According to the Society of Actuaries, medical mistakes cost the U.S. economy over $19.5 billion in 2008. During that year, the report estimates that medical mistakes caused over 1.5 million injuries, resulting in 2,500 estimated deaths. Though the causes for mistakes vary, doctor fatigue has often been cited as a major factor in medical errors. In a recent study published in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM), the authors cite studies which show an increased risk of complications for patients who undergo elective procedures performed by a sleep-deprived doctor. ...

In 2010, more than 1.5 million Americans filed for bankruptcy protection- a 9% increase over the previous year and the highest rate of filings since the new bankruptcy laws went into effect in 2005. While the states with the highest rates of bankruptcy remained in the Southwestern and Southeastern parts of the country, states in the Northeast still saw increases in the number of bankruptcy filings in 2010. For example, in Rhode Island more than 4,100 people filed for consumer bankruptcy protection last year and Massachusetts added another 17,700 filers. High rates of ...

Aldous Huxley spoke of a "brave new world," Marshall McLuhan said "the medium is the message," and Orwell of course warned of Big Brother. For all their insights, however, none of these twentieth-century thinkers -- not even Orwell -- remotely anticipated the advent of the 24/7 video technology that permeates our culture today. We are awash in images that, without the proper safeguards, threaten to undermine long-held principles at the foundation of the criminal justice system. Courtroom Video Evidence and Avoiding Undue Prejudice For decades, the courtroom has been ...

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Commissioner, Doug Shulman, said the IRS is further targeting offshore accounts. At an international tax symposium in December, Shulman also stated that the agency is "seriously considering" another amnesty period for people with undeclared offshore accounts to voluntarily come forward. Targeting Offshore Accounts Following the IRS's investigation of Swiss banking giant UBS, Shulman reported that the agency will continue to fight tax evasion by addressing instances of offshore tax evasion and "leveraging the data we receive to mount ...

On November 27, Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell put an end to the hopes of firefighters across the state when he vetoed HB 1231, a bill that would have expanded the types of cancer considered occupational diseases for firefighters under the state's workers' compensation programs. The Governor's veto was made despite the popularity of the bill - it passed through the House unanimously and through the Senate just as overwhelmingly with a 45-4 vote. The potentially high costs to the municipalities paying for workers' compensation coverage for professional and volunteer firefighters ...

The Utah state legislative session will soon commence for the 2011 session. One of the items on the agenda -- addressing a statewide ban on spice. The bill, sponsored by Representative Gage Froere (R-Hundsville), plans to limit the manufacture, distribution and possession of the increasingly popular herbal substance known as spice. Made of dried weeds and flowers and marketed for use as incense, the public started taking note when teens began smoking the herbal blend. Some say the need for regulation is vital because of the dangers associated with smoking spice. Because ...

The scenario of two families harmoniously melding into one new entity, just like the Brady Bunch, usually differs from the reality most step and non-traditional families experience. Family therapists have long recognized the unrealistic idea the term "blended family" puts forward and the term has mostly fallen out of favor. It conjures up the vision of unrelated children seamlessly coming together into a family headed by two parents, one of whom is often largely unknown to the children. The reality is that life in a blended family is not always rosy. Demographers ...

Hospitals are facilities where ill and injured people should feel they are receiving the best possible care for their conditions. Unfortunately, a 1999 study found that medical mistakes were responsible for 98,000 deaths and more than 1 million injuries per year. This shocked the public and led many to perceive hospitals as hazardous to your health. Since 1999, states, hospitals and patient advocates have been more involved in efforts to reduce medical errors and improve patient safety and health. Despite these efforts, the movement for patient safety has not produced ...

2010 saw a drastic increase in the number of workplace disability discrimination claims. According to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the agency received a record 100,000 complaints of disability discrimination in 2010, a 17% increase over the previous year. The rise in claims was attributed in part to amendments to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) that went into effect in 2009. Under the ADA Amendments Act of 2008, Congress increased the scope of qualifying disabilities to make it easier for individuals to receive protection under the important ...

Government investigations always demand a balancing of interests. While we want investigators to monitor those who seek to harm others, we expect that we have certain privacy protections. We want the reassurances that our government is doing everything possible to prevent terrorist attacks, but we don't want the government to invade the privacy of law-abiding citizens. Over the past decade, our government has assembled the most technologically sophisticated system for collecting information about Americans in the country's history, according to the Washington Post. Combining ...

When a child who has been receiving Supplemental Security Insurance (SSI) benefits turns 18, he or she is not automatically eligible to continue receiving disability benefits. Disability benefits for children are different than disability benefits for adults who have been disabled since childhood, and the federal government uses different standards for evaluating disability in children and adults. Accordingly, it is important that children receiving SSI payments who are on the verge of adulthood and their caretakers understand these distinctions and can properly prepare ...

npower will launch a new TV campaign promoting its new easier to understand bills from the beginning of February. The new npower energy bills have been designed incorporating feedback from both Consumer Focus (the statutory consumer champion for the UK) and Which?. The bill carries the Plain English Crystal Mark for its 'Jargon Busting' page. The new 20 second TV ad, designed and produced by Aardman Animations, features 'Penny', npower's customer service representative, solving a 'Countdown-style' conundrum. The new TV ad will be supported by a multi-media campaign ...

