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Show SUMMER THE CHRONICLE UTAH E THE CHRONIC L E ' S VIEW 'e-- e GysVem'? Human Error That Can't Be Excused r m1 die because of medical J-J erroralmost three tiroes as many as are ciaimed by AIDS. This needs to stop. The University of Utah Health Sciences Center is one of many institutions nationwide working to correct this bealth-c&r- e problem internally. While variables surely exist at one hospital that don't exist at another, many of the causes of medical error are intrinsic to American health care itself and require system-wid- e corrections, not internal ones. Physicians and other health-- , care providers are overworked. Doctors don't spend as much time with patients as patients sary evil of the 11 "Miotic Week- - XtchO : 1 . . . tWi 1 aw. w if Mm i 11 II f i " ' ? ac' health-car- e sys- Politics for the Birds LETTER TO THE EDITOR , harm. A Capitol Embarrassment . One criticism of American health care is the proliferates of malpractice lawsuits. The U.S. Congress is debating two "patients bills of rights'! which could open the niatprae--tic- e floodgate for good ot ill. No absolute solution is, ultimately, possible Doctors, hum- -' es, pharmacists and others despite intense training and high standsxds are human, beings. Human beings make mistakes. But 44,000 a year is too many." oft-tout- , - . I es. In the medical industry's effort to heal, greed only causes a the diagnosing patient, chances of misdiagnoses increase dramatically. Excessive work also results in 4 . . 1 '1 tem. Excessive work spawned by greedv though, is, Doctors and HMOs should not asserrJIy-liti- e patients just to fatten their purs- If insufficient time is spent , . -- kjwViV once. Excessive work is not a neces- need. At the end of an extended workday, health-car- s providers are obviously not as fresh, as they were at sunme. After a week, a mouth, or a career of long days, fatigue takes its toll. Although providers instruct patients on healthy living, aiaay providers blatantly disregard those instructions when It comes to themselves.. unhealtnv The brutally . &ffc rauje gfcup Wrf'.Ue'"r9 Ar oP 4Ve VTIZ 1 approach the United States tikes toward its providers begins with education. Medical students and residents work gruelling hours and must meet ridiculously high , expectations. While this baptism of fire prepares tned students for the demands of their careers, the emphasis on quantity over quality is inherently flawed. Medical schools should teach their students to do one thing, do it very well and then move onnot a thousand things, at very year, 44,000 people fatigue. VGiori -- ed ; people. Now what have they done to get it? They sit down there on welfare and arc glad you're payin' taxes. Got a sweetheart deal, I don't sec the equity in it..." Mr. Hansen's smug misrepresentation of the Puerto racist and condescendRican people was and indefensible. were His extreme comments ing. Hansen should resign. JIM DOUGLAS Editor: M'god, did you hear that explosion? No, it wasn't the backyard bombing practice near our neighbors in and his outVieques. It was Rep. James Hansen, Steve to and retort Inskeep on "All flippant rageous was which Considered" equally unacceptable. Things If you missed it, Hansen barfed this: "I dunno, I come down to the idea that I don't see where Puerto Rico should get any favored treatment over the rest of these . - mean-spirite- d, Cleveland, Ohio Unsigned editorials reflect the majority opinion of The Daily Utah Chronicle Editorial Board. Editorial columns and letters to the editor are strictly the opinions of the author. The ferum created on the Opinion Page is one based on vigorous debate, while at the same time demanding tolerance and respect. Material defamatory to an individual or group because of race, ethnic background, gender, appearance or seiual orientation will be edited or will not be published. History R epeatsltse If and So D o the Headlines recently spent four long and beautifully lazy days at a secluded cabin in the Uinta ed me of a cnn.com headline I had seen just weeks before: "Prince digs crazy rhythm." What partying prince did these headlines g highlight? The purple-cla"Artist Formerly Known As The Artist Formerly Known As Prince?" No, both headlines reported the adventures of swank Charles, Prince of Wales, who evidently has always liked to party like it's 1999. As they say, the more things change, the Mountains, far away from cars, crowds and the general din of civilization. g I also spent this time away from my interest the news media. Between National Public Radio, Yahoo! Internet news alerts, the daily newspaper, CNN and Night-linnews I feel like I run