Departments Bouvé College of Health Sciences

Graduate students in Northeastern's Physician Assistant Program wear face shields, masks, and gloves while practicing physical exam skills in class. Photo by Matthew Modoono/Northeastern University

How do you learn hands-on medical skills during a pandemic?

Clad in masks, face shields, and gloves, a dozen students in Northeastern's physician assistant program begin to pore over each other’s hands, arms, neck, and scalp. Six more students begin the same process without all the protective equipment; their patients are family members, friends, and partners, and their exam spaces are living rooms, bedrooms, and home offices.

by Laura Castañón August 27, 2020

A mouthguard hangs over a doctor's coat in a family doctor's surgery in a treatment room. AP Photo by Marijan Murat/picture-alliance/dpa

Taking the ‘physical’ out of physical therapy

Kellie Bedoni, a Northeastern graduate who works as a physical therapist, had to learn how to help her patients in a hands-off way. It wasn’t an easy transition, she said during a webinar hosted by the Bouvé College of Health Sciences, but like others in her profession, she has had to acclimate to new protocols brought about by COVID-19.

by Khalida Sarwari August 26, 2020

Sierra Still, a graduate student of speech-language pathology at Northeastern, raised $1,280 in donations, and used the money to create nine care packages, which she sent out to speech language pathologists in the Greater Boston area. Photo courtesy of Sierra Still.

Here’s how students are supporting speech language pathologists on the front lines of COVID-19

Sierra Still, a graduate student at Northeastern, raised over $1,200 to create and mail care packages to speech language pathologists—healthcare workers she says are sometimes overlooked.

by Irvin Zhang August 10, 2020

Clockwise from top left, Alisa K. Lincoln, Rachel Rodgers, Dean Carmen Sceppa, and Suzanne Garverich. Screenshots by Northeastern University

How has COVID-19 affected mental health and well-being?

During a panel on mental health, Northeastern researchers discussed the impact of COVID-19 on people’s emotional well-being and the effects of the pandemic on people with serious mental illness and disordered eating.

by Khalida Sarwari July 30, 2020

Creative rendition of particles of SARS-CoV-2, the coronavirus that causes COVID-19. Credit: NIAID

Scientists still don’t have all the answers about the coronavirus–and that’s a sign of progress

As researchers study SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 at breakneck speeds, one key aspect to keep in mind is that the research is happening while everyone watches. “The public is getting front-row seats to the scientific method, probably in a way they never imagined they would’ve experienced,” says Samuel Scarpino, who runs the Emergent Epidemics Lab at Northeastern.

by Roberto Molar Candanosa July 27, 2020

Faculty Expert

Brandon Dionne

Assistant Clinical Professor

Photo by Matthew Modoono/Northeastern University

Is contact tracing enough to slow the spread of COVID-19?

As schools, businesses, and organizations prepare to reopen, efforts to trace contacts and provide COVID-19 testing will need to be amplified to prevent a new wave of infections, said a panel of current and former Northeastern public health students who are working as contact tracers.

by Khalida Sarwari July 24, 2020

Police officers are reflected in the glass wall of a bus stop as a demonstration calling for the defunding of the police department marches by on June 13, 2020 in Philadelphia. AP Photo/David Goldman

The research is clear: White people are not more likely than Black people to be killed by police.

When President Donald Trump responded to a question about Black people who have died at the hands of U.S. law enforcement by focusing his attention on white victims, he was engaging in a “grotesque” misdirection, says Matt Miller, a Northeastern professor who studies gun violence. “Black people are more likely to be killed per capita by law enforcement than are white people,” Miller says.

by Ian Thomsen July 16, 2020

image of person holding anterior nasal swab kit

Here’s how Northeastern intends to test all Boston students, faculty, and staff for the coronavirus

The university is planning a number of measures to conduct free coronavirus testing of students, faculty, and staff who will be returning to the Boston campus in the fall. “This testing is for everyone,” says David Luzzi, senior vice provost for research and vice president of Northeastern’s Innovation Campus. “The goal here is to keep fully on top of what’s happening on campus.”

by Roberto Molar Candanosa July 13, 2020

Are these uncertain times keeping you up? The solution might be personal.

Advising people on how to improve their sleep is oddly difficult, says Lichuan Ye, an associate professor of nursing who studies sleep disorders. “Most times we forget that we should give compassion to ourselves,” she says, adding that there is no single remedy to help everyone relax.

by Roberto Molar Candanosa July 7, 2020