All Episodes

For rural LGBTQ+ Missourians, 'just showing folks that there is support, there is community, goes so far to just relieving that anxiety.'

Open Table: Getting "a good solid meal" at Fulton's soup kitchen

"By having some place to go, something to do, something to learn – it's just going to be better for you as an individual."

"Dads make better communities. They make better partners. They make safer communities."

"People can take what they need": Baby Grace program provides diapers, wipes and more to Fulton families

Teaching young people about healthy relationships to ‘build a positive culture and environment’

Finding housing after domestic violence is ‘going to be a huge obstacle.’

Helping animal survivors of domestic violence 'recognizes the importance of the animal, but it also gives dignity to the humans.'

"Nothing you said. Nothing you wore. Nothing you drank — makes it okay to be assaulted or abused."

"As a black woman in clinical research, I want to advocate to bring more diversity to the table."

"When you are a caregiver to someone, you almost become the human version of kinetic sand."

"Research is what's going to cure [Alzheimer's] disease, so I've happily dedicated anything I can to it."

As dementia progresses, 'a caregiver's world becomes smaller and smaller and smaller.'

Empowering caregivers with a new 'one-to-one kind of mutual aid program' in southwest Missouri

With youth mental health, ‘we know that schools are the best place to receive those services.’

“I challenge everyone to be curious whenever you're doing any sort of research — especially for your health.”

New dietary guidelines 'a vehicle for us to educate people'

Trump era changes to SNAP are "permanently changing the way the program works"

Following the closure of the Missouri Immunization Coalition, "I'm very fearful of the vacuum of information."

"Building Community Bridges exists because I don't want no one else to go through what I went through by themselves."

"We want to be that foundation of a family for them because every kid deserves the support of a family."

Neurodivergent people are 'constantly battling their brains in a world that can be very difficult for them.'

This holiday season, 'partnering with your food allergy guest is the most important way to signal inclusivity.'

"When you're constantly being attacked, discriminated against... it makes it harder to afford your basic needs."

"Youth experiencing foster care or housing instability or homelessness — they're just kids. They want somebody to recognize their birthday."

AI ambient listening tools allow doctors to 'actually sit, look at my patient, listen to them.'

In medicine, 'you need to consider — what is the ethical implication of using or not using the AI?'

AI chatbots could help pregnant people with opioid use disorder find treatment

Using AI for second opinions: “In a matter of seconds, it essentially renders a [breast cancer] risk assessment.”

Using AI to improve stroke outcomes in rural Missouri: “We can save your life."

PFLAG Sedalia makes space for 'people seeking support for themselves or for their loved ones.'

"Our goal has always been to ensure that kids are getting services without having to drive really far distances."

Overcoming the barrier of rural transportation with 'the power of people and of volunteers.'

"As senior centers, we're constantly looking at our communities and trying to see what works."

Connecting residents to resources: 'Something that seems small can make all the difference in someone's life.'

Programs for Sedalia seniors, 'kind of started in the fitness realm, but then it's grown.'

"Families will tell us that donating (breast) milk can help them along their grief journey."

With oral health in rural Missouri, 'the thought process is – take the care to where they're at.'

"Our goal is to keep people as independent as possible in the communities of their choice."

Showing high schoolers ‘there's so many careers other than doctors and nurses.’

Social self-comparison: "Examining how we use social media and the effects on us is really important."

"People don't have to show up as the perfect person to receive help or care from their community."

"If my family hadn't stepped in and helped me, I might have been here on one of these cots."

"I want to figure out how I get out of this so that I can come back and help."

Chronically ill and unhoused: 'It's not easy out here. I wouldn't wish this on anybody.'

Hogs for Hunger: "Providing a great service to individuals in our community who are seeking assistance at our food pantries."

"To be the best for your farm, to be the best for your family – you have to also take care of yourself."

“When we were looking for ways to support the farmer and the farm family, we looked first at ourselves.”

“I believe that there's way more good mental health in agriculture than bad.”

"I strongly encourage people to talk more about mental health. The more it gets spoken about, the less stigma there's going to be."

"Stroke affects a wide range of populations, wide range of ages."

Amid rising measles cases, 'the real problem moving forward is that vaccination rates have been tumbling.'

Art for All Abilities class is 'building confidence... and confidence is something that carries them through the rest of their lives.'

"There are so many different ways that librarians can contribute to health."

At the Osage County Library: 'We're offering things for those older adults that want to get out of the house, want to have a little socialization."

New blood pressure monitor program at Mexico-Audrain County libraries 'came at a very, very good time.'

Little Dixie Regional Libraries: Helping the community tackle hard topics with 'The Healing Library.'

Moberly's new school-based daycare aims to be 'a little perk' for teachers

Growing foster kids into successful adults with a 'loving and kind environment.'

Providing in-home therapy to help people 'get back on track, so they can be the kind of parent they want to be.'

Focus on Fatherhood: "To become a better father, you first of all had to become a better man."

Gender affirming care would 'prevent any possible future breast cancer chances since I'm high risk.'

Being a queer physician, 'can be extremely validating and extremely rewarding work.'