my own network. This would all change on vacation, I thought. I was wrong. To my surprise, in the back of a closet full of games, I stumbled upon the most interesting news reporting I have read in ages. My find? Section A of the Deseret News from exactly 20 years ago. This June 18, 1981, newspaper fascinated me. The paper was gritty and yellow and the print was fading, but many of the stories seemed incredibly new and familiar, as though they had been plucked from today's newswires. I felt I was reading the news of the present, not the news of the past. The first familiar headline I read was "Prince goes home after whirlwind visit to N.Y." This 1981 headline immediately remind more they stay the same. But Prince Charles' carousing wasn't the only news from 20 years ago that seemed to be replaying in today's headlines. Other stories and headlines from the 1981 paper showed remarkable similarity to recent news reports. For example: bill" 1981: "Senate starts early on tax-c2001: "Senate approves cut in income tax in bipartisan vote" (New York Times, May 24) 1981: "Vietnam vet kills 3, wounds 7" 2001: "8 slain at school in Japan" (Deseret News, June 8) . 1981: "No new trial for child killer" 2001: "Judge refuses McVeigh's bid for a reprieve" (New York Times, June 7) Sound similar? Try this excerpt from a story in the 1981 Deseret News: "China's position is that any arms sales to Taiwan arc an unacceptable interference in Chinese internal affairs..." Here is the 2001 version from the New York Times: "Beijing expressed serious concern over reports that the United States would permit the sale of advanced weapons to Taiwan..." As they say, there is nothing new under the MICHAEL CHIDESTER d, Chronicle Opinion Columnist I fastest-growin- e, 24-ho- ur CHRONICLE OPINION EDITOR stage-prancin- ut SCOTT LEWIS sun. Or is there? The 1981 newspaper wasn't only full of amazing similarities. Two columns from the paper showed some compelling differencesnot in the issues, but in how society views the issues. One such column by an Associated Press reporter explains how Procter & Gamble, one of the nation's largest corporations and largest TV advertisers, had refused to advertise on "dozens of oversexed and overly violent TV programs." The column also lists Pepsi as a corporation with a "longstanding policy against advertising its product amid sex and violence," according to one Pepsi official. Now consider these comments about Procter & Gamble and Pepsi in light of last Friday's 2001 MTV Movie Awards. During the annual awards show, advertisements for two youth-orientat- ed Procter & Gamble products aired shortly after Mark Hoppus, one of the party hosts, declared, "My favorite part (of the show) was definitely Shannon Elizabeth's pre-sho- w breasts." While Hoppus' comment seemed to embarhe is probably not all to rass even his blame. After all, Elizabeth's mesh outfit wasn't meant to keep any secrets. Pepsi was also a prominent advertiser at the Movie Awards, airing an ad right before the performance of "Lady Marmalade" by Christina Aguilera, Li'l Kim, Mya and Pink. Dressed like prostitutes (the terminology is kind) from the movie Moulin Rouge, these fine artists who are also not into secrets put on a perfor co-hos- ts, LETTERSCHRONICLE.UTAH.EDU mance that would certainly raise the eyebrows (and blood pressure) of any purchaser of d products. Procter & Gamble and Pepsi both claim to still maintain similar advertising policies as those of 1981. Apparently, then, the MTV Movie Avards were "undcrscxed." Another Associated Press report from the 1981 issue of the Deseret News was telling of societal change. The column describes a first youth-oriente- in U.S. medical history. "Doctors," it says, "punctured the heart of a defective fetus and left it to wither away in the womb beside its normal twin." The mother, it reports, felt unprepared to care for the child who was diagnosed with Down syndrome. Most interesting in this story is the physi- cians' description of the operation they performed. The AP records, "The doctors reported that the fetus was killed by withdrawing about haif its blood through a hollow needle inserted in its heart, which then stopped beating." Interesting wording. The fetus was "killed;" the heart "stopped beating." These words are not exactly what one would usually use to describe a "reproductive health procedure." They are certainly not the terminology used now by the AP or by modern physicians. But perhaps these doctors had not yet been "enlightened." Yes, as they say, the more things change... welcomes Michael at: feedback mchidestcrchroniclc.utah.edu or send a letter to the editor at: lcttcrschroniclc.utah.edu. 581-704- 1 |