Forensics Talk

Trayvon Martin Shooting: Forensics & Injuries Can Tell The Tale!

The News is out that George Zimmerman has been charged with second degree murder today.

To say that this whole incident is a tragedy would be an extreme understatement. I believe there were wrongs on both sides. One person has died, and the other has had to hide for fear of his life and may now spend the rest of his life in jail.

That person, instead of having his rights as a citizen protected, has been essentially tried, found guilty, and sentenced to death, in the public forum - all occurred almost immediately after the shooting.

And all thanks to the unconscionable actions of the media, and of others, who deliberately fan the flames of hatred for their own personal agendas.

There are aspects of Zimmerman's story that I do question. I question the claim of his head being banged on the sidewalk, as perhaps, opposed to hitting his head on the soft, wet ground. Reprotedly he had grass stains on the back of his jacket. The injuries were not clear enough to determine exactly what caused them.

If zimmerman's head was being banged against a hard sidewalk, I question why he wasn't knocked out, or received more injury than he did. Having one's head banged against a hard surface like a sidewalk, could cause significant injuries, such as a concussion and brain damage, and even death.

I question the fear factor involved. Fear is individual to each person. However, using the reasonable person standard, used by the courts, I have to question whether a reasonable person would fear more for his life in the banging his head on the sidewalk vs the grass and ground scenarios?

I was surprised to see the number of stock photos on Fotolia showing young males, both black and white, all wearing hoodies! So, I tried another key word. Same thing happened. Another one. Again, same thing. What does that say about the general public perception of youth and crime?

It indicates there is a general public perception that hoodies are worn by only young criminals, would it be so strange for Zimmerman to have that perception as well and be suspicious?

I also question Martin's behavior. It's reported that he was beating Zimmerman. The police report stated Zimmerman had injuries consistent with an assault.

The rest has to be proven in a court of law with a fair trial and an impartial jury. I am very interested to hear the forensics reports, including gunshot wound and residue, and the trace evidence found.

Establishing Concussion Baseline Important For Accurate Future Assessment In At-Risk Youth Athletes

Medical News Today

Article Date: 08 Jul 2011 - 1:00 PDT

     "Creating a baseline for each youth athlete is a critical part of accurate future concussion assessment, according to researchers presenting their study at the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine's Annual Meeting in San Diego. Differences in how females and males scored on a standardized concussion assessment tool were also investigated.

"Our research analyzed whether the new Sport Concussion Assessment Tool-2 (SCAT2) has any variability in data for youth athletes and whether gender makes a difference on the scores," said presenting researcher, Anikar Chhabra, MD, MS of The Orthopaedic Clinic Association in Phoenix, AZ. "Our results showed that otherwise healthy adolescent athletes do display some variability in results so establishing each player's own baseline before the season starts and then comparing it to test results following a concussion leads to more accurate diagnosis and treatment."

Chhabra and his colleagues from A.T. Still University tested 1,134 athletes who were participating on interscholastic athletic teams at 15 different high schools in the Phoenix area, as part of a funded research project by the National Operating Committee on Standards for Athletic Equipment (NOCSAE). There were 872 males and 262 females in the study with an average age of 15. The predominant male and female sports were football and volleyball, accordingly. A brief questionnaire regarding concussion history and the SCAT2 test was given to all participants.

Females scored significantly higher on the SCAT2 total score compared to the males. Athletes with a prior history of concussion also scored significantly lower on the SCAT2.

"This data provides the first insight into how the SCAT2 scores can be used and interpreted as a sideline concussion tool and as an initial baseline analysis. With concussions accounting for approximately nine percent of all high school athletic injuries, accurately utilizing assessments like these to quickly determine an athlete's return-to-play probability is critical to long term athletic and educational performance," said Chhabra. "

Source:
Lisa Weisenberger
American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine

Headaches Are Common In Year Following Traumatic Brain Injury, Especially Among Females

Medical News Today

 Article Date: 19 Aug 2011 - 1:00 PDT

      "Recurring headaches are common during the year following a traumatic brain injury (TBI), regardless of the severity of the TBI, and they tend to occur more often among females and those with a pre-TBI history of headache, according to an article in Journal of Neurotrauma, a peer-reviewed journal published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. The article is available free online at the link below.

