Atlanta is where I’ve been since Thursday morning.  I was thrilled to apply for and be awarded a rural health journalism fellowship to attend the Association of Health Care Journalists’ conference there.  Dave came, too, and Charlotte and Thomas went to Nana/Papa’s.  More than 500 print & web reporters, freelance writers, health care agency staff and radio & TV journalists attended the event that kicked off with a conversation with former President Jimmy Carter and his wife Rosalynn.  Fascinating to hear how the couple married for 60-plus years have worked for decades on global and mental health issues.  Through The Carter Center they founded in Atlanta (1982), they’ve nearly eliminated Guinea worm disease that once infected millions in Africa and Asia from contaminated water.  Mrs. Carter told of the joy she felt when Ethiopian women taught to dig latrines could, for the first time, go to the bathroom during the day.  Until then they had to hold it until nightfall!

The Carters

Of course the more I heard about the latest in Alzheimer’s disease research and resurgence in HIV cases since Americans no longer consider AIDS to be an epidemic, the more I felt frustrated by how overwhelming it can be for reporters to accurately and responsibly educate viewers/readers about health information.  So many studies and recommendations; so little air time to share it all.

Dinners out included fried plantain dipped in mango salsa at a Latin restaurant and another evening with a good friend and former KWWL producer (who moved there) in a warehouse converted into a hip urban dining spot.  We skipped the Cinderella carriage ride due to our horse allergy!

Posted under Baby Thomas: Month 46