Martha Deed is exactly the person anyone would want as his or her patient advocate. A psychologist and member of the Consumers Union network of patient advocates, she is trained in patient advocacy and has a profound understanding of patient safety issues. Yet when her own chronically ill daughter was subjected to a daunting cross-current….
Continue ReadingArchives for June 2012
New Psychiatric Guidelines Tackle Substance Abuse
When psychiatrists, psychologists, researchers and insurers want to identify and classify a psychiatric disorder, they turn to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. Compiled by the American Psychiatric Association, and widely known as the DSM, the reference guide spells out criteria for making a given diagnosis. As the body of science grows and….
Continue ReadingMore Bad News About Acetaminophen (Tylenol) Overuse
Acetaminophen is one of the most common pain relievers in the U.S. It’s also one of the most overused. A new study in the Journal of General Internal Medicine found that nearly 1 in 4 U.S. adults misunderstands what is a safe dose of Tylenol, the most widely used brand name version of acetaminophen. Not….
Continue ReadingBeware of Counterfeit Adderall
The latest player in the ongoing story of counterfeit drugs is Adderall, a controlled substance prescribed to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorders (ADHD) and narcolepsy. Last week the FDA issued a warning to consumers that counterfeit 30 mg tablets of Adderall were available for purchase via the Internet. “The counterfeit versions of Adderall should be….
Continue ReadingSafe Injection Practices Are Not a Shot in the Dark
Too many people are being exposed to life-threatening infections because clinicians fail to follow safe practices when administering medicine by injection or infusion. According to a recent study in Medical Care, the journal of the American Public Health Association, at least 130,000 patients were put at risk between 2001 and 2011 for pathogens including hepatitis….
Continue ReadingHormone Replacement Therapy Review Confirms Recommendations for Caution
It has been 10 years since the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) raised a red flag of concern for women who take hormone replacement therapy (HRT). A systematic review of scientific research published on the subject since 2002, the task force concluded last week, confirms the initial call for caution. HRT is most often….
Continue ReadingPost Your Medical Harms on Facebook
The nonprofit investigative news agency ProPublica, which practices “journalism in the public interest,” has created a Facebook community of people harmed by medical errors, injuries or infections. The organization invites anyone who has been so victimized, and anybody else concerned about problems in medical treatment to join and/or follow the conversation. Get details here. Among….
Continue ReadingThe Annual Physical Takes Another Hit
Health care experts have been saying for 30 years — ever since a Canadian comprehensive study — that the annual physical exam is useless and even counter-productive, turning up false alarms that subject patients to unnecessary and even dangerous further testing. Now an article by a physician journalist in the New York Times sums up….
Continue ReadingSunscreen Labels Get a Pass for Accuracy
Just in time for summer the FDA has granted manufacturers of sunscreen an extension for complying with new rules for labeling. The decision to delay for six months imposition of rules that would have compelled manufacturers to be more truthful about the capabilities of their products reflects a concern that products will bear misinformation and….
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