Duodenoscopes. Gastroscopes. Colonoscopes. Bronchoscopes. What do all these medical devices — used for internal looks and treatment of patients’ body parts and organs, such as lungs, stomachs, bladders and colons — have in common? According to emerging research, these medical devices are often impervious to truly effective post-use cleaning protocols. The result: Many of the…
It seems like every summer there is a story like the one we are about to relate, a tale that serves as a truly chilling reminder that even environments where strict safety precautions are stressed can harbor outsized dangers to the public. We’re talking amusement parks and, of course, their myriad rides that cater to…
We noted in our earlier blog post of this week that Medtronic, which describes itself online as “the world’s premier medical technology and services company,” is front and center in a recent media expose that denotes it as “a flash point in a national debate about the role of money in medicine.” In a nutshell,…
Here’s a quasi-truism regarding sexual harassment in the workplace: It is often relegated to something minor in the overall scheme of unwanted sexual contact, where obvious and explicit acts of sexual assault and other forms of abuse command more attention. That is the wrong view to take, of course, given that harassing sexual behavior aimed…
Although it might be a bit cumbersome, motorcyclists throughout Los Angeles County and Southern California might want to consider toting a copy of a UC-Berkeley study on motorcycle safety as they traverse area roads and freeways. And they might want to resolutely stick it in the hands of the next irate motorist that yells at…
Nursing homes and assisted care facilities advertise their services in glowing terms, but the reality is that the care at many of these places is extremely lacking. Problems include understaffing, poor training of employees, and poor supervision. All of these factors can lead to neglect and abuse of vulnerable adults. As we discussed in a…
An apparent road rage incident recently took the life of a Navy officer as he drove his motorcycle on a highway in San Diego, and video recorded by a witness moments before the fatal collision has emerged. The video shows a car traveling close behind a motorcycle, and according to the witness, the car came…
The NBC Los Angeles segment, “Former teacher charged with more sex crimes after second victim comes forward,” addresses the additional charges filed against Marlborough School’s former English teacher, Dr. Joseph Koetters. In February 2015, Mr. Koetters was criminally charged with having a sexual relationship with one of his students between 2000 and 2002 and impregnating…
Due to a variety of factors, cesarean section deliveries have become more common in the last few decades. Many women in the U.S. are waiting until later in life to give birth; in vitro fertilization has increased the incidence of multiple births; a C-section may be necessary because of obesity or diabetes; and there are…
Multi-vehicle auto accidents involving large commercial vehicles require detailed investigations to determine exactly what happened. Truck drivers and trucking companies are subject to regulations that do not apply to passenger vehicles, and unfortunately violations of trucking industry regulations are to blame for many crashes. Police are looking into the cause of a recent series of…