09 AM, Posted by
Brian C. Quinn
Forty years ago, smallpox still existed. We hadn’t heard the acronyms HIV or AIDS. The Nixon administration had declared war on cancer and was about to introduce America to the health maintenance organization, aka HMO. Meanwhile, a couple of paramedics on a TV show called “Emergency!” and a new philanthropy, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, were introducing the nation to the life-saving concept of 911 and another acronym: EMS (emergency medical services).
Four decades later, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation is the nation’s largest philanthropy devoted exclusively to health and health care, and we are still in the business of searching for solutions that will improve the health and health care of millions. As the Foundation marks its 40th anniversary this week, we remain committed not only to proven, evidence-based strategies, but also to new ideas that push boundaries.
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Beth Toner
