Antipsychotics are commonly used to treat schizophrenia and other serious mental disorders. The drugs are not a recommended treatment for Alzheimer's or dementia associated with old age. The drugs have serious side effects, including dizziness, blurry vision, sudden drops in blood pressure, increased susceptibility to infection, and even death. Statistics show that an abnormally large percentage of nursing home residents are prescribed these dangerous drugs.
]]> One possible reason for the extensive use of these drugs is another side effect. They leave patients in a stupor and make them much easier to manage. A victim of Alzheimer's who is suffering from dementia may kick, punch or otherwise lash out at other patients or caregivers. Alzheimer's patients are notoriously difficult to care for and the use of antipsychotics, while harmful, can make the process easier. The study showed that, in 2010, roughly one out of every five nursing homes used antipsychotics on a significant percentage of their residents, despite there being no diagnosis of the conditions for which those drugs are recommended.Nursing home residents are often frail. They may make easy targets for poor treatment and abuse. Prescribing a dangerous drug that has no positive impact, simply to render the patient more docile is not acceptable. While antipsychotic drugs certainly have a place in helping the victims of serious mental illnesses, they should only be prescribed to patients who truly need them.
Source: Boston Globe, "A rampant prescription, a hidden peril," by Kay Lazar and Matt Carroll, 29 April 2012
]]>The refrain is a common one for tired driving accidents. Drivers say they closed their eyes for "just a second" and suddenly found themselves in an accident. While a few medical conditions can lead to spontaneous sleep, for the most part drivers know that they are tired well before an accident occurs. Drivers may fight sleep for some time before finally succumbing. Tired drivers may describe difficulty focusing, "daydreaming," yawning, drooping eyelids and other telltale signs of exhaustion.
]]> Unsurprisingly, drowsy driving accidents are most common between midnight and 6 a.m. People driving without passengers were more likely to crash due to tired driving. Men were involved in drowsy driving crashes more often than women. In total, more than 3,400 crashes were attributed to sleepy drivers in Ohio last year.If you are feeling tired, you need to take steps to protect yourself and your fellow motorists. If you can, stop driving. You can switch drivers if you have a passenger who is not sleepy. You can find a safe place to pull over and rest. If you do not have time to rest, you can simply get out of the car for a few moments, stand up, stretch and regain alertness. Caffeine can help in certain situations. If you are still afraid of falling asleep behind the wheel, you owe it to yourself and the driving public to get off the roads.
Source: WLWT.com, "More Drowsy Drivers Crashing, Dying in Ohio," 9 April 2012
]]>The Ohio Senate is currently considering a bill to ban texting while driving. While this could arguably reduce the instances of distracted driving, texting bans alone cannot resolve the issue. The NTSB estimates that 18 percent of the fatal crashes attributed to distracted driving in 2009 involved cell phone use. Cell phones are just one of the distractions competing for a driver's attention, along with GPS devices and a range of built-in technology. These distractions join fast food, coffee, the radio, and passengers as common reasons for a driver's attention to leave the road.
]]> Allowing your attention to waver for even a moment can lead to a fatal car accident. Reading or composing a text takes an average of 4.6 seconds. Driving a car 55 miles per hour without looking at the road for 4.6 seconds is an obviously unsafe practice. In that time, the car will travel more than the length of a football field. It is no surprise that accidents are on the rise when this is considered a common practice.Driving is a serious responsibility. For your safety and the safety of those around you, do what you can to eliminate distractions and keep your eyes on the road. A distracted driver is a threat to everyone on the roads.
Source: The News-Messenger, "Texting just as bad as drunken driving" by Mark Tower, 3 April 2012
]]>Investigators are working to discover the point at which the pickup entered the highway, as well as any factors that may have contributed to the vehicle entering traffic in the wrong direction. It is believed that the vehicle started out going the wrong way on U.S. 52 and collided with the SUV where 52 joins with I-64. This is the latest in a string of severe accidents caused by wrong way drivers. Few situations pose as significant a hazard as driving in the wrong direction on a highway. The high speeds and presence of other vehicles at all hours of the day makes a collision almost a foregone conclusion.
