Dozens of organ and tissue donors will be honored on a float sponsored by Donate Life America in the 2011 Tournament of Roses Parade.
Racial disparity in baby death rates is not a new subject. It's a complex, insiduous, and, at times, inflammatory, issue. In my corner of the world, there are communities where the baby death rate is nearly three times the national norm.
This piece focused on Los Angeles’ ethnic communities: How they are key to increasing organ donations and, on the other side, how they benefit from these life-saving procedures. I wanted to establish a human connection right away — to show how a donated organ can help an individual who is very ill, almost to the point of dying. Through my reporting, I’ve also learned that donation helps the donor family by providing consolation for the loss. As a number of donor families have told me: “My loved one lives on, helping another person to stay alive.” With the help of OneLegacy, the organ donation agency for the L.A. area, I made contact with a donor’s parents and the recipient of a donated kidney that brought him back to health. That gave me my lead. Then, I described how OneLegacy is working to raise awareness about organ donation in the area’s three primary ethnic communities: Latino, Asian and African American. Together, these groups make up more than 60% of the population served by OneLegacy in Southern California. With the help of OPTN media specialists, I determined that these groups also make up about the same proportion of organ donors and organ recipients. The piece was posted on LA Beez, an online collaboration of ethnic media outlets. It was a pleasure to work with editor Jerry Sullivan and website specialist Kevin Chan.
With the number of traffic fatalities on the rise, San Francisco is quickly becoming one of the country's most dangerous cities to navigate on foot.
How did William Hamman, the United Airlines pilot who faked being a cardiologist, get away with it? By speaking with authority and knowing that nobody was going to bother to fact-check his résumé, including the Wisconsin Medical Examining Board.
Reporter's note:
One year ago from yesterday, 11-year-old Chandler Nash Elliott hung himself while his father was at work. We received a press release about the suicide over the fax. Like most news agencies, we do not report on suicides unless they are in a public place or the deceased is a public figure.
I told my colleagues -- and we all agreed -- that this would not make the news unless the family approached us, wanting to tell the boy's story.
The next morning, that's exactly what happened.
Rosa Girón was born in San Salvador in El Salvador. Ms. Girón has lived in South Central Los Angeles for many years. In 2001, Ms. Girón studied to become a community health promoter with Esperanza Community Housing Corporation. This was a path to open many doors, because it gave her the opportunity to help other people through home visits, health classes, and referrals. Today, Ms.
