January 14th 2009
This week in medicine
The following will appear in the Jan 17 issue of The Lancet:
Birth rates New data for 2006, delivered by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, show that birth rates in the USA are blooming. Teenagers proved particularly fruitful, with a 3% rise in births for 15-19-year-old mothers, ending a 14-year decline. Mississippi had the highest teen birth rate: citizens in the state were up to three times more promiscuous than those in states with the lowest rates.
Avian influenza A teenager has died from H5N1 infection, days after bringing nine ducks into Beijing from nearby Hebei province. In response, poultry sales in the Sanhe market have stopped and no live poultry are allowed into the capital without inspection. An epidemiological survey of 82 987 Beijing households examined 331 951 people, but did not find any evidence of H5N1 influenza.
Hospital errors The number of patients who have died in English hospitals as a result of medical errors has risen by 60% since 2005. Data from the National Patient Safety Agency show that there were 3645 such deaths during 2007-08, more than 300 of which were due to infection control incidents, 171 to accidents, and 156 to diagnostic errors.
Ebola update Angola has closed its northeastern border with the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) to stop the Ebola virus from crossing over into the country. Since November, 2008, around 40 people have been infected in the DRC and 13 people have died from an outbreak of the deadly viral haemorrhagic fever.
Foreign aid Aid agencies are facing tight restrictions on their work in Ethiopia after a bill has been passed by parliament aiming to limit foreign influence in the country. Foreign agencies are barred from working on human rights, equality, conflict resolution, and children’s rights. Local groups that receive more than 10% of their funding from abroad will also be prevented from working in these areas
Hats on 58% of Americans who take to their bicycles do so without wearing a helmet, according to a recent thousand-person survey by Consumer Reports National Research Center, even though helmet-wearing is estimated to reduce the risk of head injury by 85%. On a brighter note, 70% of people say that they “often” read the warnings attached to prescription medication.
Flying doctors Increasing levels of obesity have seen the Australian state of New South Wales assessing the cost of obtaining larger planes for its air ambulance fleet, the Royal Flying Doctor Service. The new planes would have the capacity to carry patients weighing up to 260 kg: nearly twice the present limit of 140 kg. Recent surveys have shown that Australians are among the most obese people on the planet.
Crucial issues The UNICEF flagship report, The State of the World’s Children 2009: Maternal and Newborn Health, was released on Jan 15. With the end-date of the maternal mortality millennium development goal approaching-to reduce the maternal mortality ratio by three quarters by 2015-this report discusses the interventions and action plans that are necessary to make this target a reality.
Drug debate UK Government advisers are expected to call for ecstasy to be downgraded to a class B drug, after a review of the medical risks associated with taking it. But the evidence-based advice is likely to fall on deaf ears. The Home Office has told the media that it intends to keep ecstasy as a class A drug alongside substances such as heroin and cocaine.
ARV progress Afghanistan’s Ministry of Public Health has announced that 40 of the country’s 504 patients with HIV/AIDS will receive antiretroviral therapy (ARV) for the first time. As part of the national HIV/AIDS control programme, launched in 2003, ARV will initially be freely distributed to patients in Herat and Kabul provinces, although it is hoped that more people will be reached in the future.
Human rights Social Watch, a network of more than 600 non-governmental organisations, have released their annual report for 2008, focusing on human rights in the global financial crisis. Rights is the answer says that the crisis has jeopardised efforts to fight climate change, poverty, and disease in developing countries, and suggests that a human-rights-based approach is needed to tackle the problem.
Polyclinics The chairman of the British Medical Association (BMA), Hamish Meldrum, has denied accusations of hypocrisy after he was named on the list of senior partners who have won a £4 million contract to run a polyclinic in Bridlington. Last year, the BMA ran a campaign attacking polyclinics, saying that they would destroy the relationship between GPs and patients.
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January 14th, 2009 at 7:11 pm
If hospital fatal errors in English hospitals have risen 60% since 2005, enlisting the aid of a family member or good friend to act as a patient advocate for a hospitalized patient, is essential. To prevent medication mistakes, simply list the medication names and dosages and check with the administering nurse every time a medication is to be administered. To prevent the spread of hospital-acquired infectious diseases, ask each and every nurse, physician and visitor to wash their hands before touching the patient. Place a sign above the patient’s bed asking everyone to wash their hands. Don’t use the patient’s bathroom and watch out for the physician’s stethoscope which may carry disease. My new book, Critical Conditions: The Essential Hospital Guide To Get Your Loved One Out Alive, shows you how to be a proactive advocate for your hospitalized loved one in effort to prevent deadly medical errors, medication mistakes, the spread of diseases, how to reach the doctor every time and much, much more.