After long delay, federal regulations for enforcing nursing home standards may be issued this year
Article Abstract:
The Nursing Home Reform Amendments became effective Oct 1990, but regulations for enforcing the standards have yet to be adopted. The new law establishes a patient bill of rights and requires facilities to design care plans for and routinely assess the health status of each resident. The purpose is to ensure that nursing homes provide the 'highest practicable' level of care, not just custodial care, and already care has noticeably improved since its enactment. Efforts to issue rules for enforcement have been hampered by the lobbying of the nursing home industry. The industry claims that annual surprise investigations and citations for all violations will not distinguish between homes that really provide poor care and homes that provide good care. They say meeting the reforms will cost the public billions of dollars and argue for the use of a scale in determining violations and the establishment of a conflict resolution process. Consumer advocates say the industry is merely looking for ways to avoid correcting violations and to prevent public exposure.
Publication Name: JAMA, The Journal of the American Medical Association
Subject: Health
ISSN: 0098-7484
Year: 1993
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Rapid clot-dissolving drugs promising for stroke
Article Abstract:
The same clot-dissolving drugs used to treat heart attacks may be useful in treating strokes. Approximately 500,000 strokes occur in the US each year; one-third are fatal and one-third cause lifelong disability. Three-quarters of these strokes are caused by a blood clot that lodges in an artery in the brain, cutting off the blood supply to the area. When the same thing occurs in the heart, the result is a heart attack. Researchers at the University of California at Irvine injected the clot-busting drug urokinase into the carotid artery of a woman suffering a stoke. The clot, which was lodged in the artery, had cut off the blood supply to the entire left side of her brain. The physicians were able to restore blood flow, and the patient recovered within hours. French researchers report similar success in five of 12 patients treated. Hospital emergency rooms should treat stroke patients with the same urgency that they treat heart attack patients.
Publication Name: JAMA, The Journal of the American Medical Association
Subject: Health
ISSN: 0098-7484
Year: 1993
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Biological response modifiers may yield a new class of drugs to treat arthritis
Article Abstract:
A new class of drugs shows promise in treating rheumatoid arthritis. The new drugs block the inflammation process within the joint that destroys joint cartilage. Three medications are being tested in humans. Each targets a different element in the inflammation process. One binds to an inflammation-inducing molecule floating in solution, rendering it inactive. Another binds to receptors on a type of white blood cell that triggers the immune system to attack. The third binds to cell membrane receptors preventing attachment of yet another type of inflammation-inducing molecule. None of the drugs appears to cause serious side effects.
Publication Name: JAMA, The Journal of the American Medical Association
Subject: Health
ISSN: 0098-7484
Year: 1997
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