Doctors who followed a checklist developed by the World Health Organization cut the worldwide surgical death rate by almost half and reduced complications by more than one-third. Ask patient's name, mark incision site, count sponges after surgery ' those are three of the nineteen items on the checklist. Although the results of using the list are most dramatic in developing countries, Britain, Ireland, Jordon and the Philippines will use it in all operating rooms. The Joint Commission, which sets standards for most U.S. hospitals, is considering using more of the steps ' which would be steps in the right direction.
According to numbers released in January 2009 by the National Center for Health Statistics, some numbers are going in the wrong direction. The number of obese Americans (people 100 pounds or more overweight) now exceeds the number of overweight Americans. Thirty-four percent are obese and 32.7 percent are overweight. Thirty-four percent means more than 72 million Americans are obese ' more than double the number in 1980. Although the percent of overweight Americans remained stable, the percent of extremely obese is now 6 percent. Among other things, excess weight increases the risk of heart disease, diabetes and several types of cancer ' and being healthy becomes a fat chance.
In a study done at Carnegie Mellon University 150 healthy men and women were asked to record how long they slept at night and how much time they spent tossing and turning. After 2 weeks the volunteers were infected with a cold virus. Those who slept less than 7 hours nightly were 3 times more likely to get a cold. Those who tossed and turned or spent a lot of time trying to go to sleep were also much more likely to get sick. It seems the importance of sleep is a cold, hard fact.
Researchers at MIT told 82 healthy volunteers they'd be helping to determine the facts regarding the effectiveness of a new, pain-relieving drug. Each volunteer was given a placebo before and after receiving a series of electric shocks up to their pain tolerance. Half the group was told each pill cost $2.50. The other half was told each cost 10 cents. Those who thought they had gotten the more expensive drug reported significantly less pain. This study explains why patients prefer brand-name drugs to cheaper generic drugs which contain the same active compound ' brand namely because they've been convinced by advertisements.
About the Author:
Knight Pierce Hirst has written for television, newspapers and greeting cards. Now she writes a 400-word blog three times a week. KNIGHT WATCH, a second look at what makes life interesting, takes only seconds to read at http://knightwatch.typepad.com
