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Hospitalized patients are going home sooner and sicker than ever before. And without clear and comprehensive instructions about what to do after a hospital stay, they may wind up back in the hospital, or worse. That's where a checklist can help.

Midwives specifically trained in delivery outside hospitals can practice legally in 27 states. In the remaining states, mothers-to-be planning for a home birth will probably be attended by a certified nurse-midwife.

Move over restaurants. Now hospitals are getting letter grades based on their patient safety performance from the Leapfrog Group, a nonprofit that's looking to improve the quality and safety of health care.

Though they may be well-meaning, not to mention more affordable than trained interpreters, relying on accidental interpreters, such as family members, during medical treatment isn't the best idea, research has found.

Women's health advocates hope that the law's coverage requirements will encourage large companies to step up to the plate and provide maternity benefits for dependents.

Would you get tested for your potential risk for Alzheimer's disease, even though the prediction is imperfect and there is no cure for the condition? Studies suggest people can handle the results just find.

The prefrontal cortex, the brain's executive control center, develops more slowly than the limbic system, which controls arousal and reward. The mismatch makes it harder for teens to maintain concentration behind the wheel.

Women spend $1 billion more annually on their health premiums than they would if they were men. But under the recently upheld health law, insurers won't be allowed to charge higher rates based on gender starting in 2014.

As biotech investments and medical device development falters, hospitals are turning to other avenues to help cut costs: streamlining billing systems and investing in simpler medical products.

A voluntary approach to flu vaccination of health care workers has fallen short. To protect patients, vaccination should be mandatory, consumer and business groups said in Washington. They back a requirement for annual vaccination of all health workers with only limited exemptions.