• Don't get stuck: Be smart, be safe
  Needlestick injuries are familiar territory for those who work in health care. Whether they take place in a doctor's office or in a busy emergency room, injuries from sharp instruments can happen to even the most experienced clinicians. According to government statistics, an estimated 600,000 to 800,000 needlestick injuries occur annually among health care workers.
  

• Club music of a different kind: Summertime fun at The Clubs
  While many music fans spend long hours lined up at local nightclubs to hear live music, members and guests of The Clubs at Charles River Park get the same good music, but with no lines and the added benefit of sitting poolside, sipping cool beverages. As part of their summer offerings for members, The Clubs – a health and fitness facility acquired by the MGH last May – recently inaugurated a concert series to showcase some of the musical talent of club members.

• Averting a crisis: MGH joins blood collection agencies to recruit donors
  In a joint effort to create public awareness about the shortage of blood donations during summer months, the MGH has teamed up with BWH, Boston Children's Hospital and the American Red Cross to conduct an advertising campaign designed to create public awareness and attract potential blood donors.

• Immune system component found common to both humans and worms
  When faced with a bacterial infection, the human body mounts a complex set of reactions. The innate immune system – one of the most basic aspects of the immune response – sounds the alarm and jump starts the body's response to pathogens. Researchers have known that key components of innate immunity are conserved across a variety of animals, and now MGH scientists have shown that these same elements are used by the lowly worm as well. The findings, published in the July 26 issue of Science, suggest that scientists now will be better able to tease out the details of innate immunity across a wide range of species.

• Physician to physician: Online program offers patients a second opinion
  With a reputation as one of the best medical institutions in the country, the MGH often is a resource for people from all over the world seeking medical advice. Now, the MGH has taken patient care one step further. Partners Online Specialty Consultation offers patients from around the globe expert advice from an MGH or Partners doctor – and patients never have to leave their own doctor's office.
  

• Nominations for the Nathaniel Bowditch Prize
  Nominations now are being accepted for the 2003 Nathaniel Bowditch Prize. The
  $5,000 award will be presented to an MGH employee – clinician or nonclinician – who has made a significant contribution to improving the quality of care at the hospital while reducing the cost of such care.
  

• In memoriam
  Steven F. Ronner, PhD, an MGH assistant neurophysiologist, died July 1 after a long battle with a neurologic illness. He was 55.
  

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