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January 17, 2012

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Covidien Warns of Dangers With Product

BMW Recalling 89K Mini Brand Cars

Hostage in Robbery Files Suit Against Police

Teens Awarded $1 Million for Abuse at Camp

Fatal DUI Wreck Prompts Suit Against Bar

Unlocking the Secrets Behind Hydraulic Fracturing

Texas Doctors Lead Open-Notes Movement

American Red Cross Cited by FDA for Blood-Safety Rule Violations

 

 

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Products

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Covidien Warns of Dangers With Product

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Mansfield medical devices company Covidien PLC announced one of its products has been connected with the deaths of three patients who had undergone chest surgery. “The company has concluded that Duet TRS has the potential to injure adjacent anatomical structures within the thorax, which may result in life-threatening, post-operative complications,” the company said in a statement.  Brendan Lynch, Boston Herald  01/17/2012

Read Article: Boston Herald    

 

BMW Recalling 89K Mini Brand Cars

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Nearly 89,000 Mini brand cars, including the Mini Cooper line of vehicles, are being recalled in the U.S. because of faulty water pumps that can malfunction and potentially cause engine compartment fires. The recall comes about three months after the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration opened a defects investigation, citing 12 reports of fires in the vehicles manufactured by BMW. Five of the fires reportedly destroyed the cars, according to a NHTSA document. BMW said it is unaware of any injuries or accidents caused by pump malfunctions.  Matt Stevens, LA Times  01/17/2012

Read Article: LA Times    

 

Laws/Cases

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Hostage in Robbery Files Suit Against Police

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A North Carolina man has filed a lawsuit against the Cary Police Department who allegedly "detained and tortured" him during a hostage situation at a local bank. The man was released during the hostage situation and, upon his release, he claims police slammed him violently to the ground, yanked his arms behind his back and dragged him across a field in handcuffs. The man suffered injuries to his shoulders as a result, and was put on extended leave by his employer. The lawsuit is seeking unspecified damages.  Andrew Kenney, News & Observer  01/17/2012

Read Article: News & Observer    

 

Teens Awarded $1 Million for Abuse at Camp

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Two teenagers in South Carolina have been awarded $500,000 each in a lawsuit filed against Clemson University's Camp Bob Cooper over treatment of the boys by a camp counselor. The lawsuit claimed the counselor forced the boys to play violent games against their will, and the counselor currently has criminal charges pending against him. The suit also claimed camp officials failed to conduct a proper background check before hiring the counselor.  Allyson Bird, Charleston Post Courier  01/15/2012

Read Article: Charleston Post Courier    

 

Fatal DUI Wreck Prompts Suit Against Bar

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The estate of a Washington man killed by a drunk driver has filed a lawsuit against the bar responsible for serving the man who caused the crash. The lawsuit claims the bar - Captain Jack's Bar and Grill - served the man "too much to drink and let him drive away even though he was obviously drunk." The drunk driver has pleaded guilty to vehicular homicide and was sentenced to 31 months in prison.  Adam Lynn, Tacoma News-Tribune  01/17/2012

Read Article: Tacoma News-Tribune    

 

Issues

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Unlocking the Secrets Behind Hydraulic Fracturing

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Starting Feb. 1, drilling operators in Texas will have to report many of the chemicals used in the process known as hydraulic fracturing. Environmentalists and landowners are looking forward to learning what acids, hydroxides and other materials have gone into a given well. But a less-publicized part of the new regulation is what some experts are most interested in: the mandatory disclosure of the amount of water needed to “frack” each well. Experts call this an invaluable tool as they evaluate how fracking affects water supplies in the drought-prone state.  KATE GALBRAITH, Texas Tribune, The New York Times  01/17/2012

Read Article: The New York Times    

 

Healthcare

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Texas Doctors Lead Open-Notes Movement

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Texas doctors are at the vanguard of what U.S. researchers say is an inevitable revolution to make consultation notes and other records easily accessible to patients. The idea, at odds with the decades-old attitude that medical records belong to doctors because they're the only ones trained to interpret them, is being tested in an ongoing national study that has already confirmed that patients want to read their notes but most doctors are still resistant. The change is being pioneered at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, which since 2009 has maintained online portals where patients can call up the typed notes their doctor took during their appointments as well as the rest of their records.  Todd Ackerman, Houston Chronicle  01/17/2012

Read Article: Houston Chronicle    

 

American Red Cross Cited by FDA for Blood-Safety Rule Violations

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The American Red Cross failed to correct violations of blood-safety rules, raising the risk that ill-suited blood will be used in transfusions, U.S. regulators said. The FDA fined the Red Cross $9.59 million, according to a letter from the agency to the Red Cross made public on Jan. 13. The organization has been cited 14 times since 2003 and fined about $46 million for similar offenses. The Red Cross didn’t ensure that all staff had adequate blood-safety training and hasn’t created a complete list of prospective donors who were disqualified from giving blood, according to the letter. The Washington-based consumer group Public Citizen this month urged the agency to levy sanctions.  Molly Peterso, Bloomberg  01/17/2012

Read Article: Bloomberg    


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