More than 70% of patients who had suffered a TBI reported having headaches during the first year after their injury. This finding is a result of a multi-center study described by Jeanne Hoffman, PhD, Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, and a group of colleagues from University of Washington, Craig Hospital (Denver, CO), Mayo Clinic (Rochester, MN), University of Alabama at Birmingham, University of Texas Southwestern Medical School (Dallas), Virginia Commonwealth University (Richmond), and Moss Rehab (Philadelphia, PA).

Females and persons with a pre-injury history of headache were significantly more likely to report headache, but there was no statistical link between incidence of post-injury headache and the severity of the TBI."

Sources: Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., Publishers, AlphaGalileo Foundation.

Ground-Breaking Effort To Prevent Opioid Abuse And Overdose

Medical News Today

Article Date: 05 Aug 2011 - 0:00 PDT

    " Fatal overdoses involving prescribed opioids tripled in the United States between 1999 and 2006, climbing to almost 14,000 deaths annually - more than cocaine and heroin overdoses combined. Hospitalizations and emergency room visits related to prescription opioid pain medicines such as oxycodone (brand name Oxycontin) and hydrocodone (Vicodin) also increased dramatically in the same period.

Now a report in the August issue of Health Affairs describes a major initiative at Group Health to make opioid prescribing safer while improving care for patients with chronic pain. Health Affairs is the nation's premier health policy journal, and its August issue focuses on substance abuse.

In the Group Health initiative's first nine months, clinicians at the Seattle-based integrated health system developed and documented care plans for almost 6,000 patients - 85 percent of those receiving long-term opioid therapy for chronic non-cancer pain.

Group Health's initiative was implemented well before the White House Office of Drug Control Policy, the Food and Drug Administration, and the Drug Enforcement Administration announced a national action plan in April 2011 to stem the epidemic of prescription drug abuse. Scientists from Group Health Research Institute are evaluating the initiative's effects on care, hoping Group Health's experience can help guide national efforts.

Use of prescription opioids has increased sharply since the 1980s. Excluding people with cancer and those in end-of-life care, about 4 percent of U.S. adults now use prescription opioids long term. Pharmaceutical industry advocacy and education have fueled increased opioid prescribing for chronic non-cancer pain - despite limited scientific evidence supporting the drugs' long-term effectiveness for chronic non-cancer pain.

In January 2010, Group Health Research Institute Senior Investigator Michael Von Korff, ScD, and colleagues published the first-ever study on overdose risk by dose among patients receiving prescribed opioids for chronic non-cancer pain. That study, published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, linked higher risk of fatal and nonfatal overdose to higher daily dose prescribed. His research also showed that Group Health, like other health systems nationwide, had been prescribing more opioids for chronic non-cancer pain over time - a twofold increase from 1997 to 2005.

Group Health launched a major primary care-based initiative to enhance opioid prescribing safety later in 2010. Led by Group Health Medical Director of Primary Care Claire Trescott, MD, the initiative aims to standardize use of opioids for chronic non-cancer pain, without creating undue restrictions on clinically appropriate opioid prescribing."

Tenfold Increase In Stroke Risk Following Traumatic Brain Injury

Medical News Today

Article Date: 31 Jul 2011 - 0:00 PDT

    

If you suffer traumatic brain injury, your risk of having a stroke within three months may increase tenfold, according to a new study reported in Stroke: Journal of the American Heart Association.

"It's reasonable to assume that cerebrovascular damage in the head caused by a traumatic brain injury can trigger either a hemorrhagic stroke [when a blood vessel bursts inside the brain] or an ischemic stroke [when an artery in the brain is blocked]," said Herng-Ching Lin, Ph.D., senior study author and professor at the School of Health Care Administration, College of Medicine, Taipei Medical University in Taiwan. "However, until now, no research had been done showing a correlation between traumatic brain injury and stroke."

