Guide to Medical Labor Laws

In a plan to have a global restructuring, medical device maker Medtronics is cutting jobs this year. CNNMoney.com reports that Medtronic plans to reduce its workforce by 1,100 jobs. Medtronic Spokeswoman Marybeth Thorsgaard said that the jobs to be cut will come from the company’s businesses that have stopped experiencing growth.

The Minneapolis-based company employs around 39,000 workers worldwide, 60 percent of them are in the United States while 40 percent are overseas. While the planned job cut is not at all shocking given the state of the U.S. economy, this job cut will surely affect the families of the concerned workers who are still unnamed.

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As patients, all of us can be assured that if in the event that something goes wrong, we are covered by law for instances like malpractice and such. Apparently, there are some medical institutions that fail to realize the importance of making sure that they practice should be accurate and effective. It is not a mere issue of rendering the desired medical service. It is also about looking out for the welfare of people today.

We have a lot of malpractice in the world today and most of them have been addressed. Expect the medial field to be a lot tighter as people are in need of medical services for their health outlook today.

A group of California health care providers is presently at odds with the state over health payment cuts. Last February, in a move to control the state’s budget, California’s governor signed a law that reduces health care payments by 10 percent. This translates to a whopping 1.3 billion dollars to be taken out from the Medi-Cal program by July 1st. (Medi-Cal program is the name given to California’s Medicaid.)

MedicalNewsToday.com reports that the health care providers took legal action in response to this. A “class action” lawsuit was filed in the Los Angeles County Superior Court against the state in an attempt to prevent the implementation of the said law.

As I see it, reducing health care payments has put the government of California in a bad light. For one, the cut will make it hard for health care providers to serve more people given their limited resources. Another thing is, Medi-Cal itself will find it difficult to discharge its duties given the tension between the government and its health care provider- partners.

For more juicy details, click here.

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Negligence and malpractice are both unintentional torts that can happen in the medical setting. Let us define the difference between the two.

According to the book, “Fundamentals of Nursing,” of Barbara Kozier, et. al, “negligence is misconduct or practice that is below the standard expected of an ordinary, reasonable and prudent person, placing another person at risk for harm. Malpractice, on the other hand, is “professional negligence” that is, negligence that occurred while the person was performing as a professional.”

It is important to know the difference between negligence and malpractice, especially when you are a medical practitioner so that you are aware of your potential liability while doing your job or while simply helping others survive from an injury or sickness.

To sum it up, both negligence and malpractice are wrong acts which should be avoided especially by physicians, dentists, nurses and other medical specialists. Why? It is because as they are responsible of saving the lives of their patients.

Vaccination had been the solution to fight the act of genocide in 1760’s when the British military government issued blankets of smallpox to exterminate native Americans in the eastern part of the United States.

History tells us that in 1931, America created a manmade disease, using African Americans as experimental victims, for the main reason of controlling the world’s increasing population, particularly the black race. It was the death of Rock Hudson, an actor, that introduced this new disease to the world, and the said disease was Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome or AIDS (Source: http://www.helium.com/items/382031-america-vaccinations-necessitythe-question).

The issue of immunizations has gathered different perspectives from society. Now that we are in the 21st century, exposed with many diseases such as influenza, hepatitis, pneumonia, polio and the like, we should be thankful that vaccinations are invented. However, some also think that the government, inhumane and criminal against its citizens, is the one who has dictated that vaccinations are a necessity.

Minor changes were made in the Family and Medical Leave Act, allowing employers to ask from employees and their doctors the nature and cause of illness, suggested medical treatments, and length of recovery period that require them to apply for leave.

Victoria Lipnic, Assistant Secretary of Labor for Employment Standards, said that the proposed revisions can create a sound and good workplace that both workers and employers can enjoy. The strength of employer-employee relationship can be tested by being open, transparent and honest of the two parties, along with the support given by concerned doctors.

The Family and Medical Leave Act was publicly open for comments and suggestion until April 11, 2008. To know more for updates and information, feel free to visit www.regulations.gov.

You already heard about the parable of “The Good Samaritan,” which can be found in Luke 10:29-37 of the New Testament, but have you heard about the Good Samaritan Law?

According to WikiPedia, the Good Samaritan Law is “an act protecting from blame those who choose to aid others who are ill and injured. They are intended to reduce bystanders’ hesitation to assist, for fear of being sued or prosecuted for unintentional injury or wrongful death.”

This law, I believe, can be very helpful, particularly in times of emergency when there are no doctors or medical practitioners around to attend to the patients’ medical needs. However, anyone who offers to help must have the appropriate knowledge, skills and confidence to handle the task and should not be held responsible if in case the patients’ condition worsened.

With a background in basic medical and first aid applications, I am glad that the Good Samaritan Law was created. The act actually serves as a shield against public judgments and legal charges in favor of concerned citizens whose personal aim is to do a good deed for the good of others.

Are you a good Samaritan? Read more about the Good Samaritan Law.

More and more Americans become fat, or worse, obese, because of imbalanced diet, lack of exercise and unhealthy lifestyle. Hence, there are so many options to choose from to regain a healthier and slimmer body.

SmartLipo is believed to be one of the most effective procedures to remove body fats. Through the use of a 1.0 to 2.0-mm tube containing a laser fiber inserted to the skin, fat cells are easily drained away, resulting in a firmer and more toned figure.

Though natural dieting is still the preferred way to lose weight, I would choose to undergo a liposuction if given a chance. It is a bit risky but compared to other cosmetic surgeries, SmartLipo offers minimal recovery period, reduced pain, less trauma, and untraceable surgery marks after three months.

Interested to try SmartLipo, visit this site.

March is national social work month, the time of the year when we honor medical social workers. These compassionate individuals contribute in no small way to the efficient delivery of medical services to home care, hospice care and hospitals and other medical institutions throughout the year.

This month serves as a perfect opportunity for medical social workers to be recognized for their hard work. They work in close coordination with doctors, nurses, therapists and other allied medical professionals to lessen the burden of illness on patients and their families.

I salute medical social workers for their hard work and generosity of spirit. It is no easy feat to handle other people’s burden when you also have to deal with your own.

In the February 13 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), a survey was made on selected US medical schools about conflicts of interests. It was focused primarily on financial interests of institutional officials.

The survey found out that only a minority of US medical schools have adopted policies to address conflicts of interests, particularly financial interests. This is due to the fact that most senior officials have a financial relationship with or financial interest in a public or private company. These relationships are found to affect institutional processes and compromise the integrity of the institution so careful considerations and measures should be implemented.

I think that in every institution, conflicts of interests arise which make it rational for them to create policies that will set limitations and priorities as a way of correcting these problems.