Three high-profile deaths that occurred over the past year are worth noting as reminders of the larger topics that should be top of mind for health writers.
Patient Safety and Ethics
A good friend of mine recently underwent a significant surgery. Several weeks out, he was still experiencing some negative side effects. When he asked the surgeon about it, he didn’t get much more than a blank stare.
Addiction usually leaves a wake of chaos, and all kinds of casualties - marriages, jobs, health. Today's opioid addiction crisis is not only claiming lives, but sparking a new epidemic of hepatitis C among new injection drug users.
Reporting on Health Contributing Editor William Heisel set off a spirited discussion this week on Twitter on the risk of addiction to opioid pain medicine. What are the implications for chronic pain management and treatment?
Duane Middleton died shortly after a routine colonoscopy. Then his life insurance provider denied his wife any benefits, a decision later held up in court. So how could three judges conclude that Middleton's death didn't qualify as an "accident"?
Duane Middleton's colon was torn during a colonoscopy, and he died shortly after. His death was ruled an accident. But when Middleton's wife sought benefits from his insurance policy, she was told his death didn't meet the policy's definition of an accident.
Duane Middleton died at the age of 54, from complications following a colonoscopy. Such complications are exceedingly rare. Where then does that leave his family?
Researchers are growing increasingly aware that the prenatal period and early childhood are exquisitely sensitive to external insults such as environmental contaminants.
Minimally-regulated residential care for the elderly is a fast growing, less expensive alternative to nursing homes. Seattle Times investigative reporter Mike Berens explains how state agencies saved money by placing poor and vulnerable adults in these facilities, then ignored problems, like abuse.
This story was produced as part of a larger project led by Suzanne Bohan and Sandy Kleffman, participants in the
Other stories in this series include: