Tag archives: disease

Dr. Mary-Louise Scully, Tropical Disease Specialist: To know her is to love her
By Leslie Westbrook   |   February 24, 2026

If you have ever traveled to sub-Sahara Africa or cruised the Peruvian Amazon River (as I have) or other parts South America, chances are you consulted – or should have consulted – Dr. Mary-Louise Scully at the clinic formerly known as Sansum (now part of Sutter Health). I first met Dr. Scully prior to one […]

Cost Disease?
By Robert Bernstein   |   April 8, 2025

Many Americans feel that the country is headed in the wrong direction. They feel they spend more and get less. Many factors feed this sense but here I want to focus on a nearly 60-year-old idea from late economist William Baumol called “Cost Disease.” There was rage in this recent election about inflation. But inflation […]

Alzheimer’s Association: Providing Care, Support, and Research for Patients and Caregivers
By Steven Libowitz   |   January 6, 2022

The statistics on Alzheimer’s Disease are staggering. Someone in the United States develops the devastating disease every 65 seconds. More than one in nine people (11.3%) age 65 and older has Alzheimer’s, and the percentage increases with age, with nearly 35% of those over age 84 suffering from the form of dementia. And Alzheimer’s disease […]

Walking With Purpose: Alzheimer’s Association Has Lofty Goals for 2021 Fundraiser
By Tom Jacobs   |   June 24, 2021

When most of America shut down last year, the Alzheimer’s Association was faced with a dilemma: What to do about its largest annual fundraiser, the Walk to End Alzheimer’s? Mass gatherings were obviously out of the question, but could they somehow restructure the event rather than calling it off? “The word ‘cancel’ never came up,” […]

A Brave Life: Against All Odds
By Cecilia Rodriguez   |   March 12, 2020

When I think of my friend Miguel, the word “brave” is what comes to mind. One reason is because Miguel is Native American, a member of the Santa Barbara Chumash Band, and the word “brave” refers to a Native American warrior. Although Miguel has never, as least as far as I know, gone to battle […]

“Lepto” Cases Increase
By Kelly Mahan Herrick   |   March 28, 2019

Local pet owners and veterinarians are reporting an increase in a deadly bacterial infection called Leptospirosis. Known as “lepto,” the bacteria that causes the disease is spread through the urine of infected animals, mostly rodents and wild animals such as raccoons and opossums; the bacteria can contaminate water that is then bathed in or drank […]

Man on a Mission: Dr. Michael Fisher is Devoting his Retirement to Preventing an Epidemic
By Leslee Goodman   |   January 10, 2019

Dr. Michael Fisher has been co-medical director of acute dialysis at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital since 1984. He is the co-founder of Santa Barbara and Lompoc Artificial Kidney Centers – both dialysis centers – and, until his diagnosis with lung cancer five years ago, was an associate clinical professor of medicine at the USC Keck […]