Free Republic

'Words or actions that are disrespectful, racist, discriminatory, hostile or harassing are not welcome and will not be tolerated,' the doctor says ... Milford Regional Medical Center’s announcement about rules for its "inclusive environment" caused a recent stir with a warning to potential patients that they must follow a specific code of conduct to access their services. Dr. Peter Smulowitz, chief medical officer at the Massachusetts medical center, had released a now-unlisted video on the hospital’s official YouTube channel Jan. 3 explaining how not just staff, but patients themselves, are held accountable for causing offense, ranging from rhetoric to a...

My, but Iran must have a lot of defective “industrial gas tanks” lying around. A week after Iranian officials tried to explain away a massive explosion at Parchin as a civilian-area accident, a large fire at Natanz might prove more difficult to dismiss. Natanz, like Parchin, is a site where the US alleges that Iran has performed work on their nuclear-weapons program, and experts believe that uranium-enriching centrifuge work might have been the target this time: Iran says there has been an “incident” at one of its nuclear facilities.Atomic Energy Organisation of Iran (AEOI) spokesman Behrouz Kamalvandi did not...

As Orlando continues to reel a week after the worst mass shooting in US history consumed the city in tragedy, one Chicago man is traveling thousands of miles to deliver comfort. Greg Zanis, 65, drove 1,200 miles from his home to the Orlando Regional Medical Center to deliver 49 wooden crosses he made by hand. Each of the three-foot-tall white crosses bears the name of the 49 victims who were murdered at the gay nightclub Pulse during Latin night on June 12.

"A West Point man was taken to hospital with life-threatening injuries after he and a friend were attacked by a group of around 20 people in a Huddle House parking lot, police said, potentially as retaliation for Michael Brown's killing. Ralph Weems IV, who is white, was injured early Saturday but is now in fair condition at North Mississippi Medical Center, hospital spokeswoman Genie Causey said. A relative, Bradley Barnes of Madison, told The Associated Press by telephone on Sunday that his brother-in-law was in a medically induced coma following brain surgery. 'They're going to try and wake him up...

The University of Chicago Medical Center will cut costs by $100 million, or almost 7 percent of its budget by 2010, and may reduce its staff significantly, the Center announced last week. It attributes the restructuring to falling investment and endowment values. It also reaffirmed its commitment to the $700-million hospital pavilion planned for 2012. Under the plan, which took effect last Monday, the Medical Center will enact several cost-saving measures in an effort to bring down its budget, including the elimination of four vice presidents and 11 other senior executive positions. Though they could not disclose the specific positions,...

Complaints about medical center were voiced for years Top officials at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, including the Army's surgeon general, have heard complaints about outpatient neglect from family members, veterans groups and members of Congress for more than three years. A procession of Pentagon and Walter Reed officials expressed surprise last week about the living conditions and bureaucratic nightmares faced by wounded soldiers staying at the D.C. medical facility. But as far back as 2003, the commander of Walter Reed, Lt. Gen. Kevin C. Kiley, who is now the Army's top medical officer, was told that soldiers who were...

Corporate Hillton Apparatchiks have given credence to the old adage, “No good deed goes unpunished” by their not renewing Fran O’Brien’s renewable lease. Since October of 2003 Hal Koster, a two-tour Vietnam veteran and Jim Mayer, a combat injured Vietnam veteran and long time advocate for veterans and a small group of volunteers have been hosting a dinner each and every Friday night for the severely injured patients of Walter Reed Army Medical Center's Ward 57 and severely injured sailors and Marines at Bethesda Naval Medical Center and their families. This was begun as part of a promise to insure...

I had the privilege of meeting Joshua Sparling's father and brother at yesterday evening's FReep. (History of Joshua here.) They came down to meet us, and Joshua was kind enough to send some candy and other goodies down for our supportive vigil. More details will be in the weekly AAR, but I wanted to touch on one point. Although the response to Joshua's predicament has been absolutely overwhelming, they have only received six cards - total - from Michigan. Why is that such a big deal? It's Joshua's home. And he's been featured in several newspapers, including Lansing's publication. I...

WASHINGTON, Aug. 17, 2005 – Nine Operation Iraqi Freedom soldiers being treated at Walter Reed Army Medical Center for war wounds and other ailments joined Native Americans from across the continent to participate in a sacred celebration of American Indian culture and pride - the 2005 National Powwow at the MCI Center arena here on Aug. 12. The Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of the American Indian invited the soldiers as honored guests to march in the Grand Entry behind the honor guard and attending American Indian dignitaries. According to news reports, more than 800 dancers and color guard members performed...

