Bill Frist, M.D.

Myth: Downpours have always happened. Rainfall isn’t changing. Truth: Warmer air holds more moisture — about 4% more per 1°F of warming. When storms form in warmer air, they can produce heavier rainfall. A nationwide analysis of 1,700 U.S. weather stations shows a clear shift toward heavier rain in recent decades. When it rains, it pours — more than it used to.

What if biodiversity loss isn’t just an environmental issue, but a children’s health issue? Less exposure to diverse plants, soil, and outdoor environments may mean fewer beneficial microbes shaping healthy immune systems and brain development. Healthy ecosystems help build healthier kids. #Myth #Environment #BiodiversityLoss

@Forbes @nature_org 📷 Photo: Peregrine Productions for The Nature Conservancy

A road is never just a road. Its design can increase flooding, raise risks for drivers, and cut off wildlife movement—or can help solve all three. In my new @Forbes piece, I look at how @nature_org and its partners are rethinking infrastructure across Appalachia to make communities safer and ecosystems stronger. Read it here: tr.ee/infrastructure

For the first time, Tennesseans can explore a county-by-county picture of the human and economic toll of firearm deaths and injuries across our state. A new interactive dashboard from @UTBoydCenter and @voices4saferTN brings together verified data from the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and the Tennessee Department of Health to show how these tragedies are affecting all 95 counties in Tennessee. Good decisions begin with good data. My hope is that this dashboard will help Tennesseans better understand what is happening in their own communities and encourage informed, constructive conversations about safety and prevention. Explore your county’s data here: tr.ee/safertndata

I wrote more about the project in @Forbes: tr.ee/greenheart What environmental success story has encouraged you lately?

Green spaces do more than transform a landscape. They can help heal one too. As a physician and conservationist, I find that deeply encouraging.

Today is St. Patrick’s Day — a fitting time to celebrate the kind of green that strengthens communities and improves health: the green spaces around us. One project that gives me hope is the Green Heart Louisville Project. 🧵 @nature_KY

Grateful to see Pam thriving nearly 36 years later. Her story is still offering something powerful: hope. For patients, for families, and for everyone working to make what once seemed impossible, possible.

A reminder that medical innovation takes: • courageous patients • dedicated care teams • and communities willing to believe in what is possible. Pam’s story represents all three.

Two surgeons. One pulmonologist. One extraordinary patient. And a story still unfolding today.