Health highlights from Wellness Wednesday 

Every Wednesday on MPR News with Angela Davis, you can listen to conversations about health and wellness.  

MPR News host Angela Davis revisits highlights from three recent conversations. An infectious disease doctor and pediatric nurse talk about vaccine fatigue as the new COVID-19 booster rolls out. Plus, the increasing number of children who are nearsighted and how to prevent and treat kidney disease.  

Guests:  

• Dr. Greg Poland is an internal medicine physician at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., and an infectious disease expert. He’s founder and director of the Mayo Vaccine Research Group and the Editor-in-Chief of the medical journal Vaccine.  

• Sheyanga Beecher is a pediatric nurse practitioner with Hennepin HealthCare. She’s also medical director of the mobile pediatric clinic, which has provided thousands of vaccines against COVID-19 and childhood diseases, along with basic health care. 

• Dr. Mary Gregory is a board-certified optometrist based in Monticello, Minn., who specializes in children’s vision and learning. 

• Dr. Derek Horkey is an ophthalmologist with St. Paul Eye Clinic who does comprehensive eye care for adults. He has additional expertise in treating glaucoma. 

• Dr. Naim Issa is a nephrologist treating people with kidney disease and kidney transplants at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. where he’s also an associate professor at Mayo Clinic School of Medicine. 

• Jennifer Cramer-Miller has lived with kidney disease since her early 20s. Her memoir “Incurable Optimist: Living with Illness and Chronic Hope” describes her four kidney transplants, including a kidney from her mother and from a 25-year-old anonymous donor. She serves as board chair of the National Kidney Foundation (serving Minnesota).  

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Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.