Friday Blog Roundup

Drug resistance is a big news topic this week. Tara Smith at Correlations describes MRSAâs move from hospitals to communities; Mike the Mad Biologist has numbers on the toll of that antibiotic-resistant bug; and Theo Francis at the WSJ Health Blog highlights a shortage of infection-control specialists to help hospitals tackle the problem. Also at the WSJ Health Blog, Jacob Goldstein reports that a Mexican businessman with multi-drug-resistant tuberculosis crossed the border into Texas 71 times and took several flights into the US (so much for being able to control diseasesâ movement across borders).

Ruth Levine at Global Health Policy considers the similarities between drug resistance and global warming, and starts by noting that both âare a result of profligate overuse of a precious resource (fossil fuels, the ability to kill harmful bugs) without mindfulness about long-term consequences.â

Elsewhere:

At the Health Affairs Blog, Leonard Burman, Kim Reuben, and Genevieve Kenney explain why it makes sense to fund SCHIP with tobacco taxes.

Emily Douglas at RH Reality Check reports that Dr. Susan Orr, the new Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for Population Affairs at the Office of Public Health and Science, is no fan of contraception.

Matt Madia at Reg Watch brings us the latest example of the White Houseâs OIRA thwarting agency efforts: NOAAâs efforts to protect whales and krill are stuck in the officeâs opaque review process.

Ed Silverman at Pharmalot summarizes a new study published in JAMA on industry relationships with chairs or departments at medical schools and teaching hospitals.

Kane at OSHA Underground examines the citations OSHA issued to Cintas after the death laundry worker Eleazar Torres-Gomez in a dryer at a Cintas facility in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

The Olive Ridley Crawl reminds us where waste goes, and who suffers from it.

Amanda at Enviroblog suggests ways to reduce household phthalate exposure.

More like this

Mr. Eleazar Torres-Gomez, 46, was killed at an Oklahoma Cintas laundry plant on March 6, 2007, when he was dragged into an industrial dryer because of an unguarded conveyor.  Federal OSHA investigated the fatality and, this week, proposed a $2.78 million penalty for, among other things, 42…
Cong. Woolsey's Workforce Protections Subcommittee held a hearing today on OSHA's inadequate enforcement of safety and health standards at large, multiple-facility corporations.  Members of the Committee heard the gruesome details of the death of Mr. Eleazar Torres-Gomez in an industrial…
By David Michaels It seems to happen almost by instinct. When a worker dies in a workplace accident, the employer responds by expressing sadness but making it clear it was the worker's own damn fault (and the employer is faultless, of course). The management of BP initially blamed worker mistakes…
Nanotechnology is getting some attention these days. Revere at Effect Measure (which just celebrated its third blogiversary!) gauges the level of alarm about nanotechnology; at Science Progress, Michael Peroski looks at the current regulatory framework for nanotechnology, while Justin Masterman…

Keep up the good work. I love finding new blogs to read!

Jack

By jack hartmann (not verified) on 23 Oct 2007 #permalink