It is the first study that pinpoints traumatic brain injury as a potential risk factor for subsequent stroke.

Traumatic brain injury occurs when an external force such as a bump, blow or jolt to the head disrupts the normal function of the brain. Causes include falls, vehicle accidents, and violence.

In the United States alone, approximately 1 in 53 individuals sustain a traumatic brain injury each year, according to 2004 statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Worldwide, traumatic brain injuries are a major cause of physical impairment, social disruption and death.

Using records from a nationwide Taiwanese database, researchers investigated the risk of stroke in traumatic brain injury patients during a five-year period. The records included 23,199 adult traumatic brain injury patients who received ambulatory or hospital care between 2001 and 2003. The comparison group comprised 69,597 non-traumatic brain injury patients. The average age of all patients was 42 and 54 percent were male.

During the three months after injury, 2.91 percent of traumatic brain injury patients suffered a stroke compared with only 0.30 percent of those with non-traumatic brain injury - a tenfold difference.

Stroke risk in patients with traumatic brain injury decreased gradually over time, researchers said:

• After one year, the risk was about 4.6 times greater for patients who suffered a traumatic brain injury than for those who had not.
• After five years, the risk was 2.3 times greater for traumatic brain injury patients.

Stroke risk among traumatic brain injury patients with skull bone fractures was more pronounced than in traumatic brain injury patients without fractures, researchers said.

During the first three months, those with skull bone fractures were 20 times more likely to have a stroke than patients without skull bone fractures. The risk decreased over time.

Furthermore, the risk of subarachnoid hemorrhage (bleeding in the area between the brain and the thin tissues that cover the brain) and intracerebral hemorrhage (bleeding in the brain caused by the rupture of a blood vessel) increased significantly in patients with traumatic brain injury versus non-traumatic brain injury patients. . . " Read More

Judge: Try Philadelphia Priests, Official Together

Associated Press

By JOANN LOVIGLIO, Associated Press Joann Loviglio, Associated Press – Fri Jul 29, 3:01 pm ET

PHILADELPHIA – "A monsignor who is the only U.S. church official ever charged with transferring pedophile priests to unsuspecting parishes will be tried alongside four priests accused of rape, a judge ruled Friday.

Common Pleas Judge Lillian Ransom denied most of the pretrial requests made by Monsignor William Lynn, two current priests, a former priest and a former Catholic schoolteacher. The men wanted their cases to be tried separately and asked for many of the charges against them to be dismissed.

Lynn, 60, the lynchpin of the case, is charged with conspiracy and child endangerment for allegedly transferring priests he believed to be pedophiles. Lynn, who served as secretary of clergy from 1992 to 2004 under former Cardinal Anthony Bevilacqua, is the only U.S. church official ever charged in the sex-abuse scandal for his administrative actions.

The four others are charged in the same criminal case with raping boys in their care. Three of them are accused of raping the same child, starting when he was a 10-year-old altar boy in 1999, according to a scathing grand jury report released in February that faulted the church for knowingly harboring priests who sexually abused children.

The Rev. Charles Engelhardt, 64, and former priest Edward Avery, 68, are accused of raping the boy in the church sacristy. Prosecutors say former sixth-grade teacher Bernard Shero, 48, raped him during a ride home from school. The fourth defendant, the Rev. James Brennan, 48, is accused of raping a 14-year-old boy in 1996.

The judge on Friday dismissed only the conspiracy charges involving Shero, saying prosecutors failed to prove he was in collusion with Avery and Engelhardt. She also rejected the defense attorneys' requests for access to the mental health records of the two accusers, who are now grown men.

Lynn's attorney, Thomas Bergstrom, objected to the judge's refusal to dismiss felony child endangerment charges against his client and his refusal to separate his trial from the others, saying the monsignor had no children under his supervision and therefore cannot be guilty of endangering them. Bergstrom asked the judge for certification to appeal to a higher court, which she denied.

