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December 10, 2025

Study finds that meditation may help stimulate the brain’s waste removal system, providing restorative benefits like sleep

New research is informing how mindfulness meditation contributes to improvements in cognitive health and may have relevance to treating a range of degenerative brain conditions.

December 10, 2025

DogTalk Q&A 

Norman, Squid, and Velour get candid with Pi, an honorary member of News & Communications, when she asks very important questions about treats, sleeping, and if they play like regular dogs.

December 10, 2025

Sit, stay, heal: Meet the facility dogs of Vanderbilt Health 

More than a pet project, facility dogs can lower patient blood pressure, reduce pain perception, ease loneliness and fear and offer an important form of medicine — connection.

From left are Karen Keady, PhD, RN, NEA-BC, System Chief Nursing Officer for Vanderbilt University Medical Center; Jason Wolf, PhD, CPXP, President and CEO of the Beryl Institute; Terrell Smith, MSN, RN; and Hope Collins, senior director of Patient and Family Engagement, pose for a photo following the inaugural Terrell Smith Lectureship. (photo by Erin O. Smith)
December 10, 2025

Inaugural Terrell Smith Lecture stresses the importance of a ‘people-first’ mindset

Jason Wolf, PhD, CPXP, president and CEO of the Beryl Institute, kicked off the series with “Returning to the Heart of Care: Human Experience is Our True North.”

December 10, 2025

Sedative choice could improve outcomes for breathing tube patients

It’s the first study to demonstrate cardiovascular risks of high doses of ketamine (low blood pressure, arrhythmia), side effects that have not been well studied in the past.

December 9, 2025

Stephan Heckers to step down after two decades as Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences chair

Heckers is currently VUMC’s longest serving clinical department chair. He credits his longevity to the department’s culture and tradition of steady leadership, with each of the three previous chairs serving for periods of similar length.