You feel terrible.  You feel beyond terrible. You just found out that your parent or grandparent has been neglected, injured, abused, killed in a Maine nursing home.  It happens.  You can take action, right?  Not so fast.  The outgoing adminstration of George Bush quietly inserted language into federal law that pretends that all those nice Maine people who regulate Maine nursing homes are (even though they are not) federal employees who can’t be forced to tell the truth about what they find out about Maine nursing home safety.  Keith Olbermann blasted the law at the end of a recent MSN “Countdown”  piece.   Think it’s outrageous to silence Maine nursing regulators?  So do we. But it isn’t going to stop Briggs & Counsel from prosecuting cases of nursing home negligence.    If your loved one was injured or died from negligent care at a Maine nursing home, call an attorney who specializes in nursing home litigation.  And write to your U.S. Senator (Olympia Snowe or Susan Collins)  to allow State of Maine employees to tell the truth about what they find at Maine nursing homes.

Copyright 2009 Briggs & Counsel

Alison Wholey Mynick, RN, Esq.

Infection control advocates and patients who have contracted hepatitis from contaminated plastic syringes and medicine vials have joined forces in a campaign to warn Maine residents and Americans nationwide about the risks involved in reusing such medical items.

In a recent federal study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, it was found that over 60,000 people have been exposed to hepatitis, with at least 400 having been infected by it.

Hepatitis is defined as a viral infection of the liver. The most common form, hepatitis C, afflicts more than three million Americans and is potentially life threatening. It can cause permanent liver damage and may cause no initial symptoms, with the potential of remaining undetected for years.

Hygiene lapses, such as improper handwashing, have received more attention but according to Joe Perz of the CDC, reusing syringes “is something that is obviously wrong”.

“It really represents a breakdown in very basic patient safety. There really is a sense of outrage among many providers and others working in this area when they hear about some of these outbreaks and some of the practices,” Perz said. He blamed the problem on ignorance and lack of oversight.

At times, doctors or nurses injected several patients from single-use medicine vials - to “cut corners,” Perz said, or, some authorities believe, to save money, according to the CDC.

Advocates and the CDC are trying to raise awareness about the problem. The coalition includes infection control specialists and nurse anesthetists.

The campaign is designed to alert doctors, nurses and other medical workers that syringes must only be used once. Patients should be watching for safety precautions and speaking up if they see or suspect a violation.

Copyright 2009 Briggs & Counsel, by Eliza Stoll

Sometimes a picture, or in this case a video, truly is worth a thousand words. With our abundance of lakes and ponds,  as well as our access to the ocean, every Maine parent should think about this:

http://www.childdrowningprevention.com/index.html

Alison Wholey Mynick, RN, Esq.

Briggs & Counsel

815 Commercial Street

Rockport ME 04856

207.596.1099

297.596.7401 fax

amynick@dbriggslaw.com

www.maine-personal-injury-lawyers.com

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has been receiving reports, from many states, including Maine, of illnesses caused by a type of Salmonella called Salmonella Typhimurium. Several deaths may also be associated with this outbreak.

After much laboratory testing and analysis, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and CDC confirmed that the sources of the outbreak were peanut butter and peanut paste produced by the Peanut Corporation of America (PCA) at its Blakely, Georgia, processing plant.

Peanut paste is a concentrated product consisting of ground, roasted peanuts that are distributed to food manufacturers to be used as an ingredient in many commercially produced products including cakes, cookies, crackers, candies, cereal and ice cream.

As a result of this finding, a number of foods containing peanut butter and peanut paste produced by PCA from July 1, 2008 until now were recalled on January 13, 2009. On January 28, 2009, PCA expanded its recall to include all peanut products produced on or after January 1, 2007.

Some of the recalls involve foods sold directly to consumers, such as peanut butter crackers, peanut butter cookies, and ice cream made with peanut butter, and others involve foods sold directly to institutions, restaurants, the food service industry, and private label food companies.

 copyright 2009 Briggs & Counsel by Elizabeth Stoll