"I could talk all day about how much I love rural medicine despite the challenges."

Borderline personality disorder 'isn't making me less of a person, less worthy of love.'

During the holidays, ‘get the vaccine to protect those around you.’

The pressure of veterinary medicine: 'It's just this sense… of failure and doom and sadness and disappointment.'

With Medicare fraud, 'you're not stupid if you fell for it... but we can help them report it.'

When it comes to childcare for first responders, 'employers have to be creative.'

With Medicare: 'Don't be afraid to reach out and ask for help.'

The library 'is so much more than books. It is a community hub.'

"We have work to do, we have communities to lead, and so we don't need breast cancer to be standing in our way."

Peer Support Workers: 'The glue that connects the clinical and treatment world to the person.'

Addressing vaccine hesitancy one conversation at a time: 'No question that's off limits.'

"Harm reduction is something that we do in everyday life."

Being queer & disabled 'gives me more ability to enrich my life through community.'

"Not every trans woman wants to have sexual reassignment surgery. We shouldn't feel subjected to that."

HIV in the Ozarks: 'Get into treatment because there's something we can do now.'

The American Indian Center of Springfield: 'We help everyone. We don't turn away people."

Preventing male suicide: “It's as simple as talking to somebody that you trust.”

Finding adequate childcare in rural Missouri is 'next to impossible.'

The early AIDS epidemic in rural Missouri: 'You were just hiding.'

Patient portals are ‘an opportunity for you to be a participant in your own care.’

When talking about weight management, 'how can we be supportive, but not shaming.'

Talking about suicide with youth: "their struggles are not the same as your struggles"

"Keeping it in your medicine cabinet... for another day is also a misuse of medication."

Improving access to care for rural ALS patients: "How can we make it easier?"

The role of an ombudsman: "It simply means speaking on behalf of someone."

Rural Substance Use Disorder Treatment: ‘The waitlists are sometimes weeks or even months long.’

Promoting understanding of people who use drugs: 'This is something that we should address compassionately'

"When that judge drops that gavel, no matter how much he gives you – he gives that sentence to your loved ones."

Addressing health impacts from adverse childhood experiences: 'they're largely unrecognized.'

The impact of incarceration on a family: ‘Sometimes I stays at home because he's not there.’

For opioid-dependent moms: 'We want to help them break out of this cycle.'

"Until we solve the affordable housing crisis, we're always going to be seeing homeless people."

From pain management to microbusiness: 'I'm looking forward to getting my product out.'

"My name is Paige Spears, and I'm a human being."

American Sign Language crisis line provides 'connection with someone who understands'

After incarceration: 'my life work now is to assist these young people.'

“I never let prison define me as an individual. I try to grow where I’m planted at.”

Embedded mental health providers in vet schools: 'In the culture, we start to learn the ins and outs'

Without CNAs: ‘I am really afraid there won't be the care that is needed for our elders to survive.’

With diabetes, ‘it's going to take time to reset and break bad habits and to make the changes that are sustainable.’

For Black birthing people, it’s imperative ‘your persons that are going to be in this space with you are educated on what can happen.’

‘We need a doula rainbow for every type of person because you want everyone to have the same support.’

Defense Against Diabetes is working 'to reverse and stop damage from happening.'

One teacher’s concern for travel nurses: ‘You get sold a dream that might not quite come to fruition.’

MU Well-being peers are ‘not counselors, but they do know a lot of the resources that are available on campus, and they can help folks navigate that.’

Prioritizing nurses’ mental health care: ‘It's not just a nice luxury to have – it's necessary.’

The role of hair stylists in the Black community: ‘Getting your hair done is self-care.’

‘Hair depression is a really big problem in the Black community because we weren't told that our hair was beautiful.’

'I'm more worried about a gun being in my classroom than my psych test. It's not fair.'

The R.I.S.E. Initiative ‘is all about putting these children on a path that will allow them to make decisions that will help their futures.’

Figure Skating has ‘really helped me to realize how strong I am – not just physically, but also mentally.’

Faith-Based Therapy: 'The danger is some of those are not regulated like non-religious therapy is.'

The Reentry Opportunity Center helps people get what they 'need to survive as a citizen out in the community.’

Personal Care Attendants: ‘I'm not there to do things for him. I'm there to do things with him.’

On Health & Nature: ‘There’s physical and mental benefits just to relaxing, to disengaging.’

‘If we're not putting someone's trauma experience first, then the chances of them actually progressing and moving forward may be slimmer.’

‘One of the reasons that I really pushed for individuals to do water aerobics is because I know myself the benefit of it.’

‘There is no safe blood level, and lead can be harmful to human health – even at really, really low levels.’

‘You want a diet that's going to take you in for the rest of your life.’

'It's very rare for the health care system to ask the person their sexual orientation or gender identity… it's almost always the patient has to be the one that outs themselves.’

‘It is nothing to be ashamed of if you've experienced trauma based upon your religious upbringing, but it is something that can drive you to do things that are self-harmful.’

‘A lot of times, even though people don't have family – the recovery itself creates family.’