If found guilty of the two charges, Lynn could be sentenced to up to 28 years in prison.

David Clohessy of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, a victim advocacy group, praised the judge's actions.

"The Catholic church isn't some loosely-knit hippie commune. It's a rigid, secretive, tightly-knit institution," he said in a written statement. "So when crimes happen, it's disingenuous for church officials to pretend that everyone involved is disconnected from one another. . . " Read More

1 in 3 Patients Harmed During Hospital Stay

American Medical News

        Many adverse events can be prevented, providing what a patient safety expert calls "humongous opportunities for improvement."

By Kevin B. O'Reilly, amednews staff. Posted April 18, 2011.

     "One-third of hospital patients experience adverse events and about 7% are harmed permanently or die as a result, according to a study that detected patient safety problems at a far higher rate than other methods.

     The study, in April's Health Affairs, echoes two reports issued in November 2010 that showed rates of adverse events hovering near 25% among hospitalized Medicare patients nationwide and at 10 North Carolina hospitals.

     The findings draw attention to the safety troubles that have lingered in U.S. hospitals in the 12 years since the Institute of Medicine's headline-grabbing report "To Err is Human." The study cited research estimating that up to 98,000 patients die each year due to preventable medical errors.

"This is one of the best studies that now gives us a sense of how much harm is happening to patients in American hospitals," said Robert Wachter, MD, chief of the medical service at the University of California, San Francisco Medical Center, who was not involved in the research. "There is a tremendous amount of harm befalling patients who are admitted to hospitals and humongous opportunities for improvement."

To judge from a survey released March 31, patients are scared of medical mishaps. Nearly 60% of adults polled by the Consumer Reports National Research Center believe medical errors are common in hospitals, and nearly half said serious harm is common. Nearly 80% of patients said they feared contracting an infection in a hospital, 71% were worried about medication errors and 65% were scared of surgical mistakes. . . " Read More

Man Charged With Sex Assault At Denver Airport

Yahoo News

By SHEILA V KUMAR, Associated Press Sheila V Kumar, Associated Press – Tue Apr 19, 10:51 pm ET

     DENVER – "An Oregon man suspected of raping a 22-year-old woman at Denver International Airport was charged Tuesday with one count of sexual assault.

Noel Bertrand, 26, of Portland, was accused of assaulting the woman just after midnight April 12 on the floor of a concourse. Two airport employees on the tarmac saw the incident through a window and intervened, authorities said.

The woman's family members said they were shocked to hear that Bertrand was only charged with one count. Several messages seeking comment from family lawyer Patrick Ridley were not immediately returned.

The Associated Press does not use the names of people who report being sexually assaulted unless they agree to be identified. The AP also isn't identifying family members to protect the woman's identity.

Bertrand was being held on $50,000 bond and was due in court Thursday, when a public defender could be named to represent him.

He could face a sentence of up to 12 years in prison if convicted, but he would have to qualify for parole to be released and could end up imprisoned for life even after completing his term.

The victim's family members said the woman had missed a flight and decided to spend the night at the airport. A man struck up a conversation at a restaurant, then followed the woman to a spot where he sat next to her and tried to kiss her, according to her family.

Court documents say Bertrand hit the woman in the eye and choked her by her shirt collar as he threw her to the floor and assaulted her. . . " Read More

 

Hospital Errors May Be More Common Than Thought

WebMD

         New Tracking Tool Suggests Medical Errors May Occur in One-Third of Hospital Admissions

By Denise Mann
WebMD Health News

     "April 7, 2011 -- Medication errors, infections, and other hospital-related errors may be 10 times more common than previously estimated, according to a study involving a new tracking tool.

Medical errors may actually occur in as many of one-third of hospital admissions, according to a new study in the April issue of Health Affairs.

“It’s a little scary,” admits study author David C. Classen, MD, an associate professor of medicine at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City.

Whether the problem is getting worse or error tracking methods are improving is not known. “We have gotten better tools to detect medical errors which give us a better yardstick to determine if we are improving,” he says.

