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April 23, 2007
Taxi Security Shields Cause Craniofacial Injuries
Be darn sure you buckle up when riding in a taxi. Those plastic partitions are dangerous!
New data is reported to show that taxi security shields are a significant cause of craniofacial injury and trauma. Alternatives are being considered, including use of cameras for security or cushioning the shields.
Doctors Predict Fewer Taxi Craniofacial Injuries, By Gabrielle Birkner (New York Sun, April 2, 2007): http://www.nysun.com/article/51639
"Though crash rates for taxicabs are one-third less than those for other vehicles, 3,349 medallion taxi accidents involved injuries or fatalities in 2004, the most recent year for which data are available. Among those seriously injured in an accident, 68% of yellow cab passengers experienced head or face trauma, compared to 49% of those riding in liveries and 35% in other vehicles, another Schaller Consulting study released last year showed."
Schaller Consulting: Taxi Regulation and Policy: Taxi and Livery Crashes in New York City, 2004 [Released 2006]
Posted by pfa at 10:44 AM | Comments (1)
April 09, 2007
Betsy's Recommendations: A Movie and a Book
Betsy just wrote me to recommend a couple items that have caught her interest and excitement.
The first is the movie Stolen. The main plot of the movie focuses on art theft, but according to Betsy the movie contains a subplot touching on nose prostheses, facial disfigurement and facial reconstruction. The film is now available for purchase as a DVD.
The second item Betsy is recommending is To Die Well, a book by Dr. Sidney Wanzer and Dr. Joseph Glenmullen. From the book's web site, this phrase seems to best describe its purpose.
"The information in To Die Well is both comforting and empowering. Knowing our rights to refuse treatment, as well as legal ways to bring about death if pain or distress cannot be alleviated, will spare us the frightening helplessness that can rob our last days of meaning and connection with others."
Posted by pfa at 09:22 AM | Comments (0)
April 06, 2007
Consumer Health Advocacy in Second Life
Have you heard of Second Life? Just in case you haven't, Second Life is an online 3D role playing 'game'. You see, it is not so much of a game with rules and a goal to win as it is an immersive imaginary environment, a place to go and be that allows people to reimagine themselves and their environments.
In Second Life you will find homes, jobs, gardens, shopping malls, nighclubs, libraries, and many other accoutrements of real life. The University of Michigan Medical School is getting involved with Second Life for education, as are many other organizations. There is a consumer health library group in Second Life known as HealthInfo Island.
In the link below, you will find that a major force in Second Life for the consumer health outreach of HealthInfo Island is a young woman who was transformed by a facial injury into a consumer health advocate.
InfoIsland: Second Life healthcare advocate interviewed for ‘Who’s On Second?’: http://infoisland.org/2007/04/03/second-life-healthcare-advocate-interviewed-for-whos-on-second/
Posted by pfa at 08:37 PM | Comments (0)