]]> Safety experts have proposed several measures that could reduce the frequency of wrong way driving, as well as methods of informing other drivers and law enforcement officials when a driver enters a highway in the wrong direction. Methods ranging from larger and more numerous signs to sensors in the roads have been proposed to prevent these deadly accidents. It is not clear if any factor connects this latest string of wrong-way incidents.The accident occurred at roughly 3a.m. Friday morning. Investigators have not yet begun to determine whether alcohol may have been a factor in the crash.
Source: Huntington Herald-Dispatch, "Police investigate cause of fatal crash on Interstate 64," by Curtis Johnson, 10 March 2012
]]>The NHTSA investigated BMW because it believed that the company was not giving notice to consumer quickly enough. BMW issued 16 recalls last year for issues ranging from improper tire labels to defective fuel pumps. The NHTSA sought information about when BMW officials learned of each of these defects and how soon they communicated that information to consumers and the government. After finding that the company had violated the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act, it pursued a civil action.
]]> Motor vehicle recalls and other defective product recalls are a common occurrence. Defective designs, substandard components and manufacturing errors can lead to dangerous products getting to consumers. By requiring companies to acknowledge the safety concerns they find, the NHTSA tries to limit the potential for serious injuries. This fine sends a message to BMW that consumer safety is always the top priority.The decision to recall a product is often a costly one for car manufacturers. Without strict enforcement and substantial fines, these companies might choose to risk endangering consumers rather than own up to safety problems.
Source: NHTSA.gov, "BMW to Pay $3 Million in Civil Penalties for Untimely Reporting of 2010 Recalls," 10 February 2012
]]>Parents and guardians who are concerned about the safety of their teen when behind the wheel should set rules about the people who can ride along. A teen driver with other teens in the car is more likely to be distracted before a crash than a teen driver who is alone. Further, teenage males are significantly more likely to perform an illegal driving maneuver and drive aggressively if they have other teens in the car. While female teen drivers did show an increased tendency to be distracted, they did not drive more aggressively with teen passengers.
]]> Several states with restricted or graduated license programs have passed legislation about who can ride along with a newly licensed driver. Some laws restrict the number of passengers allowed, while others limit the passengers to immediate family members. No restriction can replace the value of teaching teen drivers the importance of safety behind the wheel. Parents and guardians need to manage their teen's driving habits and ensure that they are being responsible drivers.Teen drivers, particularly young men, are known to take risks when it comes to safety. While studies and safety statistics may have no impact on their behavior, they can help inform parents about what sorts of behaviors they should prohibit to protect their children. Teen drivers with teen passengers in the car risk their own safety and the safety of others on the road.
Source: The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, "Risky business: Teens driving with other teens," by Joel Provano, 24 January 2012
]]>Dublin officials are working with the Ohio Department of Public Safety, which has agreed to reimburse some of the expense of the program. They are targeting several of the issues that have drawn headlines all over the country. Distracted driving, speeding and drunk driving are all elements that make the roads unsafe and cause car and truck crashes. By focusing on these areas, Dublin officials are working to make their community safer.
]]> As part of the effort to combat distracted driving, the city of Dublin banned texting while driving earlier this year. They have also trained their officers to cite people for other distracted driving behaviors, such as reading or eating while driving. Anything that takes a person's eyes off the road poses a danger. The city has also created a safe ride program which encourages people who have had too much to drink to utilize free taxi rides, rather than driving drunk.Public awareness campaigns are sweeping the nation as the cost of distracted driving has grown. Thousands of people die every year in car accidents that were caused by drivers not giving their full attention to the road. Driving is a privilege, not a right. Every person on the road owes a duty of care to their fellow motorists. When that duty is abandoned, the consequences can be catastrophic.
Source: ThisWeek Community Newspapers, "Police working to reduce accident numbers," by Jennifer Noblit, 7 December 2011
]]>Perhaps the most common cause of car accidents among returning soldiers is risky and aggressive driving. Young men are a high risk demographic in terms of dangerous driving. The lessons veterans learn in Iraq and Afghanistan only compound the problems. Veterans may feel invincible on the roads, having survived so much already. In some situations, the soldiers feel anxious or distracted by approaching vehicles. They are trained to consider other vehicles a potential threat in a war zone and it is not easy to let that go once they are home.