Researchers used the Institute for Healthcare Improvements’ Global Trigger Tool.  With this method, two or three trained nurses or pharmacists review medical charts for certain triggers such as a stop-medication order, an abnormal lab test result, or the use of a known antidote, and then follow up with a physician review of the medical chart to see if these triggers led to any medical mistakes.

Study results show the new tool may be more sensitive than other tracking methods, including voluntary reporting and other measures.

Protect Yourself From Hospital Errors

Common hospital errors included medication-related issues, procedure-related mistakes, and hospital-acquired infections. The most severe mistakes were related to a surgery or procedure, the new study showed.

Classen says that asking questions and demanding answers can help reduce the risk of medical errors when you are hospitalized.

If someone tries to give you medication, “stop and say ‘I want to hear all about it before I take it,’” he suggests.

Before surgery, “insist that your surgeon comes and sees you before starting the procedure to review the steps,” Classen says. . . " Read More

Army Slow To Act as Crime-lab Worker Falsified, Botched Tests

Health & Fitness

By Marisa Taylor and Michael Doyle

McClatchy Newspapers

Posted: 03/19/2011 12:00:00 AM PDT

Updated: 03/19/2011 08:58:03 PM PDT

     WASHINGTON -- "For nearly three years, the military held the key to Roger House's exoneration and didn't tell him: A forensics examiner had botched a crucial lab test used in the Navy lieutenant's court-martial.

In fact, the military had begun second-guessing a decade's worth of tests conducted by its one-time star lab analyst, Phillip Mills.

Investigators discovered that Mills had cut corners and even falsified reports in one case. He found DNA where it didn't exist, and failed to find it where it did. His mistakes may have let the guilty go free while the innocent, such as House, were convicted.

"It cost him his family and it cost him his Navy career," House's attorney, John Wells, said in an interview. "It's certainly outrageous and unconscionable; it's the kind of action that makes you want to scream."

But the problem was bigger than just a lone analyst.

While a McClatchy Newspapers investigation revealed that Mills' mistakes undermined hundreds of criminal cases brought against military personnel, it also found that the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Laboratory was lax in supervising Mills, slow to re-examine his work and slipshod about informing defendants. Officials appeared intent on containing the scandal that threatened to discredit the military's most important forensics facility, which handles more than 3,000 criminal cases a year.

The military has never publicly acknowledged the extent of Mills' mistakes nor

the lab's culpability. McClatchy pieced together the untold story by conducting dozens of interviews and reviewing internal investigations, transcripts and other documents. The McClatchy investigation shows: Read More

 

Gruesome photos, bogus computer entries are key to homicide case against child welfare workers

NY Daily News                                                    

BY Oren Yaniv and Rich Schapiro
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITERS

Friday, March 25th 2011, 4:00 AM

     "Gruesome photos of a battered 4-year-old girl. Autopsy reports showing she was drugged. Twine used to tie her to a bed.

Prosecutors seeking homicide convictions for the two child welfare workers assigned to protect Marchella Brett-Pierce have several pieces of dramatic evidence - but the most damning are a few bogus computer entries.

Experts say caseworker Damon Adams' alleged attempt to cover up his failure to monitor Marchella could be a silver bullet for prosecutors.

Adams, 36, is accused of never visiting Marchella's Brooklyn home despite glaring warning signs - and fudging computer records to show he checked in on her in the months before she died.

What authorities described as record tampering shows that Adams "had an understanding of the nature of his failure to act and the potential consequences for it," said Paul Gentile, a former Bronx prosecutor. "That takes the DA a significant distance to proving his case."

David Shapiro, a former Newark prosecutor, agreed.

"The false entry indicates that he knew that he blew it," said Shapiro. "That's the key." Read More

California Lawsuit Accuses Bristol-Myers Squibb of Fraud, Kickbacks

The Baltimore Sun                                                   

By Duke Helfand and Marc Lifsher, Los Angeles Times                 

March 19, 2011

 "California regulators are taking aim at giant drug maker Bristol-Myers Squibb Co., accusing it of bribing doctors and pharmacists to use its products by offering thousands of cash kickbacks, gifts and "happy hours" with the Los Angeles Lakers.

