'What's in a name?' The paperwork reduction act
Article Abstract:
The 'Paperwork Reduction Act' was initially enacted in 1980 with the goal of reducing the proliferation of unnecessary paperwork. However, this act contains a clause that will damage the National Library of Medicine, an institution that has long been the source of reliable information for doctors. Currently, the Library's databases, which contain the largest and highest quality collection of medical literature, are available to private vendors by license agreement only. This ensures the Library's quality control over medical information. For example, MEDLINE, the largest of the on-line data bases, is updated every two weeks and any discrepancies are quickly corrected. Without a licensing agreement, there would be no way to monitor or enforce high quality standards, and the products generated would not have to be current or accurate. This could be critical to patient care; if an error in drug dosage occurred in the data base without correction, a physician might be misguided in treating a patient. Not only could this be dangerous to the patient, but many lawsuits could also result. To remedy this, another bill has been introduced in the Senate, the Federal Information Resources Management Act of 1989. This bill also supports the free flow of information from government agencies, but does not restrict the Library from making license agreements with private vendors of the material. The National Library of Medicine is an essential resource for all physicians which must be safeguarded; compromising the quality of the materials issued from this source could have a serious negative impact upon the practice of medicine in the country. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)
Publication Name: JAMA, The Journal of the American Medical Association
Subject: Health
ISSN: 0098-7484
Year: 1990
User Contributions:
Comment about this article or add new information about this topic:
Aortocoronary bypass with saphenous vein graft
Article Abstract:
Coronary artery bypass surgery is probably one of the most intensively studied surgical procedures of the 20th Century. Bypassing diseased coronary arteries was first mentioned in 1910 by an American who later won a Nobel Prize. By the 1950s, surgeons were considering the operation and by the 1960s, it was being performed. However, many physicians were alarmed at its popularity and began evaluating the operation in clinical trials. It is clear that the operation relieves symptoms and possibly prolongs life. About 1 million bypass operations are performed in the US each year.
Publication Name: JAMA, The Journal of the American Medical Association
Subject: Health
ISSN: 0098-7484
Year: 1996
User Contributions:
Comment about this article or add new information about this topic:
Aortocoronary bypass with saphenous vein graft: seven-year follow-up
Article Abstract:
The editors of JAMA reprint the 1973 article documenting the first long-term follow-up of a patient with a coronary bypass graft. The 42-year-old man had severe coronary artery disease and angina and had received the bypass in 1964. Seven years later, the graft was still functioning but his disease had progressed and several other coronary arteries were obstructed. The man had returned to work and had almost no episodes of angina.
Publication Name: JAMA, The Journal of the American Medical Association
Subject: Health
ISSN: 0098-7484
Year: 1996
User Contributions:
Comment about this article or add new information about this topic:
- Abstracts: Physical and psychosocial functioning of women and men after coronary artery bypass surgery. Physicians' Experiences and Beliefs Regarding Informal Consultation
- Abstracts: A clinical trial of vena caval filters in the prevention of pulmonary embolism in patients with proximal deep-vein thrombosis
- Abstracts: Heparin in acute coronary disease - requiem for a heavyweight? Future trials of antiplatelet agents in cardiac ischemia
- Abstracts: Pediatric resident training in a school environment: a prescription for learning. Effects of structural encounter forms on pediatric house staff knowledge, parent satisfaction, and quality of care: a randomized, controlled trial
- Abstracts: Streptokinase for acute ischemic stroke with relationship to time of administration. Aptiganel Hydrochloride in Acute Ischemic Stroke: A Randomized Controlled Trial. (Original Contribution)