]]> Another possible cause is one that is gaining national attention: undiagnosed brain injuries. Head trauma and post traumatic stress disorder can cause blackouts, memory loss and erratic behavior. Veterans who suffer from these conditions may have no idea that they are driving unsafely. The Department of Defense has teamed up with the VA and DOT in using simulators to identify dangerous driving habits and help re-train veterans to drive.The death of a soldier at war is a terrible loss. It is no less of a tragedy to lose one in a fatal car accident when they return home. The danger is well-documented, and for the safety of veterans and for all of us who share the roads with them, proper steps should be taken to ensure safe driving practices.
Source: AOL, "Tragedy On Wheels: Why Returning Vets Are In Frequent Car Crashes," Sharon Silke Carty, 13 October 2011
]]>Data suggests that Dayton's red-light ticket cameras are reducing the number-one cause of death for people under the age of 35 in Ohio: car accidents.
]]> "The biggest thing is it's a reduction in injuries and a reduction in property damage," Dayton Police Chief Richard Biehl says, as WHIO Dayton reports.Here are the numbers:
Spurred on by these positive findings, perhaps, WHIO Dayton reports that the city of Dayton will have more cameras installed at intersections and ready to go by October.
But not everyone believes in red-light ticket cameras. While they seem to be working to reduce the number of car wrecks in Dayton, some opponents believe they actually increase the number of accidents.
Take yellow lights, for example. If a driver is caught inside the intersection on a yellow light that turns red, the red-light camera might issue a ticket. Wary of this, drivers might slam on their brakes instead of proceeding through the intersection - when going through might've been the safer choice - leading to a rear-end accident.
Source: WHIO Dayton, "DPD: red light, speed cameras making roads safer," 08/31/11
]]>Darla Napora's husband got home and found her lying on the floor with the male pit bull hovering and "bloodied." The female pit bull was on its haunches in the corner of the room, "cowering."
]]> Analysis of teeth marks revealed that the bloodied male pit bull - his name was Gunner - was responsible for the attack. (The female pit bull did not participate.) Napora's husband locked Gunner up in a back room, but he escaped, and the police shot and killed him on the lawn.As Whitcomb reports, Captain Bertini says there's nothing indicating the pit bulls had been "trained to be aggressive," but that seems to be the thing with pit bulls - they can attack without warning or provocation, at least according to some groups.
But, according to the CDC, any dog can become a dangerous dog. PitBulls.org quotes a CDC report that advocates not making law and policy decisions based on the breed of dog: "Breed-specific legislation does not address the fact that a dog of any breed can become dangerous when bred or trained to be aggressive."
According to PitBulls.org, pit bulls actually have a roughly 85 percent pass rate for temperament, above the 77 percent average for all dogs, showing that "a dog is almost 100 percent a product of its owner and the training it receives."
Sources:
Reuters, "Pregnant woman killed by pit bull died from blood loss, shock," by Dan Whitcomb, 08/15/11
PitBulls.org, "Are Pit Bulls Dangerous?"
]]>As Mark Caudill reports for the Mansfield News Journal, Maschke testified, "I didn't feel I was under the influence."
Yet Maschke had consumed nine beers that day.
]]> A Timeline of the Day's EventsApparently the stress of a job interview got the best of Maschke; after the interview he blew off steam on the golf course with a friend and four beers. Then Maschke drove to visit another friend, where he consumed five more beers, for a total of nine.
Maschke then drove home, but forgot his sunglasses.
It happened on the way back to his friend's place, on County Road 37, where the lack of sunglasses and the setting sun - and probably the nine beers - led to the deadly accident.
Maschke testified, "The windshield caved in some. There was glass all over the passenger seat. My first thought was someone had launched a bottle from their car."
"I was looking right into the sun," he testified. "It was very, very difficult to see."
But Golden would have had to been standing in the middle of the lane to get hit by a passing car, unless Maschke had swerved onto the shoulder.