     The case against the drug company was developed with the help of former Lakers player Lucius Allen and his wife, Eve, who worked for Bristol-Myers and provided access to the basketball team, according to a lawsuit made public Friday. Doctors and family members were invited to Lakers Dream Camps arranged by the company, the lawsuit said.

     Doctors also were treated to tickets and luxury suites for Lakers games, and received pointers, balls and autographs from some of the team's most famous players, the suit alleges.

     New York-based Bristol-Myers vowed to fight the case. "Bristol-Myers Squibb believes this lawsuit has no merit and the company will defend itself vigorously," it said in a statement.

     The California lawsuit was originally filed in March 2007 by Michael Wilson, a former Bristol-Myers employee. It was sealed until last week when a judge granted a request by the state Department of Insurance — which joined the suit — to make it public.

     The case is the latest major legal action against Bristol-Myers over fraud accusations. In 2007, it paid $515 million to settle allegations by the federal government and other states that it used a kickback scheme to defraud the Medicare and Medicaid insurance programs. . . " Read More

"Hero of the Day": Bully Kid Buy Gets A Taste of His Own Medicine

     

       

 

 

 

 

     

      I am opposed to violence, whether it's displayed by adults or children. I've always believed that violence is never the answer.

     When raising our own family, I never, ever laid a hand on either of my kids, never cussed or screamed at them, like I've seen so many other parents do. I swore I would never do that and I kept my promise.

    However, when it comes to bullies, sometimes, the only way to get through to them is for people to stand up to them and teach them a lesson or two.

     Whether adult or child, bullies are cowards who pick on those they feel can't defend themselves. Did you ever see a bully go after someone he knows can defend themself? No way. They wouldn't take the chance of being humiliated in front of their peers.

     I was also bullied terribly, back in seventh grade, by a tough cookie of a classmate, and her even tougher, bigger, older sister. I often thought they both could have tried out for the football team. Often the bullying occurred, in the hallway, or in class, right in front of teachers, who just stood there watching.

     I tried ignoring it. I even went to the guidance counselor. That didn't help. In fact, the bullying got worse once everyone knew. Why do they think kids never tell the grown ups? Finally, when she threatened to punch me one day in class, I'd had enough. Even though my skinny knees were knocking, and I knew she could pulverize me, I stood up to her.

   I stood up, raised my fists, and threatened to hit her back. Was it the right thing to do? Probaby not. We both got sent to the principal. Soon afterwards, her sister caught up with me and slammed me into a locker. Again, right in front of teachers.

   But, hey, at the time, it was worth it because I'd stood up for myself for the first time in my life and it felt good. As for my classmate, she never bullied me again.  

     It's something I'll never forget. Constant bullying is something that stays with you forever. I think that's one reason why I later became a forensics nurse. To do whatever I could to help put a stop to such senseless violence.

   Many years later, when we were a grown, I happened to run into the older sister in a store. We stood there, with our kids, and chatted for while. She looked like any other mother holding her baby on her hip. Not the pulverizer I remembered.

      Surprisingly, she brought up her bullying past. And she actually apologized to me for her behavior way back then. Just goes to show people can change if they really want to.

      In this video, which has gone viral across the web, one young bully, Richard Gale, after repeatedly taunting and punching Casey Heynes, a larger victim, finally got what was coming to him.

   I know I'll probably get slammed on here for this. I'm sorry to have to say that but I believe it's true. Normally I would not advocate it, but sometimes, there comes a point when kids should have a right to defend themselves - within reason, of course.

     In these days of kids bringing knives and guns to school, caution and cool heads are needed. It's a shame that appropriate intervention by teachers or administration didn't happen before it got to this point.

      However, in this case, the victim finally stood up for himself, did what he had to do to get the bully off his back, without really hurting him, then walked away.

      The victim showed enormous restraint considering the circumstances. Of course, the news media is reporting that the bully's mother is now demanding an apology from the victim who stood up to her son. Hmmm. And we wonder why her son is a bully?

