Safe Medication Disposal Event scheduled at two locations March 28
The College of Pharmacy will host another Safe Medication Disposal Event from 8 a.m.-2 p.m. March 28 at two locations: Ingalls Mall across from the Rackham Graduate School Building, 915 E. Washington St., and on the Medical Campus in the triangle area between University Hospital, C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital and Taubman Health Care Center. People will be able to drive up and drop off their old or unused medications. Accepted items include prescription and over-the-counter medications, medicine samples, vitamins, ointments, lotions, inhalers, antibiotics, steroids, veterinary medicine items and controlled medications. Sharps and sharps containers will also be accepted. For more information, go to pharmacy.umich.edu/events/safemed.
Annual exhibit features creative works of prisoners across Michigan
The University of Michigan Prison Creative Arts Project will unveil its 27th annual Exhibition of Artists in Michigan Prisons, one of the world’s largest shows of its kind. This year’s edition will feature 645 pieces that will line U-M’s Duderstadt Gallery walls with the works of 360 artists from all 25 prisons in the state. Visitors will find a wide variety of works. From October 2022 to January 2023, 18 U-M students and curators took 25 trips to select the artwork. The exhibition, free to the public, is presented with support from the Michigan Arts and Culture Council. It runs March 21-April 4 at the Duderstadt Gallery, 2281 Bonisteel Blvd. on U-M’s North Campus. Gallery hours are noon-6 p.m. Sunday and Monday, and 10 a.m.-7 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. An opening celebration reception begins at 6 p.m., with the ceremony starting at 6:30 p.m. March 21. Read more and see examples of the artwork.
UM-Dearborn’s Future of Work Report offers post-pandemic recommendations
The UM-Dearborn Future of Work Task Force spent nearly a year exploring the question of how employers are handling workplace changes brought on by the pandemic, gathering feedback from Dearborn campus community members through multiple listening sessions and focus groups, as well as faculty and staff surveys. “What we heard was, ‘Please trust us,’” said Associate Provost Maureen Linker, the task force co-chair. “With the pandemic, we had to trust people like never before, and we saw how faculty and staff really stepped up to meet student needs and university priorities. They got their work done in unprecedented ways. It’s important that we don’t forget that and we don’t hastily follow what others are doing — we need to do what’s best for our campus’ people and priorities.” Human Resources Director Rima Berry-Hung, also a task force co-chair, said the work yielded a report with key recommendations. The two co-chairs also addressed this issue in a Q&A.
Local leaders report widespread support for community recycling programs
A strong majority of Michigan local government leaders feel that good governance includes promoting environmental sustainability and “being green,” according to a survey of nearly 1,400 leaders across the state. The survey found that 94% of Michigan local officials support local access to recycling in their communities. And nearly 90% believe their residents and their board or council members feel the same way, while almost two-thirds say their communities’ local businesses do, too. Michigan has increased its recycling by more than a third, from 14% statewide in 2014 to 19% as of 2021. Although this still lags behind the national average of 32%, the state has nearly doubled the number of households with available curbside recycling carts and drop-off sites since 2019. The survey is a special wave of the Center for Local, State, and Urban Policy’s Michigan Public Policy Survey, conducted as part of the Michigan Local Recycling Policy Project. Read more about these findings.
Risk of death for people with dementia increases after hurricane exposure
The risk of death rises among older adults with Alzheimer’s or other dementias in the months following exposure to a hurricane, a new U-M study shows. Previous studies of hurricanes have shown general increases in mortality but little has been known about how mortality following hurricane exposure may differ among older adults living with dementia. Their increased risk could be due to disruption of normal routine, such as access to caregiving, changes in living environment, loss in access to medications, and change in daily routines, said study first author Sue Anne Bell, assistant professor at the School of Nursing. The analysis focused on risk for mortality among people with dementia, rather than actual increases in mortality. The findings don’t give a precise number of deaths due to hurricane effects. Bell and colleagues examined counties in U.S. states affected by Hurricanes Irma, Harvey and Florence in the year before and after the storm. Read more about the study and its findings.
— Compiled by James Iseler, The University Record
