HYANNIS — For 15 years, people seeking abortions had to leave Cape Cod for care; the nearest clinic was over 100 miles away. But in July, Health Imperatives opened in […]
Health & Healthcare
HEALTH CARE
Outer Cape Health to Have a Doctor as Its New CEO
Damian Archer has been OCHS’s chief equity officer since April
WELLFLEET — Outer Cape Health Services announced on Aug. 26 that Dr. Damian Archer will replace Patricia Nadle as CEO on Dec. 1. Since April, Archer has been the chief […]
MOSQUITOES
West Nile Virus Makes Its Annual Appearance Here
Experts recommend removing standing water to control the disease
EASTHAM — West Nile virus, a mosquito-borne illness that appears on Cape Cod annually, has been detected in a sample of the insects in the Fort Hill area of Eastham. […]
PUBLIC HEALTH
As ‘the Crud’ Hits the Cape, New Covid Shots Are Approved
A summer affliction that isn’t Covid rears its head
PROVINCETOWN — For many people on the Outer Cape, summer ended this year as it often has in the past — with a wicked case of “the Crud.” Towns full […]
HEALTH CARE
Mobile Anti-Abortion Van Arrives in Wellfleet
Its Christians-only staffing policy is permitted in workplaces that are primarily religious, says EEOC
WELLFLEET — The mobile anti-abortion van that made its way to Cape Cod earlier this summer spent last weekend parked at Our Lady of Lourdes, a Catholic church on Route […]
AMBULANCE RUN
Lower Cape Ambulance Will Dissolve at End of Summer
Truro and Provincetown will speed up transition to in-house EMS teams
PROVINCETOWN — Lower Cape Ambulance Association (LCAA) Chief Operating Officer Steven Roderick announced this week that the nonprofit service will shut down on Sept. 1. The reason, he said, was […]
ELDER CARE
Home Care Shortage Is ‘a Never-Ending Crisis’
The wait for a home health aide can be up to a year long
Barnstable County is facing twin demographic emergencies. First, as rents and the cost of living rise ever higher, the year-round workforce is evaporating. Second, the population — already far older […]
OPIOIDS
Fentanyl in Drug Supply Spurs Community Response
Contaminated drugs may present dangers for unaware partygoers
PROVINCETOWN — Gwen Kavlouskas-Noyes, who owns Big Daddy’s Burritos in Provincetown, says that though she has long been aware of the problem of opioids, they always felt distant from her […]
REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH
Hyannis Clinic Offers Medication Abortion, Ending Cape-Wide Drought
After 10 weeks, women must still travel off Cape for care
HYANNIS — Since 2008, it has been impossible to get an abortion on Cape Cod. But as of last week, just over a year after the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision, […]
STATE HOUSE
Legislature Considers a Bill to Decriminalize Psychedelics
Local community leaders are encouraged about their use in end-of-life care
WELLFLEET — In the 1960s, psychedelics were part of the American counterculture, banned because of their mind-altering power. In 2023, they’re the subject of a pending bill in the Massachusetts […]
HOUSING AND HEALTH CARE
State Health Officials Get an Earful on Cape’s Needs
Unsurprisingly, housing is the number one issue
PROVINCETOWN — The regional housing crisis is also a health-care crisis. At a June 30 roundtable with top state health officials, social service providers from the Outer, Lower, and Mid-Cape […]
HEALTH CARE
Towns Get Money for a Mental Health Clinician and a Nurse
$381K ARPA grant will also fund ‘asset mapping’ and monthly wellness clinics
A collaborative project among the four Outer Cape health depts. going by the name of “OC Wellness” has won $381,375 in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding from Barnstable County. […]
PUBLIC HEALTH
Cases Are Few, but Monkeypox Is Still on the Radar
AIDS Support Group is running vaccine clinics through the summer
PROVINCETOWN — The virus that roared through the gay community on both sides of the Atlantic last summer subsided almost as quickly as it arrived. Mpox — formerly known as […]
YOUNG LIVES
Local Teens Speak for Themselves About Suicide
A forum on suicide and prevention reveals strategies and struggles
Two teenagers discussed their paths out of life-threatening depression at a March 28 online forum on youth suicide prevention organized by the League of Women Voters. Sophia Ryan, a senior […]
MENTAL HEALTH CARE
With Help Elusive, Two Men Live Crisis to Crisis
Their mothers pursue intervention before something catastrophic happens
In the constant pursuit of help for their sons, Bonnie Nuendel of Eastham and Meegan Erving of Wellfleet have honed their stories into elevator pitches to perform for therapists, the […]
