Publisher: Fox 13


COVID’s toll on smell and taste: Mid-South doctors weigh in on what we know

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One of the most common symptoms of the coronavirus is loss of taste and smell. Health experts estimate more than 80 percent of COVID patients lose at least some of those senses after contracting the virus.


Deaths from COVID-19 are reducing life expectancy by about a year, study finds

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A new study by the University of Southern California and Princeton University found American’s life expectancy is now 77 years old. Deaths from COVID-19 are reducing life expectancy by about a year. “I don’t think it’s in our hands anymore, seriously. I think it’s a government issue,” Memphian Doreen Kostiuk told FOX13.  


UTHSC Pharmacy students assist with COVID-19 vaccination process

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Students from the UT Health Science Center are playing a major role in the fight against the pandemic. Medical students were part of early covid19 testing efforts and now pharmacy students are on the frontline distributing the vaccine.    


Substance abuse in the Mid-South grows amid pandemic, but there is help

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Dr. Karen Derefinko, an assistant professor of preventative medicine at UTHSC, says the pandemic is having an impact on those who struggle with substance abuse.“You’re using more or more often than you used to just to cope with the stress of the pandemic or losing a job or financial strain,” Dr. Derefinko said.  


UTHSC awarded $201K grant to fight opioid addiction

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The University of Tennessee Health Science Center was awarded a $201K grant to study methods to reduce stigma among African Americans seeking treatment for opioid use. UTHSC oftentimes sees more white people seeking help, however, substance abuse tends to be the same across different ethnic and racial groups. Dr. Karen Derefinko treats people struggling with… Read More


Frayser breaks ground on first community garden

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The University of Tennessee Health Science Center partnered with the city of Memphis to bring fresh fruits and vegetables to a community commonly seen as a food desert. “It’s not just that there is a lack of food, but the produce may not be as good,” said Scott Strome, UTHSC. “Having folks know where their… Read More


COVID-19 preventive measures result in low flu activity, officials say

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The Shelby County Health Department says during the final six weeks of 2019, the Tennessee Department of Health laboratory tested more than 1,924 flu samples. These samples were sent in from hospitals around the state. But during the last 6 weeks of 2020, the state lab only tested 4 samples. “Tennessee if I remember right… Read More


9 months and over 1,000 deaths later, FOX13 talks to family of first person to die from COVID-19 in Shelby Co.

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The number of COVID-19 deaths in Shelby County crossed the one thousand mark this week. Kenneth Bradshaw was the first person in Shelby County to die from COVID-19 back in March. FOX13 spoke with Bradshaw’s family to get their perspective on the pandemic nine months later.