In the past year, Jeanne Raitt has had many roles while working with medical students at the KU School of Medicine-Wichita. She’s been the mom of a 5-year-old son with a serious illness, a patient relying on pain medication, and the daughter of a woman diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease.

Raitt is among 85 Wichitans who participate in the school’s standardized patient program. She and others in the program have been trained by staff at the Wichita campus’ standardized patient center to role-play patients or family members. The sessions enable students to practice their skills in taking medical histories, communication, interpersonal relationships, and their ability to handle sensitive issues and embarrassing situations.

“We provide a safe environment for students to practice their clinical skills before they see actual patients,” explains Jennifer Brantley, assistant director of the standardized patient center.

Take the case of 55-year-old Ellen Humphries, a college professor who is being seen for abdominal (腹部的)pain. After an exam, students and professors discuss how to treat someone like Ellen, who is educated, well-known in the community, and who isn’t willing to stick to medical recommendations.

“This is a great way to give medical students hands-on learning and training,”says Raitt. “I love watching how students learn about the variety of the cases, and seeing how willing they are to accept feedback from us. Plus, it’s a bonus to get a little checkup now and then.”

For Natashia Gafford, being a standardized patient has provided her with reassurance that future doctors will be able to handle different situations. Gafford, who is the mother of six boys, particularly likes it when her role-playing corresponds with real-life issues she can relate to, such as advocating for her children’s health. “It puts my mind at ease as a parent to know that doctors will learn how to take parents into consideration,” she says.

Flies won’t transmit COVID-19

With the arrival of summer, many people are worried about contracting COVID-19 through mosquitoes or flies.

In response to the concern, Wang Liping, a researcher from the Beijing Center for Disease Control and Prevention, said there is not yet evidence of people getting infected with the novel coronavirus through a mosquito or fly. She made her remarks at a news conference on Saturday. She said the virus is mainly spread through respiratory droplets and physical contact.

Djokovic gets COVID-19

Novak Djokovic tested positive for the coronavirus on Tuesday after taking part in a tennis exhibition series he organized. His wife also tested positive.

Djokovic has been criticized for organizing the tournament and bringing in players from other countries during the coronavirus pandemic (全国或全球性流行病). Viktor Troicki said Tuesday he and his pregnant wife have both been diagnosed with the virus, while Grigor Dimitrov, another tennis player, said Sunday he tested positive.

Kids are more prepared against virus

Children may be protected from coronavirus because they catch so many colds, scientists have suggested. Figures from the Office for National Statistics suggest children are just as likely to pick up the virus, but few ever develop serious disease, or even show symptoms.

While adults pick up a cold around two to four times a year, school age children catch an average of 12 colds annually, studies have shown. It may allow youngsters to build up some ongoing resistance that adults do not have.

Special bonds are to be issued

China will issue 100 billion yuan in special government bonds for COVID-19 control measures to balance epidemic control with economic and social development, the Ministry of Finance (MOF) said Monday. The MOF will issue two kinds of bonds, including 50 billion yuan in five-year bonds and 50 billion yuan in seven-year bonds, the MOF said in a statement. Both will be traded on June 23, 2020. China will pursue a more proactive and impactful policy this year to release more funds for companies and individuals.

Federal scientists have started testing migratory birds (候鸟) for signs of a dangerous bird flu that could show up on this continent this spring.

The testing of shorebirds began Wednesday at an Anchorage coastal wildlife refuge (藏身处), said Bruce Woods, spokesman with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

It is the first sampling of a summer-long project to swab (用拭子取液体) birds for bird flu throughout the state. Nationwide, the goal is to sample 75,000 to 100,000 wild birds. In Alaska, about $4 million in federal money will be paid to study about 15,000 birds, Woods said.

"We had some success in catching some of the target species," Woods said Thursday.

More than 40 species of waterfowl and shorebirds are considered susceptible to infection by a highly pathogenic (致病的) H5N1 bird flu virus that's killed more than 100 people, in other parts of the world, mostly in Asia.

Scientists will only test birds in the Anchorage area through early next week. "In this location, it's very brief, birds go through and they're gone," he said.

To screen the birds for the deadly virus, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Alaska's Fish and Game Department also are setting up more than 50 remote backcountry camps accessible mainly by float planes or boats.

Many birds will be tested and released, while others killed during seasonal hunts will be tested after they have died.

Alaska is an ideal bird flu laboratory because it's at the crossroads of migratory pathways for birds flying between the United States and other countries. Some of these birds arrive in Alaska each year from Asia, reports AP.