Projects
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Oklahoma City Indian Clinic: 50 Years of Health Equity
Now celebrating its 50th year, the Oklahoma City Indian Clinic is a nonprofit that provides health care to more than 20,000 Native American patients from over 200 federally recognized tribes every year. An innovative concept has been implemented at the clinic that I find truly fascinating: training traditional dental hygienists to become Integrated Dental Hygienists…
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Get Fit and Healthy in 2025
It’s that time again, where everywhere you look, you see some reference to losing weight, “New Year, New You, etc.” And before you roll your eyes, this New Year’s wellness article isn’t full of your typical weight loss and fitness tips. A shout-out to Birmingham dietician Kristi Sibert, who, like me, is a huge believer…
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A Joyful Noise
Ali Mims, Miss Alabama’s Teen and first runner-up in Miss America’s Teen 2025, has accomplished so much in her young life, including her program “Joyful Noise: Bringing Joy Through Music,” where she raises money to purchase instruments to donate to schools to help children with disabilities discover the power of music. Read more…
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The Physician Healer
Dr. Mack Barnes was a pioneer in the field of gynecologic oncology and worked tirelessly to serve as an advocate for early detection of breast cancer, ovarian and cervical cancer for thousands of women in Birmingham and surrounding areas. By the time I finished interviewing his co-workers, patients and friends at the Laura Crandall Brown…
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Ellie: Therapy Redefined
Inside Ellie Mental Health, guests are greeted with warm smiles and shades of blue, yellow and fuchsia. Signs with life-affirming phrases, including “Live Authentic” and “Every Little Thing’s Gonna Be Alright,” adorn the room. “Our office is a fun space,” said clinic director Destini Love. “You don’t feel like you’re here to see a doctor. You’re…
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Alsana: A Place of Healing
For the first time in her life, Lindsey Carbo feels free. Over a snack of Goldfish crackers and a few tears, she shared her story. Both her parents were CEOs of major companies, and she grew up helping look out for her two younger twin brothers. Through it all, living in a high-stress environment contributed…
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With Purpose Comes Power
I had the opportunity to interview Steven Davis, founder of On River Time, a nonprofit program for abused and neglected children. As a child, Steve was sexually abused and was haunted with nightmares for years. In addition to therapy, Steve was able to find healing through fly-fishing on the Snake River. Today, through On River…
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Race for the Test
Laura Crandall Brown (no relation to me) was just 25 when she lost her life to ovarian cancer. Her symptoms started out with what are typically “normal” for us women, at least to a point: bloating, abdominal pain, digestive issues, etc. But since there is no test and the symptoms are often vague, it is…
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Rooted in Science
Hannah Oakes, a music therapist in Mountain Brook, Ala., who just started her own private practice, explains how she uses music to help treat everything from MS, Parkinson’s Disease, stroke recovery, anxiety, depression, etc. What is most compelling–and promising–to me is how music is now being used to help Alzheimer’s and dementia patients. Read more…
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Media Bias: Health and Medicine
This was a book a few of my classmates and I put together along with our professor, Dr. David Sloan, when I was a journalism graduate student. Although it’s been 15 years, the information is still as relevant today as it was then, including the chapter I wrote on health and medicine. Get your copy…