Inspiration struck for this design when we visited an exhibit about Genomes at the National Academy of Science in Washington, D.C. When considering your gift-giving issues, just think about the peace of mind knowing your recipient can't say, ". . .it's not me!"

Human Genome Ties in Black and Blue, and the Human Genome Scarf

Hot off the press is the lastest edition of the Dartmouth Atlas of Healthcare, a report by researchers at Dartmouth University documenting the variations in healthcare delivery at major academic hospitals. What makes this version remarkable is that it is the first to actually present, FOR CONSUMERS, the performance of over 4300 hospitals in the U.S. This is big, and warrants some serious attention. We've provided a link to begin your personal discovery tour, but here are two significant conclusions to set the stage:

Care and cost vary widely (HUGELY) among the top medical centers - for the SAME basic condition (s). For example:

Average number of days Medicare patients with chronic illness spent at NYU Med Center 32.1 days; UCLA, 19.2 days; Mayo Clinic, 12.9 days.

Average Medicare spending for inpatient and doctor fees for the last two years of life: $79,280 at NYU, compared to $37,271 at the Mayo Clinic! Overall average varied from <$30,000 to> $110,000.

We haven't reviewed the study in great depth, but how encouraging is it(!) that we are starting to see some transparency in the industry that oversees the beginning, middle and end of each and every one of our lives. Seminal changes are in motion, it's pretty exciting, and we're on it!

www.darthmouthatlas.org

An astute subscriber pointed out to us that what was termed HOSPITAL-acquired infection (HAI) about an hour ago, has been pc'ed, and is now designated as HEALTHCARE-acquired infection. Apparently the medical lobby was a touch sensitive about relating infections to hospitals. Seems like a straight line to us, i.e. a duck = a duck, no?! Whatever, it's all about getting bad stuff in places that are supposed to be good.

Credit Due: Apologies to our friend at NIH, Andrea Weisberg. Andrea's work at NIH, not CDC, was responsible for the great images we used for our vaccinia (small pox vaccine) designs featured last NL. We owe her a mea culpa and a big thanks...but we were most impressed by the fact she actually read the Newsletter. Wow!!

If you happened to read our March Newsletter, you may recall the article about hypodermic needles often delivering their rearly payload shy of target. Kind of a funny image, as long as one is not on the wrong end of the pointy thing. Tracy Johnson, on the other hand, was...and his story, as he described to us, is harrowing. Tracy gave us permission to share it with our readers. Here it is, in "suitable for General Audience" form:

Tracy went to a walk-in clinic for an eye infection resulting from doing yard work. [Tracy, whatever possessed you to do yard work!?] After a second cortisone injection, the pain from the injection site worsened. Following several intervening appointments-orthopedists, MRIs, XRays, you-know-the-drill - he was treated with epidural steroid injections by a pain management specialist for degenerative disk disease. Months later, with the pain unrelenting, Tracy then went to a neurosurgeon, who suggested he go back to square one, i.e. to an orthopedist of referral.

Diagnosis: Myofascial Adhesions, the cortisone acting like glue, luting muscle to fascia. After 18 treatments with a massage therapist, Tracy was able to walk again without pain for a time, but it is recurring and has led to other complications. In Tracy's words, ". . .this has been the worst experience of my life, and one that will always need to be treated. I wanted to share my personal story of what happens when medication doesn't get to the target. Trust me, I don't have a very big target at all, and the result is literally a pain in my butt for the rest of my life."

Fortunately, Tracy's got a sense of humor, and we thank him for personalizing something that only happens to. . .ummm. . .other people.

We hate the stuff, so this is an easy one to pile on. Sushi is arguably the gourmet-a-go-go for today's Gen X-Y-and Z'ers. We've even seen some real men eating the slimy fooid (a cross between food and not). Well, our suspicions about the real intentions of dead fish were confirmed by a monitoring of mercury content in samples at several upscale Los Angeles eateries. The shimmery results: ALL the tuna samples had mercury levels at or above the FDA threshold for Hg in any seafood species. And these were the GOOD restaurants.

How about testing, you ask? Current tests take days to complete - not terribly practical - and unfortunately there are few rapid and inexpensive testing systems available. That will probably improve over time, simply out of fill-the-need dynamics. In the meantime, however, pregnant moms and young children should stay clear of certain high-mercury fish, including swordfish, shark, and yes, maybe sushi bar tuna.

Note: Survey was conducted by GotMercury.org, probably not the most objective source - but it validates our opinion so we're buying it.

And you thought TAXES were icky! A U. of Arizona study found that -gulp- accountants have the second-highest 'crobe count in the American workplace. When their desks and cubicles were cultured, account-environs yielded 2.5 times more bacteria than even doctors' offices. Whose desks were the 'crobiest? Teachers! Not so surprising considering their generally unwashed constituents. But the cleanest? TV producers, consultants, publicists and - get this - lawyers, who reportedly had seven times fewer germs than accountants. A recount may be in order on this one!

[As reported in the "journal" of Parade Magazine]

What are the odds of being struck by lightening? Of being a victim of an avalanche? Of falling prey to... an alligator!? Whoa, don't bet the ranch on that last one.! In a spate of odds-defying incidents, there have been three fatalities from alligator attacks in the past three months - all three, young women.

Now, as if to add insult to the bizarre, we note the passing of Dr. Richard K. Root, professor emeritus of medicine at the U. of Washington, former chairman of medicine at UC San Francisco and founding head of the department of infectious disease at U. of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. In Botswana instructing doctors on AIDS treatment, Dr. Root was killed by a crocodile while on a wildlife tour on the Limpopo River. He was dragged beneath the water, and never seen again. An accomplished man meets a rude, undeserved and tragic off-the-charts end. Odds? What odds!

Mold/fungi, MRSA/Antibiotic resistance, and yes-yes-yes- Bird Flu. You can't imagine the pressure.

ICAAC (Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy), San Francisco, September; APHA (American Public Health Association), Boston, November. You'll need to keep a close eye on iAwareables.com - and these quarterly Ebornes- to stay on the infectious edge of scientific style.