Fewer fights are breaking out in the city’s public schools for the first time since 1997. The percentage of students involved in fights dropped to 14% in 2005 from 18% in 2003, according to a report by the city’s health department.

Meanwhile, one in 15 students, or 7%, said they had brought a weapon to school within the past month, up from 6% in 2003, and 9% of students said they had skipped school within the past month because they felt unsafe, the same number as earlier years. According to the report, based on data from the health department’s 2005 Youth Risk Behavior Survey, dating violence has also increased in recent years. In 2005, 10% of students reported dating violence, up from 6.5% in 1999.

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SELF-REPORTING SYMPTOMS MAY AID CANCER PATIENTS: Cancer patients may benefit from reporting their symptoms online and in real time, researchers at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center have found.

As office visits become increasingly compressed, self-reporting can augment physician knowledge and can improve care, according to a study published this month in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. In a study of 107 lung cancer patients receiving outpatient chemotherapy, researchers found that 90% found the reporting system useful and 77% said it improved their discussions with physicians.

The system had a built-in alert system to inform staff of severe symptoms.

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NYU MEDICAL CENTER PLANS OUTPATIENT SURGICAL FACILITY: NYU Medical Center is developing a new outpatient surgical facility on First Avenue in Manhattan.

The medical center signed a 20-year lease for 44,995 square feet of space at 673 First Ave., a 12-story building situated at East 38th Street. NYUMC currently rents 114,616 square feet of space in the building, which is owned by SL Green Realty Corp.

The new surgical facility will occupy part of the building’s first floor and the ground floor.

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MORGAN STANLEY CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL NAMES NEW CHIEF PEDIATRICIAN: Dr. Lawrence Stanberry, an infectious disease expert, has been named pediatrician in chief of Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital of NewYork-Presbyterian. Dr. Stanberry will also be chairman of the pediatrics department of the College of Physicians & Surgeons at Columbia University Medical Center, the hospital announced.

Previously, Dr. Stanberry served as the chairman of pediatrics and the director of the Sealy Center for Vaccine Development at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston.

He succeeds Dr. John Driscoll, who headed the pediatrics department for 15 years up until June.

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TREATMENT GUIDELINES FOR THOSE INJURED AT WORK : New guidelines for treating individuals who are hurt on the job are expected to standardize care for injured workers.

The proposed guidelines, issued yesterday by the state’s insurance department, could lower insurance costs. The guidelines were developed by the Workers’ Compensation Task Force, a consortium of doctors and health care professionals.

The guidelines focus on the treatment of back, spine, knee, and shoulder injuries.

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TOXIC MOLD TASK FORCE TO MEET TODAY: The New York State Toxic Mold Task Force is expected to hold its first meeting today in Latham, N.Y.

The task force, created in 2005, is expected to produce a report that assesses the feasibility of new laws relating to toxic mold.

The task force is co-chaired by Dr. Nancy Kim, the interim director of the state health department’s Center for Environmental Health, and by Dr. Thomas Mahar, the assistant director of the department’s Division of Code Enforcement and Administration.

esolomont@nysun.com