Category: injury
Think Twice About These Routine Medical Tests Part 1 Nuclear Stress Tests
According to this AARP article, doctors are warning that some routine medical tests may do more harm than good as well as waste billions of dollars in health care costs annually. This story on 10 Medical Tests to Avoid describesContinue reading
The July Effect
July is a bad month to get sick. According to this recent Men’s Health article, that’s because in some hospitals, death rates spike in July. Patients are between 4 and 12 percent more likely to die than they are inContinue reading
Deadly Drugs
Medications have become an important part of life for many of us. Some of these are simple things like vitamins, herbal supplements, and over-the counter medications. Others are prescriptions given only by a doctor. Every medication has side effects. SomeContinue reading
Oops I left a Thirteen Inch Clamp Inside of My Patient!
It’s something of nightmarish proportions, coming back to the doctor post-surgery to find out that the surgeons LEFT SOMETHING INSIDE OF YOU. It’s a pretty horrific thought. But the reality is that it does happen according to a study doneContinue reading
Lawsuits Improve Patient Safety
“[M]alpractice lawsuits are playing an unexpected role in patient safety efforts: as a source of relevant information about medical error.” That was the report by UCLS Law Professor Joanna Schwartz in her 2012 study, “A Dose of Reality for MedicalContinue reading
Hospitals Only Report 14% of Errors
“Hospital employees recognize and report only one out of seven errors, accidents and other events that harm Medicare patients while they are hospitalized.” This massive error “underreporting” problem at hospitals is because hospitals employees do not seem to know whatContinue reading
Kugel Mesh
If you had a hernia repair from 2000 through 2005, chances are very good the doctor used Kugel Mesh to try and repair the hole. Investigation has revealed that the manufacturer of the mesh did not properly test or inspectContinue reading
The Biggest Loser is the Patient
Television shows love the before and after pictures. Ads tout the benefits and promise “dramatic” weight loss. Just get this “simple” surgery and your weight will drop. What none of these do is show the real dangers of gastric bypass.Continue reading
The Silent Killer
pulmonary embolism is a blood clot that travels to the lungs, usually from the legs. Once in the lungs, the blood clots prevent blood flow. No blood flow in the lungs means there is no oxygen to the body. DeathContinue reading
Wrong Rx
When your doctor prescribes a medicine, the last thing on your mind is whether the pharmacy will fill it correctly. You assume the people at the pharmacy will select the medicine your doctor prescribed, in the right dose, and putContinue reading