News
Adverse Event Report Shows Good & Bad
January 15, 2010 3:57 am | CommentsThe sixth annual report of adverse health events released by the Minnesota Department of Health saw a patient given the wrong medicine, resulting in serious disability, a woman inseminated with the wrong sperm, serious falls and a patient-against-patient sexual assault. In a knee replacement, surgery on the wrong leg was caught in time, but not before the wrong leg was given regional anesthesia.
Hospital Goes Live With Surgery And Critical Care Integration
January 13, 2010 6:33 am | Picis | CommentsHigh-acuity care automation solutions are set to help the facility promote patient safety and boost efficiency. January 13, 2010 Frimley Park Hospital NHS Foundation Trust in Surrey, England has successfully implemented Picis integrated surgical, anesthesia, recovery room and critical care software solutions.
Current System Cares Well For Fraudsters
January 13, 2010 6:01 am | CommentsCurrent System Cares Well For Fraudsters Parija Kavilanz, CNN Money There's a group of people who really love the U.S. health care system – the fraudsters, scammers and organized criminal gangs who are bilking the system of as much as $100 billion a year. Health care identity theft dominated all other crimes in the sector last year, according to Louis Saccoccio, executive director of the National Health Care Anti-Fraud Association (NHCAA), an advocacy group whose members include insurers, law enforcement and regulatory agencies.
Biomedical Research Funding Declines
January 13, 2010 5:47 am | CommentsThe rate of increase for funding of biomedical research in the U.S. has slowed since 2005, and the level of funding from the National Institutes of Health and industry appears to have decreased by two percent in 2008, after adjustment for inflation, according to an article in the January 13 issue of JAMA .
Prize Those Thighs
January 13, 2010 5:32 am | CommentsReuters People with fat in their thighs and backsides may live longer because the fat traps harmful fatty particles and actively secretes helpful compounds, according to a report published on Tuesday. Many studies have shown that people who accumulate fat around the abdomen and stomach are more likely to die of heart disease and other causes than bottom-heavy people, but the reasons are not clear.
FDA Site Offers Public Insight
January 13, 2010 5:21 am | CommentsThe Food and Drug Administration is launching a new website explaining its operations to consumers as part of a broader effort to re-brand itself as a more accessible agency. Dubbed “FDA Basics”, it features short videos about the agency as well as conversations with FDA leaders. The FDA has long operated under strict confidentiality rules because its scientists handle reams of proprietary information from food, drug and device companies.
Bullet Removal Not Subject To Malpractice
January 13, 2010 5:12 am | CommentsA physician attempting to remove a bullet from a patient's head without his consent is not a medical malpractice issue, a plaintiff will argue before an appeals court in Beaumont, TX later this month. Joshua Bush has filed a lawsuit against Christus Health Southeast Texas and Dr. David Parkus after the doctor tried to remove a bullet from his skull against his will.
Katrina Lawsuits Could "Open Pandora's Box"
January 12, 2010 6:31 am | CommentsOnce the power blinked out, Althea LaCoste's lungs were on their own. She struggled to breathe without the help of a respirator, and even a team of nurses hand-bagging air into her ailing lungs couldn't save her, according to court documents. LaCoste, 73, died before she could be evacuated from Pendleton Memorial Methodist Hospital in the chaotic days after Hurricane Katrina.
Spine Immobilization A Potential Hazard For Gunshot, Stab Victims
January 12, 2010 6:14 am | CommentsA new Johns Hopkins study states that immobilizing the spines of shooting and stabbing victims before they are taken to the hospital – standard procedure in Maryland and other parts of the country – appears to double the risk of death when compared to transporting patients to a trauma center without this time-consuming step.
Looks Over Logic
January 12, 2010 6:00 am | CommentsCristian Salazar, AP Clara Tolentino was terrified when her 43-year-old sister died last year after getting liquid silicone injections to add a bit more shape to her buttocks. The 35-year-old had good reason to be – in 2006, she paid $2,000 to get liquid silicone injections, too. “I didn't do it as many times as my sister .
Beer For Blood
January 12, 2010 5:13 am | CommentsA Washington state blood center is offering donors a deal – give a pint of blood, get a pint of beer. Cascade Regional Blood Services in Tacoma says its “Give blood, get beer” promotion has worked so well that it's being expanded. The News Tribune of Tacoma reported Monday that donors who are at least 21 years old are given a coupon for a free pint of beer.
Robots Cut Vasectomy Procedure Times
January 12, 2010 4:57 am | CommentsUniversity of Florida urologists have used robot-assisted surgery to cut about 20 minutes off the average surgery time for a conventional vasectomy reversal, and it appears to also provide a quicker return of the sperm count after surgery. “For a couple that's trying to get pregnant, this is a big deal,” said Sijo Parekattil, M.
Glucose Aids In Prostate Surgery
January 11, 2010 6:15 am | CommentsIn men undergoing prostate surgery, excessive fluid absorption can lead to dangerously low sodium levels. Adding a small amount of glucose to the irrigation fluid used during surgery can help anesthesiologists prevent this complication, reports a study in Anesthesia & Analgesia. The new technique provides an effective solution to the challenge of how to monitor fluid status during transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP).
Schwarzenegger Cries Foul On Bought Vote
January 11, 2010 6:01 am | CommentsCalifornia Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger says concessions made to Nebraska Sen. Ben Nelson to win his vote on the health care overhaul bill were a rip-off for his state and is urging California lawmakers to vote against it. In an interview Sunday on NBC's Meet the Press , Schwarzenegger says giving extra Medicaid benefits to Nebraska to secure Nelson's vote, critical to Senate passage of the measure, was like buying a vote.
NYC Looks To Take A Bite Out Of Salt Content
January 11, 2010 5:48 am | CommentsDavid B. Caruso, AP New York City health officials have already battled calories and trans fat. Now, they're taking on salt. The city health department released guidelines Monday recommending a maximum amount of salt that should be in all sorts of manufactured and packaged food. The recommendations posted on its website call for sizable reductions in the salt content of many products, from a 20 percent drop in peanut butter to a 40 percent decline in canned vegetables.