 Hopefully, Richard Gale has learned an important lesson which will stay with him throughout his life. And maybe, just maybe, sometime down the road, this young bully will also have the guts to apologize to his victims too.

Crime & Federalism

Protect Yourself Against Medicare Fraud

Fraudblawg                                                                                  

     "On Oct. 21, officials at a chain of mental healthclinics in Miami were charged with making $200 million in fraudulent claims for group therapy sessions that authorities said were unnecessary or never provided.Medicare scams like these are rampant, costing taxpayers billions of dollars every year. But the schemes are not always so ambitious.

      "Thieves may simply offer unsuspecting patients medical supplies and equipment they do not need, or do not qualify for, to collect Medicare numbers, said Julie Schoen, director of the California Senior Medicare Patrol, part of a federally financed antifraud program that operates in every state. . . " Read More

 

Traumatic Brain Injury: CTE Found in Bob Probert's Brain Tissue

Brain Injury Litigation Network

Linkedin

By IRA PODELL, AP Hockey Writer Ira Podell, Ap Hockey Writer – Thu Mar 3, 1:08 pm ET

Bob Probert knew the fierce pounding he dished out and received over 16 seasons as an NHL enforcer was taking its toll as he got older. That's why he wanted his brain to be analyzed once he died. Even though heart failure ultimately ended his life last July at age 45, Probert also was living with a damaged brain. Researchers at Boston University said Thursday that Probert had the degenerative brain disease Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy. The disease was found through analysis of brain tissue donated by Probert.

He is the second hockey player from the program at the Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy to be diagnosed with the disease after death. Reggie Fleming, a 1960s enforcer who played before helmets became mandatory, also had CTE.

CSTE is a collaboration between Boston University Medical School and the Sports Legacy Institute that is attempting to address what it calls the "concussion crisis" in sports. The group has been at the forefront of research into head trauma in sports, and has received a $1 million gift from the NFL, which it has pushed for better treatment of concussions.

The family of former Bears safety Dave Duerson agreed to donate his brain to the study after he committed suicide last month at the age of 50.

During his years as one of the most feared players in the NHL, Probert had 3,300 penalty minutes — fifth on the league's career list. He was the toughest and most prolific fighter of his time. Probert, who struggled to overcome drinking problems during his time in the NHL, played for the Detroit Red Wings from 1985-94 and the Chicago Blackhawks from 1995-2002.

"We are only beginning to appreciate the consequences of brain trauma in sports," said Chris Nowinski, the Sports Legacy Institute's co-founder and chief executive officer. "Early evidence indicates that the historical decision not to discourage contact to the head was an enormous mistake, and we hope aggressive changes continue to be made to protect athletes, especially at the youth level." Read More

Danger of Multiple Emergency Room Visits to Different Hospitals

KevinMD

by Jeffrey I. Kreisberg, PhD

     "If you are one of the more than 100 million Americans who visit emergency rooms (ER) at least once a year, you’re not alone.

   Americans, insured and not, make ample use of hospital emergency rooms. One out of every five visited an ER at least once in 2007, the latest year for which the National Center for Health Statistics has data. Among the uninsured, 7.4 percent made two or more visits to an ER, but so did 5.1 percent of people with private insurance.

   Well if you want to stay safe and receive quality medical care while you’re in the ER, it’s best if you visit the same ER each time.

A report published released recently in the Archives of Internal Medicine and reviewed by Kaiser Health News, showed that nearly one in three Massachusetts adults who made multiple ER trips to separate hospitals — some upwards of five — created a host of dangerous and costly problems because full health information is not always shared between hospitals. The reasons for choosing different facilities varied, sometimes patients moved or changed insurance between visits, while others got transferred between facilities. . . " Read More

Medical records and Facebook

KevinMD

       "Provocative piece by hospitalist el jefe Bob Wachter. He laments how archaic most electronic records are, and I agree:

You’d think that medicine’s conversion from paper to electronic records would solve many of these problems, but ““ to date ““ all it has done is create new-fangled electronic silos. In most EMRs, including the GE system we’re using at UCSF, the notes are really just electronic incarnations of what previously lived on dead trees ““ no more likely to facilitate collaboration than the paper records they replace."