WASHINGTON - The Pentagon wants to close the Army's century-old hospital at Walter Reed Medical Center, the world-renowned facility in the nation's capital that has treated presidents and foreign leaders as well as soldiers and veterans. The proposal is part of a broad reordering of the military's system for medical education, research and care, which the Pentagon says suffers from a mismatch of needs and resources. Inpatient services would be curtailed at some military bases, and some facilities would be consolidated. Under the plan, the shuttering of Walter Reed would involve moving some of its staff and services to an...

Just a week after a Manhattan hospital was blamed for the death of a patient from Legionnaires' disease, another said that it may have found the bacteria inside of it as well. Harlem Hospital Center officials said traces of legionella bacteria was found on a sink and a shower head at its building on West 136th Street. But the hospital said no cases of the disease was found in patients. Officials at the hospital said they were superheating its water supply and taking additional steps to kill the bacteria. The news comes just after four patients contracted Legionnaires' disease at...

NEW YORK State health officials are investigating the death of a Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center patient, which may have been caused by an outbreak of Legionnaire's disease. The officials believe the bacteria may have been in the hospital's water system. Richard Montesano died last Wednesday shortly after coming to the hospital for a heart condition. He was using a machine that sprayed water in his throat to fight sleep apnea, but the hospital did not warn his family that tap water could be dangerous. Legionnaire's disease can be found in the water systems of large buildings and is hazardous to...

LOS ANGELES (AP) - The head of the Los Angeles County health department was ordered to move his office into troubled Martin Luther King Jr./Drew Medical Center by supervisors frustrated by continuing reports of deaths and poor patient care. "Park yourself there," Supervisor Gloria Molina directed Dr. Thomas Garthwaite during a contentious supervisors' meeting Tuesday. "Take your schedule. Tear it up and spend every moment that you're working for us working on solving the crisis," she said. Garthwaite said his department had taken disciplinary actions against hundreds of King/Drew employees. Supervisors also ordered the Department of Health Services to hire...

Sees sights after G.I. helped him get lifesaving surgery An Afghan boy brought to the U.S. last month for a heart operation after a soldier took up his cause came to New York yesterday to sightsee and show off the boundless energy of a typical 12-year-old. "Before, I cannot walk so much," Assadullah Khan said during the whirlwind trip with his father and interpreter to meet the "nice people" who helped save his life. "Now, I walk everywhere. I can walk and run." Until last month's operation to patch a hole in his heart, Assadullah could barely walk across a...

President Bush met with wounded service members and their families at Walter Reed Army Medical Center here today. He said he wanted "to meet the wounded who have made a decision to sacrifice for this nation's security and for freedom in the world." "It is an honor to meet their parents or their wives, their children, brave souls who support their loved one with all their heart," he told reporters after his visit. The president made the trip from the White House after delivering an address to the nation today marking the anniversary of the start of Operation Iraqi Freedom....

He's given hundreds of flu shots over the past few months, but health officials say he isn't a doctor and they still don't know exactly what he's been injecting. It's a story you saw First on News 3. Shahid Shiekh is under police investigation after shutting down one of his clinics in Washington State. News 3 has learned that Shiekh has also operated an office in Henderson. News 3's Kori Chambers is digging deeper. It's still unclear whether this phony doctor fooled any Las Vegans. We spoke with Shiekh's attorney and asked him point blank whether the man was giving...

<p>DURHAM, N.C. -- According to a published report, Duke University Medical Center violated national transplant rules when it accepted Jesica Santillan for a heart and lung transplant.</p> <p>USA Today reported Monday that The United Network for Organ Sharing - the organization that oversees the nation's transplant system - requires that non-resident organ recipients be in the country legally.</p>

February 15th, 2003 LIBI Foundation Donates Torah Scroll to the Northern Command Medical Center Last week, the French Friends of the LIBI Foundation donated a Torah Scroll and an ornamented Mezuzah (valued at 150,000 NIS) to the Northern Command Medical Center in Haifa. The purchase of the Torah Scroll and Mezuzah were made possible by the donations collected during a LIBI fundraising event held in Paris in November 2002. The Torah dedication ceremony was attended by: the Commander of the Medical Center Colonel Yitzhak Ashkenazi; Commander of the LIBI Foundation Colonel Meir Blair; the Chief Rabbi of the Home Front...