More information is coming to light concerning the hip implants recalled by Johnson & Johnson’s DePuy Orthopaedics division. According to Johnson & Johnson’s internal documentation, the metal hip implants known as Articular Surface Replacement, or A.S.R., fail at a rate of almost 40 percent within the first five years after they are implanted. The company […]
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Reports Of Errors In Electronic Health Records
A Pennsylvania study has revealed an increase in the number of errors associated with the use of electronic health records. Between 2004 and 2011, hospitals in that state reported 3,099 total incidents related to faulty electronic health records. Of those, 1,142 occurred in 2011. That was nearly double the total reported for 2010. The data did indicate […]
Batteries And Wiring Analyzed In NTSB Dreamliner Investigation
After a Boeing 787 Dreamliner caught fire at Logan International Airport in Boston last week, the National Transportation Safety Board launched an investigation into the incident. Shortly thereafter, the Federal Aviation Administration decided to launch a top-priority review of the Boeing 787 due to repeated issues in its electrical systems. The review is intended to […]
FAA Launching Top-Priority Review Of Boeing 787 Dreamliner
An electrical fire and fuel leak drew headlines this week as Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner continued its inauspicious debut. The issues affecting the plane have prompted the Federal Aviation Administration to launch a top-priority review of the aircraft. According to Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, the review will help the FAA “look at the root causes and do […]
Two Medical Helicopter Crashes Raise Safety Concerns
In 2006, the National Transportation Safety Board began an effort to improve safety in medical aircraft following a spike in the number of accidents nationwide. The progress of that initiative was called into question recently as two medical helicopters crashed on the same day, causing four injuries and three fatalities. Despite the attention of federal safety officials, […]
Boeing 787 Dreamliner Suffers Electrical Fire
A Boeing 787 Dreamliner operated by Japan Airlines suffered an electrical fire shortly after the plane landed and passengers and crew departed on Monday. The plane landed at Logan International Airport in Boston at 10 a.m. with 173 passengers and 11 crewmembers coming in from Tokyo. The passengers and crew departed and cleaning crews were […]
Car Crashes And Drowsy Driving Study
The Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System is a telephone survey conducted each year in collaboration with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The survey of more than 147,000 people from 2009-2010 included questions to determine how many drivers had nodded off or fallen asleep while driving in the previous 30 days. The CDC was attempting […]
U.S. Forest Service And Aging Aircraft
In 2002, the National Transportation Safety Board issued a report criticizing the aerial firefighting capability of the U.S. Forest Service. A review of aviation accident reports from the NTSB shows that six people died in air tanker crashes while on firefighting missions this year. At least 22 have died in such accidents in the last 10 years. […]
Childbirth Complications Rose Sharply Over Past Decade
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently released a study showing a significant rise in the number of emergencies during delivery and severe complications in the days after delivery from 1999 to 2009. Life-threatening complications during delivery rose 75 percent while severe post-delivery complications more than doubled. The lead author of the study referred to […]
Treatment For Severe Allergic Reactions May Be Lacking
A survey sponsored by the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America looked into the treatment recommended by primary care and emergency physicians for anaphylaxis. The survey identified “likely deficiencies” in the knowledge of how to treat the condition and keep it from recurring. Anaphylaxis is an allergic reaction that reaches life-threatening severity. It sets on quickly, […]
Infant Safety And The Infant Seat Exception
Air travel with small children presents parents with many challenges. For some parents, air travel is made more attractive by a common policy among airlines of not charging for children under the age of 2, if the child sits on a parent’s lap. This policy may confuse parents into thinking that their children will be […]
Self Driving Cars And An Accident Free Automobile Industry
While many automobile manufacturers are working on self-driving cars, few have been willing to place a timeline on the release of the new technology. Volvo has now announced that it plans to release an initial batch of self-driving cars in 2014. The Swedish company, long considered a leader in safety technology, indicates that it hopes […]
Hospital Report Card Contains Good/Bad News For Chicago Hospitals
Leapfrog Group is a nonprofit organization based in Washington D.C. that helps employers and other health care purchasers by gathering and disseminating data about the quality of available health care. The group recently released a report card that identifies which hospitals present the most hazardous environments for patients in terms of preventable medical errors and other injuries. […]
Government Seeks New Methods In Motorcycle Accident Prevention
Fatalities in car accidents saw a slight decline from 1997 to 2008, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. During that same time period, motorcycle deaths increased by more than 100 percent. Motorcycle fatalities saw another increase in 2010. These numbers are part of what has prompted the Government Accountability Office to ask Congress to grant […]
New Study Concerning The Dangers Of Bounce Houses
The National Electronic Injury Surveillance System database houses information regarding emergency department visits by children less than 18 years of age. A new study using that database has determined that a child is injured in an inflatable bounce house, castle, moonwalk or other inflatable device every 46 minutes nationwide. The author of the study is calling for […]
Most Wanted List Of Safety Improvements For 2013
The National Transportation Safety Board 10 Most Wanted Safety Improvements covers travel by road, rail and air. The list offers areas where all types of transportation can be made safer through, training, awareness and technological improvements. Over the following months, the NTSB will work with safety groups, industry leaders, regulators and individuals to make safety […]
Rapoport Weisberg Sims & VanOverloop Files Medical Malpractice Case for Brachial Plexus Injury
Rapoport Weisberg Sims & VanOverloop filed a medical malpractice lawsuit against a hospital today in the Circuit Court of Macon County, Illinois on behalf of a 47-year-old woman for injuries sustained as a result of heparin injections negligently administered into her upper arms causing a brachial plexus injury. The lawsuit alleges the hospital’s nurses improperly […]
Winter Weather Brings Challenging Driving Conditions
Illinois State Police have issued driving safety tips and the yearly reminder that winter weather means dangerous driving conditions for Illinois motorists. Ice, snow, sleet and high winds can all lead to deadly car accidents, particularly early in the season when drivers have not yet become accustomed to dealing with winter weather. The Thanksgiving holiday weekend […]
Health Exam Policy For Truck Drivers Changing
A longstanding Department of Transportation policy requires people with a commercial driver’s license to get a medical physical every other year to maintain that license. The goal of the policy is to prevent, or at least minimize bus and truck crashes that result from a medical emergency of the driver. Questions about the effectiveness of that policy […]
Rapoport Law Offices, P.C., files lawsuit on behalf of injured pedestrian
Today Rapoport Weisberg Sims & VanOverloop, an experienced pedestrian accident lawyer, filed a personal injury lawsuit in the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois, on behalf of a 64-year-old man and a 63-year-old woman who were seriously injured when they were hit by a car while crossing the street in the crosswalk. The incident occurred […]