As Caudill reports, Maschke faces charges of vehicular homicide in connection with the drunk-driving accident, and could get up to eight years behind bars.
Source: Mansfield News Journal, "Fatal accident driver blames sun," by Mark Caudill, 08/18/11
]]>The man, Frank Billings, who appears to have caused the car wreck, was not as lucky. Billings was taken by helicopter to the University of Toledo Medical Center with serious injuries.
]]> As it happened, Helton was at the end of an unlikely chain of events that began with the at-fault driver.As Firehouse.com reports, Billings pulled out from a stop sign and into the path of an 18-wheeler. The 18-wheeler, in turn, hit Billings's car and ran off the road - directly into Helton's ground floor apartment where Helton lay sleeping.
Resident Monica Kirby woke up to what she calls a "booming sound." She says, "I then thought it maybe was a tree into the house. I ran out of my door and saw a big semi through the building. I have a 19-month-old daughter. She was in bed with me sleeping. I was scared for my family and my neighbors."
The driver of the 18-wheeler was apparently unhurt, making him perhaps the second luckiest person involved in this accident - besides Helton, of course.
Source: Firehouse.com, "Semi Smashes Into Ohio Apartment Building," 08/12/11
]]>But, not until recently, has a judge or jury come to a decision regarding the company's civil liability with these problems.
]]> Last month, in Sitafalwalla v. Toyota Motor Sales USA Inc., a jury from the U.S. District Court, Eastern District of New York, ruled in favor of Toyota. The plaintiff filed a product liability suit against the automaker alleging that the faulty floor mats or electronic throttle control system in his 2005 Toyota Scion had design defects and thereby caused the vehicle to unexpectedly accelerate and crash into a tree. The plaintiff also claimed that Toyota should have installed a brake override system that could have prevented the crash but didn't.However, Toyota argued that Sitafalwall was responsible for the crash because he inadvertently stepped on the accelerator pedal instead of the break.
The jury, it seems, agreed.
Sitafalwalla v. Toyota Motor Sales USA Inc., is the first case to come before and be decided by a jury regarding the acceleration problems in Toyota automobiles. However, Toyota's problems are far from over. The Japanese company faces hundreds of other similar lawsuits relating to acceleration issues.
The decision to appeal has yet to be decided.
]]>The launch of the Website comes at a great time. The Pew Internet & American Life Project-part of the Pew Research Center known as the "fact tank" that provides information about current trends around the word-reports that 78 percent of individuals ages 50 to 64 years of age are now using the Web to gather information.
However, individuals who suspect elder abuse or negligent is happening to them or their loved ones should also consult with an experienced Ohio elder law attorney knowledgeable in this area of law. A lawyer can offer advice pertaining to your specific situation.
Source: http://www.prweb.com/releases/2011/04/prweb5229084.htm
]]>BioSan Laboratories has voluntarily recalled a list of food products due to potential soy contamination. The companies claims the levels of soy are minimal, but they are still taking precautionary measures and pulling the products from the market to eliminate the potential allergic reactions that consumers with soy allergies may experience.
Specifically, the company is recalling products under the following product lines:
Carl Jackson, President of BioSan Laboratories says the company is only recalling products that specifically do not list amino acid chelates from soy on the labels. In 2004, Congress passed the Food Allergy Labeling Consumer Protection Act (FALCPA) requiring food manufacturers to conspicuously label and inform consumers if any product has even a slight potential of containing soy in the ingredients. Since the Act went into effect in 2006, the popular phrase "may contain" is found on many product labels.
Soy allergies are one of the most common food allergies. According to the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, infants and children are at a higher risk than adults. Soy is found in many manufactured products such as infant formula, cereal and salad dressings. Soy is also a main ingredient in many fast food restaurant items.
Individuals can experience a wide range of mild to severe allergic reactions. Specific mild allergic reactions include mouth tingling, hives, itching, and abdominal pain. More severe allergic reactions can include airway restriction (making it difficult to breathe), severe drop in blood pressure, and loss of consciousness.
Consumers are advised to visit www.biosanlaboratories.com for a complete list of recalled products.
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