Publications from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine provide objective and straightforward advice to decision makers and the public. This site includes Health and Medicine Division (HMD) publications released after 1998. A complete list of HMD’s publications from its establishment in 1970 to the present is available as a PDF.

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  Driving Action and Progress on Obesity Prevention and ... Released: June 05, 2017

  After decades of increases in the obesity rate among U.S. adults and children, the rate has recently dropped among some populations, particularly young children. What are the factors responsible for these changes? How can promising trends be accelerated? What else needs to be known to end the epidemic of obesity in the United States? To examine these and other pressing questions, the Roundtable on Obesity Solutions, which is part of the Health and Medicine Division of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, held a workshop in Washington, DC, on September 27, 2016, titled “Driving Action and Progress on Obesity Prevention and Treatment.
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  Health Communication with Immigrants, Refugees, and ... Released: June 02, 2017

  The Roundtable on Health Literacy of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine convened a workshop focused on facilitating health communication with people from immigrant, refugee, and migrant worker populations.
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  Cancer Care in Low-Resource Areas: Cancer Treatment ... Released: May 23, 2017

  Though cancer was once considered to be a problem primarily in wealthy nations, low- and middle-income countries now bear a majority share of the global cancer burden. Disparities in cancer outcomes also exist in high-income countries—communities within wealthier nations can experience worse cancer outcomes, especially if they have challenges in accessing cancer prevention and cancer care services.
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  Multisector Community Health Partnerships: Potential ... Released: May 19, 2017

  On December 8, 2016, the Roundtable on Population Health Improvement held a public workshop, Exploring the Infrastructure of Multisector Community Health Partnerships. At this workshop, participants explored multisector community health partnerships that aim to address inequities and improve the health and well-being of communities. Individual participants discussed different strategies used by community partnerships to engage residents in community health initiatives.
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  Nutrition Across the Lifespan for Healthy Aging: Proceedings ... Released: May 18, 2017

  More than 46 million people over the age of 65 years were living in the United States in 2014 and more than 70 million are predicted by 2060. Education, living arrangements, and other demographic characteristics of this older population are changing, with noted variability by sex and race/ethnicity. Health status indicators, including life expectancy and heart disease death rates, have shown improvement, as have economic indicators.
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  Developing Affordable and Accessible Community-Based ... Released: May 17, 2017

  Accessible and affordable housing can enable community living, maximize independence, and promote health for vulnerable populations. However, the United States faces a shortage of affordable and accessible housing for vulnerable low-income older adults and individuals living with disabilities. This shortage is expected to grow over the coming years given the population shifts leading to greater numbers of older adults and of individuals living with disabilities.
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  Communicating Clearly About Medicines: Proceedings of a ... Released: May 16, 2017

  The Roundtable on Health Literacy of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine convened a workshop on communicating clearly about medicines. The workshop focused on the clarity of written information given to patients and consumers as printed or digital materials. The workshop was organized around presentations and panel discussions that explored the design of health-literate written materials and examples that illustrated implementation of research into the development of these materials. The workshop rapporteurs in brief have prepared this proceedings as a factual summation of the session discussions.
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  Global Health and the Future Role of the United States ... Released: May 15, 2017

  The United States has long been a leader in global health. Yet resources are not unlimited, and the case for continued commitment must be made. With support from a broad array of federal agencies, foundations, and private partners, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine convened an ad hoc committee to identify global health priorities in light of current and emerging global health threats and challenges.
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  Training the Future Child Health Care Workforce to Improve ... Released: May 12, 2017

  Childhood diagnoses of cognitive, affective, and behavioral disorders are increasing in both absolute numbers and as a proportion of the total childhood population in the United States, and they are imposing a large and growing burden on children, youth, and families. However, the adoption of evidence-based interventions that have proven effective in preventing and treating behavioral health disorders in children has been slow. A contributing factor for this slow adoption may be that current training in many fields involving the behavioral health of children is falling short of meeting needs.
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  The Promise of Assistive Technology to Enhance Activity and ... Released: May 09, 2017

  In 2012, the Government Accountability Office recommended that SSA examine “the availability and effects of considering more fully assistive devices and workplace accommodations in its disability determinations.” In this context, SSA asked the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine to convene an ad hoc, expert committee to provide an analysis of the use in adults of selected assistive products and technologies, within four categories including, wheeled and seated mobility devices, upper-extremity prostheses, hearing devices, and finally, communication and speech technologies.