‘Even though it's hard to put one foot in front of the other, live your life to its fullest.’

‘Weight in the lesbian community means something different than it does, maybe, in the straight community.’

'Suicide gun deaths – they happen, they're real, and we are working to try and prevent them as much as we can.'

‘Kyle was accidentally killed by his best friend in a gun accident. It was one of the hardest things I've ever had to deal with.’

'I recommend the savvy approach to supplementation. Foods first. Foods always come first.'

‘When a group is stigmatized, when a disease is stigmatized - people are very afraid of talking about it or seeking health services.’

"For the last 19 years I had pretty much told myself, 'Okay, make your peace with the fact that you gave it to him.'"

‘Dad's dying. You have stage one colon cancer. Also, you may have given it to your child not knowing.’

'It's important to change the story and that's what TikTok was doing in raising awareness and educating people because ADHD doesn't present as just one thing.'

‘Overturning Roe [v. Wade] and attacking trans people is going to harm the healthcare system overall’

On the need for comprehensive sexual education post-Roe: ‘We need spaces where we're developing those skills’

Medication-assisted treatment: ‘Counseling works on one part of the brain and the medication works on another part’

Post-Roe v. Wade: ‘It's gonna further exaggerate the gap in the transgender and nonbinary community for knowing who and how to seek care’

'Having a forced birth would have really messed me up in so so many more ways than having an abortion'

Jason Jarvis: ‘Try to teach your children that fire is a tool. It is not a toy. Very bad things can happen’

Jason Jarvis: ‘The only reason why I'm here is because I had a motorcycle helmet on.’

Aging in place: 'It starts with a question of: What would you like? What does life mean for you?'

‘In winter, everybody's like, “Oh my gosh, they're gonna freeze to death,” but you never hear in the summertime, “Oh my gosh, they're gonna overheat and blackout.’

“We don't want to warehouse our older adults and all of their wisdom and knowledge away in homes.”

With Long COVID: ‘If I stood up to do dishes, I felt like I was gonna have a heart attack. It was crazy.’

“We both have a chronic illness called fibromyalgia. Basically that just means we're in pain – 25/8.”

The Mid-Missouri Afghan Community: “I'm really hoping that together – all of us will be able to form a strong community, which will be able to depend on each other."

"There's people out there right now that got frostbite because they're too afraid or too ashamed to come in and say, ‘I need help.'"

Alpha Gal: 'I'm just kind of – I'm waiting for it to come back, and it's scary.'

Tickborne Illness: ‘You've heard the expression, ‘the feeling of impending doom,’ but you don't really get it until you're having this reaction.'

‘We really don't know enough about our bodies. We don't know enough about our reproductive systems.’

Black Maternal & Infant Mortality: ‘The most vulnerable among us are the most directly affected by the policies.’

Insomnia & Sleep Hygiene: ‘You definitely don't want to do anything that's going to mess up your chances of falling asleep and staying asleep.’

‘It's preventable. We have Black mothers dying at three to four times the rates of white women, and it doesn't have to be like that.’

COVID-19 during the holidays: ‘Really, it’s about taking care of each other.'

Alcohol & Sleep: ‘If you can reduce your drinking, it will probably help your sleep, also.’

Loss During the COVID-19 Pandemic: 'It’s just this very large reset and reminder of every day – of counting every day.’

COVID-19 & New Mothers: ‘There's a lot of guilt with the mothers.’

Accessibility in Columbia: ‘Sidewalks are not just for people with disabilities, they impact everyone.’

‘The reality is that it's alcohol as the number one thing used for a drug-facilitated sexual assault.'

'We Have Seen Stillbirths in COVID Women – We Are Worried it Could Be Because of COVID.'

Retired Nurse Reflects on Pandemic with Missouri on Mic: 'Somehow, We Got Through One of the Greatest Ordeals I've Lived Through'

‘With the Delta Variant, We Became a Hotspot, But Very Shortly Thereafter, Everybody Else Became a Hotspot.’

Nursing Through the Pandemic Has ‘Really Made a Bigger Place Seem Smaller’

‘Nurses Are Seeing More Patients Die On a Weekend of Working Than in a Year in Pre-COVID Time’

COVID-19 Hospitalizations in Joplin: 'If You Love Your Community – It Causes You to do Action. One of Those Actions is Getting the Vaccine'

Columbia’s Community Vaccine Clinics: ‘We Can Reach People Where They Are’

In SW Missouri: ‘It’s Becoming a Staffing Challenge to Take Care of the Rising Number of COVID Patients’

Fighting the Stigma of Homelessness: ‘Imagine Yourself with No Money, No Job, No Transportation – How Would You Pull Yourself Up?’

Building Asian American Community: ‘It’s Important to Recognize the Intersectionalities That We Have’

On End-Of-Life Care: ‘When You Walk Into A Room – You Don't See A Patient. You See A Life.’

Faith Communities After COVID-19: ‘Never Take For Granted Being Able To Shake A Hand Or Hug Or Sing A Hymn’

Finding TRICARE In Rural Communities: ‘You Have to Educate Yourself’