A New York State legislator is proposing a trio of bills inspired by a woman whose story shed light on a Columbia University doctor accused of sexually assaulting dozens of pregnant women in his care.
In 1973, an understated article in the New England Journal of Medicine catalyzed a movement. Doctor Budd N. Shenkin and researcher David C. Warner called for a patient's right to access their medical records. They said it would improve the doctor-patient relationship and avoid “excessive bureaucracy.”
When the team of students walked into the exam room, they weren’t sure to expect. They stood on the perimeter of the stark, fluorescently lit room, and introduced themselves to a patient who called herself Sheila Jones. The students were there to take part in an interprofessional workshop put on by the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. Sheila said she was there because she suffered from extreme back pain.
Michael Johnson is 57. He’s from Dallas. He’s diabetic. He has a job in fast food. He rents a home. He gets by. Until recently, no one ever explained to him how hospitals, doctors and emergency rooms work. “My momma always told me when something’s wrong with you, go see the doctor,” Johnson said. The only way he knew to see a doctor was go to the emergency room at Parkland Hospital, which is why he racked up 31 ER visits in 24 months.
John Peter Smith Hospital in Fort Worth issued a 'Code Yellow' on Tuesday, saying the emergency department is overwhelmed with a high number of patients. While the hospital remains in a 'Code Yellow,' patients that have a minor illness are encouraged to visit an urgent care facility close to your home, or even visit the JPS family health center for treatment, instead of the ER.
Baystate Health plans to close underutilized intensive care units in Westfield and Palmer and convert the six beds at each hospital to regular medical-surgical use with a lower level of care. It has also asked the state Department of Public Health to take the six pediatric beds at Baystate Noble Hospital in Westfield off the institution’s license and close that ward, said spokeswoman Shelly Hazlett.