Littlewoods Europe has announced the launch of its new season collection featuring over 10,000 new product lines. The new collection includes over 6,000 new fashion lines for the whole family with extensive ranges for women, men and kids. Almost 2,000 ladies fashion lines in plus sizes are available. New brand ranges for the Spring 2011 collection include footwear from Carvela, and Ravel plus women's fashion from Awear, Mint Velvet and Gloria Vanderbilt. New entries to the menswear collection include Goodsouls by Steve Jones, Pepe Jeans, Penguin and Palladium footwear. A ...

Foster Care Associates (FCA) has reacted to the increased demand for parent and child foster carers across the South of England through a refocussed carer recruitment campaign. Parent and child placements are provided to parents and their children when there are concerns over the parent's circumstances and/or ability to perform the parenting role. It is the preferable option to residential care and/or separation of a parent and their child(ren). FCA's parent and child fostering services provide the opportunity for parents to develop their skills in a supportive family ...

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Joseph Woodley is making waves throughout the book industry and the world with his book, 'When the Prodigal Son Becomes the Father' and his youth wellness program called, "The H.e.r.o. Project" (www.theheroproject.com). His timely message of "promoting strong persons, strong families and strong communities through spiritual, physical and psychological fitness and wellness" is receiving great recognition and acclaim throughout the nation and the world. His strong personal faith and commitment to family and service to mankind, has ensured that Joseph Woodley is poised as ...

Wexel Art is proud to announce that it has partnered with one of the most renowned product designers in the world, the legendary Eva Zeisel, to make design history. Wexel Art is introducing the first frame collection designed by Zeisel, who continues her remarkable career at age 104. The Wexel Art frames will premiere at the New York Gift Show, January 30- February 3, 2011. In light of its importance as a collector's item, the first 250 frames will be numbered with a guarantee of authenticity. "The immense honor of working with a legendary designer like Eva Zeisel ...

ANN ARBOR, Mich.---University of Michigan researchers have uncovered molecular signals that regulate catch-up growth---the growth spurt that occurs when normal conditions are restored after a fetus, young animal or child has been ill, under stress or deprived of enough food or oxygen to grow properly. The results, published in the Feb. 15 issue of the journal Development, could lead to better understanding of why babies who undergo catch-up growth are at higher risk in later life for diabetes, cardiovascular disease, obesity and other health problems. "Catch-up growth ...

Each year, approximately 150,000 Canadians have a transient ischemic attack (TIA), sometimes known as a mini-stroke. New research published today in Stroke, the journal of the American Heart Association shows these attacks may not be transient at all. They in fact create lasting damage to the brain. The stroke research team, led by Dr. Lara Boyd, physical therapist and neuroscientist with the Brain Research Centre at Vancouver Coastal Health and the University of British Columbia, studied 13 patients from the Stroke Prevention Clinic at Vancouver General Hospital and ...

The following highlights summarize research papers that have been recently published in Geophysical Research Letters (GRL) and Water Resources Research (WRR). In this release: China's lakes changed dramatically in recent decades Climate commitment in an uncertain world New satellite data improve estimates of ocean circulation Reversals in Saturn's polar radio emissions Modeling an asteroid's giant impact crater Tectonic plates relocked after 2005 earthquake in northeastern Japan Links to rivers affect Arctic lake habitat diversity in Canada More accurate ...

Australian researchers have come one step closer to understanding how the rhythm of the heartbeat is controlled and why many common drugs, including some antibiotics, antihistamines and anti-psychotics, can cause a potentially fatal abnormal heart rhythm. It is estimated around 40-50% of all drugs in development will block one of the main 'channels' that carries electricity in the heart and, as a result, can cause heart rhythm problems called cardiac arrhythmias. Most sudden cardiac deaths are caused by cardiac arrhythmias. Since 1996, nine drugs have been withdrawn ...

ARLINGTON, Va. - The Office of Naval Research's (ONR) TechSolutions department is set to deliver to Navy Special Warfare Command personnel later this year new protective eyewear that will eliminate the need for warfighters to stop to change out colored lenses to accommodate differences in light levels. The Fast-Tint Protective Eyewear (FTPE) changes color quicker than transitional lenses commonly found at an optometrist's office. "Transition time is less than 0.5 seconds," said Stephanie Everett, ONR's TechSolutions program manager. "Currently, warfighters are using ...

Previously linked to the severity of asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in humans, vitamin D deficiency has now been shown to alter lung structure and function in young mice. The new study, conducted by researchers in Australia, offers the first concrete evidence linking vitamin D deficiency with deficits in lung function and altered lung structure. The findings were published online ahead of the print edition of the American Thoracic Society's American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine. "The results of this study clearly demonstrate ...

Starting hormone therapy at around the time of menopause is associated with a greater risk of breast cancer compared to starting after a longer gap, according to a study published online Jan. 28 in The Journal of the National Cancer Institute. In this large, prospectively followed cohort of women, those who started hormone therapy five years or more after menopause had little or no increased risk, regardless of the type of hormone therapy used, how long they used it, and whether they were overweight or obese. Many studies have established that breast cancer incidence ...

Many different aspects are involved in predicting high water and floods, such as the type of precipitation, wind, buildings and vegetation. The greater the number of variables included in predictive models, the better the prediction will be. However, the models will inevitably become increasingly more complex. PhD student from Delft University of Technology (TU Delft, The Netherlands) Steven Weijs uses basic insight from the information theory (Shannon's Information Theory) to demonstrate the cohesion between this added complexity, the information from observational data ...