Legionnaire’s Disease in Hospitals and Nursing Homes

Patients go to hospitals, nursing homes, and other health care facilities to heal, but they may be putting themselves at risk in ways they do not anticipate.  Preventable diseases such as Legionnaires’ disease can be spread easily in hospitals and nursing homes, infecting patients who are already vulnerable. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention…

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Off-Label Use of Medicine

A recent case has resulted in an ophthalmologist being held liable for injury to a patient who lost their vision from off-label use of a medication, known as Avastin. “Off-label” use is the unapproved use of a medication that has been approved for other uses. For example, if the FDA approves a drug to treat…

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Possible Design Defect in Automatic Shifters

If you have been in the market for a car in the past few years, you may have noticed that the automatic transmission lever in many vehicles does not look the same as in earlier models. Technological advances have led to many auto-designers electing to install “e-shifters” instead of the usual gear-shift. The problem is…

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Moving Patients to Hospice

Comfort care, also known as hospice care, is medical care designed to reduce a patient’s suffering during a terminal illness.  After a patient has a severe stroke, there is no specific protocol for when they should be moved from the hospital to comfort or hospice care.  A recent study has found that hospitals differ greatly…

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Ferris Wheel Accidents

A recent Ferris wheel accident in Washington State has put the spotlight on carnival rides and safety. At the Rhododendron Festival in Port Townsend, two hours north of Seattle, passengers of the Phoenix Wheel Ferris wheel had a scary ride when one of the baskets flipped, ejecting the people inside. A seven-year old boy and…

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