Kathy Ritchie

Kathy Ritchie's picture
Senior Field Correspondent - Tempe

Kathy Ritchie has 20 years of experience reporting and writing stories for national and local media outlets -- nearly a decade of it has been spent in public media.

Most recently, she was the health and caregiving editor at Next Avenue, a national digital publication geared toward people 50-plus. While there, she oversaw a team of contributors, identified opportunities for new feature stories and series, and oversaw the completion of the 2021 John A. Hartford Foundation grant, one of Next Avenue’s largest active grants to date. Ritchie was also responsible for Next Avenue's 2022 series entitled Aging with Disabilities in America. Next Avenue is part of the Twin Cities PBS system.

Ritchie has spent most of her public media career in radio as a senior field correspondent at NPR member station, KJZZ in Phoenix. While there, Ritchie was responsible for the station’s largest newsroom collaboration, a 10-part series The State of Aging in the Valley. She also pitched and produced a four-part podcast, The Recovering Caregiver, based on her own personal experience with her mother who had frontotemporal degeneration (FTD) and what life is like after dementia. The final episode was nominated for a Regional Edward R. Murrow Award.

Her latest podcast aims to set the record straight when it comes to menopause. Period, The End (But Not Really) debuted in September 2023.

Over the years, Ritchie has reported on the challenges facing LGBT elders, the topic of aging and intimacy, senior homelessness, ambiguous loss and grief, grandfamilies, and what it means to age in our society. Many of these stories have aired on NPR’s national magazine show, Here & Now.

And throughout the Coronavirus pandemic, Ritchie reported on the myriad challenges facing families, older adults and caregivers. That work led her to create a miniseries called, Caring in Crisis, in which she documented the experiences of “the helpers.”

Besides her professional experience in the aging space, Ritchie wrote about her mother’s journey living with dementia in a blog

Ritchie got her start in television at ABC News and later at FOX News in New York City.

Title Author(s) Publication Date
Alzheimer's most prevalent in Yuma County, researchers say Kathy Ritchie July 21, 2023
Seniors have options for help in extreme heat Kathy Ritchie July 22, 2023
Monday marked Phoenix’s 18th straight day of 110 degree or higher temps Kathy Ritchie July 17, 2023
How to fly with someone living with dementia Kathy Ritchie July 14, 2023
Health care can be hard for trans people to get. A provider explains why Kathy Ritchie June 26, 2023
HRC declares a state of emergency for LGBTQ people in the U.S. Kathy Ritchie June 23, 2023
Senior center aims to help adults struggling with food insecurity, loneliness Kathy Ritchie June 19, 2023
More older adults turn to food banks amid inflation Kathy Ritchie June 19, 2023
An old jail is now used to care for animals rescued by MCSO Kathy Ritchie June 20, 2023
Aging advocates gather to learn best practices to prevent elder abuse Kathy Ritchie June 15, 2023
Tempe designated as 'age-friendly' with push for services for seniors Kathy Ritchie June 14, 2023
Elder abuse awareness, prevention events happening in AZ Kathy Ritchie June 9, 2023
Mindfulness helps some Navajo Nation members move past COVID-19 Kathy Ritchie June 5, 2023
Arizona ranks 30th in overall health for older adults Kathy Ritchie May 29, 2023
Veterans worry about potential consequences of U.S. default Kathy Ritchie May 26, 2023
Report: Underfunding for nursing home inspection agencies puts residents at risk Kathy Ritchie May 19, 2023
Despite more loneliness, less stigma around mental health Kathy Ritchie May 22, 2023
Bipartisan AZ budget includes 'unprecedented' dollars for Alzheimer's research Kathy Ritchie May 11, 2023
33,000 AHCCCS members disenrolled so far Kathy Ritchie May 11, 2023
End of COVID-19 emergency is good news, bad news for long-term care Kathy Ritchie May 8, 2023
Voices of Arizona: Teresa the kitten feeder Kathy Ritchie May 8, 2023
Voices of AZ: Vietnam War nurse describes 'hell on Earth' Kathy Ritchie May 5, 2023
Republic highlights resident-on-resident violence Kathy Ritchie May 1, 2023
Voices of Arizona: The ladies in the kitchen Kathy Ritchie May 1, 2023
Study: Employers must do more to support menopausal women Kathy Ritchie April 26, 2023

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