   " In many cases, they spew out template-driven notes that are long on noise and contain very little useful information. Very little power of

      "Very little power of the electronic medium is being harnessed."

     "On the other hand, Web 2.0 sites, like Facebook, provide intuitive tools that enhance collaboration and social communication:

How great would it be if, through the medical record, I could interact with multiple specialists who have seen my patient ““ in real time, just like my kids are interacting with far-flung friends on Facebook. And if nurses could leave me a note which I could answer online without having to respond to a page. And if the daily plan for a patient ““ developed collaboratively ““ could be shared among all the caregivers, with notes appended when a patient’s clinical ship seemed to be blowing off course.

    "One problem is that much of health information technology is staffed and programmed by has-beens. There is very little innovation, with most of forward-thinking ideas confined to sites like Google, Facebook, and MySpace." Read More

Top 50 Resources for Students Attending Online Forensic Nursing Schools

Forensics Talk among the Top 50 Resources for Students Attending Online Forensic Nursing Schools

http://www.onlineschools.org/online-forensic-nursing-schools/

Understanding Patient Violence against Health Care Workers

Kevin MD

by Kevin Pho, MD

     "Last fall, a surgeon at Johns Hopkins Hospital was shot by the distraught son of a patient for whom he was caring. The man later killed his mother, then himself. A week earlier, a patient in a Long Island, N.Y., hospital beat his nurse with a leg from a broken chair, causing serious injuries. The following month, a psychiatric technician at a Napa, Calif., state hospital was fatally attacked on the job.

This snapshot of violence against health care workers reflects a disturbing trend. According to a Bureau of Labor Statistics analysis published last year, almost 60% of assaults in the workplace occurred in a health care setting. Nearly three-quarters of these assaults were by patients or residents of a health facility."

 No longer havens

     "Health care settings have been traditionally thought of as “safe havens,” open to anyone as a place to be protected and cared for. This is a trend worth watching. The Joint Commission, a national accrediting agency, soberly noted last year that “health care institutions today are confronting steadily increasing rates of crime, including violent crimes such as assault, rape and homicide.”Violence is most common in psychiatric facilities and emergency departments, but can also be seen in waiting rooms, long-term care centers and critical care units."

     "Nurses are the most frequent targets. According to a 2010 survey from the Emergency Nurses Association, more than half of ER nurses were victims of physical violence and verbal abuse, including being spit on, shoved, or kicked; one in four reported being assaulted more than 20 times over the past three years. The survey noted that the violence seemed to be increasing at the same time the number of alcohol-, drug- and psychiatric-related patients was rising. . . " Read More

Supervision A Factor In Most Child Drownings

Medical News Today

Article Date: 05 Mar 2011 - 17:00 PST
  

        "Lack of adequate supervision was a contributing factor in more than 70 per cent of fatal child drownings across Australia, according to a study in the latest Medical Journal of Australia.

     Researchers from the University of Ballarat used the National Coroners Information System (NCIS) database to investigate accidental drowning deaths of children aged 0-14 years between July 1, 2000 and June 30, 2009. Of the 339 deaths in that period, supervision was ruled out as a factor in only 29 cases (8.5 per cent), which were the result of events such as cars being swept off the road during flash flooding or boats overturning in rough conditions.

     "Supervision was identified as a contributing factor in almost three-quarters (71.7 per cent) of all unintentional cases of child drowning, although the level of explicit identification of supervision varied across age groups," lead researcher Ms Lauren Petrass said.

     "Indeed, with deeper interrogation of coroners' findings, absent or inadequate supervision might be associated with as many as 88.8 per cent of child drownings, because in 58 cases (17.1 per cent), inadequate detail was provided in text documents to determine whether supervision was a contributing factor." . . " Read More