Health and Society

The Vatican Plans to Release Archives on Argentina’s Desaparecidos

By Erin Barton
November 24, 2016

The Vatican has announced that it will reveal its classified archives on the desaparecidos (disappeared) of Argentina to the families of the victims.1 The decades-old documents contain communications between the Catholic Church in Argentina and the military government about the thousands of government kidnappings and murders of civilians during the military dictatorship of 1976-1983.2 Pope Francis, who himself was a cardinal in his native Argentina during the time of the dictatorship, led t

Dengue Vaccine Arrives in Mexico

By Marisapr
October 24, 2016

     On September 10, 2016 the French pharmaceutical company that produces the dengue vaccine, the only one of its kind in the world at the moment, sold 1 million vaccines in Mexico alone. However, the vaccine is only present in the private sector.  That is, the vaccine is only available via doctors and clinics, and not yet available to public health institutions.

Dancing Tango into a Looser Body and a Healthier Brain?

By Marisapr
October 18, 2016

For one million Americans[1] living with Parkinson’s’ Disease (PD), social life isn’t necessarily part of a routine plan. After all, this disease takes a toll, not only on the individuals who suffer from it, but also on their families and friends. PD is a neurodegenerative disease with increasing motor disabilities – where dealing with tremors, imbalance, and stiffness, seem to make (social) life less appealing.

A Silent Epidemic Making Noise in Puerto Rico

By Marisapr
October 27, 2016

     In August of this year, the CDC declared a health emergency alert for Puerto Rico regarding the spread of the Zika virus.  Shortly thereafter, our “Isla del Encanto” would come to know its first cases of infection-related births; the month of September, brought with it the first group of babies in Puerto Rico exposed to the zika virus during the first trimester of pregnancy.

Abortion in Latin America: Definitely Not Pro-Choice, but Certainly Not Pro-Life

By Danielle Scalise
October 12, 2016

Hundreds of women sit behind bars in El Salvador punished for defying the ban on abortion. Many, such as María Teresa Rivera are pleading they are wrongly jailed for having suffered miscarriages or stillbirths. Three years ago Rivera miscarried and awoke handcuffed to her hospital bed surrounded by seven policemen who proceeded to charge her with murder.1 After an eight-month trial, she was sentenced to 30 years in prison for aggravated murder.

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