Today we'll discuss whether fear of liability influences treatment of residents in independent living homes. We'll also take a last look at the Los Angeles mayoral race before voters cast their ballots tomorrow -- is there any way to avoid a run-off election? Later, we'll talk about how the Catholic church could change after with a new Pope, and what a baby "cured" of H.I.V. signals for the future. Happy Grammar Day, from AirTalk.
Did liability fears stop CPR by nurse?
A nurse at an independent living facility for the elderly in Bakersfield refused to perform CPR on a resident who had passed out and was barely breathing. After a nurse called 911, the dispatcher implored her to perform CPR, but the nurse said she was not allowed to do so. Paramedics quickly arrived, but the patient died shortly thereafter.
The facility is defending its policies that address such life-and-death situations."In the event of a health emergency at this independent living community our practice is to immediately call emergency medical personnel for assistance and to wait with the individual needing attention until such personnel arrives,” Jeffrey Toomer, director of the facility, said in a statement on behalf of Glenwood Gardens.
When does legal liability trump critical care? Who bears responsibility when a patient dies after potentially live-saving procedures are not administered?
Guests:
Laura Mosqueda , MD; Chair and Professor of Family Medicine and Director of Geriatric care at the UC Irvine School of Medicine
David Orentlicher , Samuel R. Rosen Professor of Law; Co-director of the William S. and Christine S. Hall Center for Law and Health; Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law
Are you ready to cast your ballot for Los Angeles?
We're two days away from the city election. The race for mayor intensified last week with candidates trading insults and attacks. Accusations of corruption and lying may get the attention of voters, but on a lighter note, celebrity endorsements have also been on an upswing. Unlike any previous mayoral election, more A-list celebrities and studio heads have been donating money and photo-ops.
How much of a difference can they make? Will it help get out the vote? AirTalk will have a campaign finale round-up. Plus don't forgert to visit the homepage of KPCC.org for your personalized voter guide. Plug in your address and find the races in Southern California that matter to you.
Guests:
Frank Stoltze , KPCC Reporter
Dan Schnur, Director of the Jesse M. Unruh Institute of Politics at USC and adjunct faculty at USC Annenberg School
How will a new Pope impact the future of the Catholic church?
With Pope Benedict XVI now officially retired, the Catholic church is without a full-fledged world leader. Almost all of the current cardinals were chosen by Pope Benedict and fellow conservative predecessor Pope John Paul II, but there has still speculation about whether the new Pope will be more progressive. How could this impact the status quo?
This morning, the cardinals met to determine when they will hold the secret election known as the "conclave" to pick Benedict's successor. When and how will the next Pope be selected? Who is most likely to be chosen to take on the prominent position? How could the Catholic church change when it comes to women, birth control, and marriage for priests?
Guests:
Cathy Grossman, USA TODAY's reporter on religion, spirituality and ethics
Donna Bethell, chairman of the board of Christemdon College, a Roman Catholic College based in Virginia and Rome
Sister Simone Cambell, Executive Director of NETWORK
It’s International Grammar Day, so what’s the BFD?
OMG! Social media has become an indispensable part of our everyday life. We tweet, we IM, we Facebook, we email, we chat with our coworkers online—even when they sit just two cubicles away. As a consequence, a new style of writing has emerged. We are writing shorter, we are using more acronyms and abbreviations, and much less punctuation.
We are inundated with information every day. On the one hand, brevity is important in our daily communication; our messages need to be short and to-the-point to rise above the noise. But is concision, in the social media-sense, really good for communication? Is it harming clarity? Or is it just setting us up for more miscommunication, especially in the workplace? Is the need to shorten our thoughts effecting our ability to communicate?
Guests:
Mignon Fogarty, host of National Grammar Day, producer of the podcast, “Grammar Girl: Quick and Dirty Tips”
Dr. Kelley Crowley, Assistant professor of media communications at Shenandoah University in West Virginia
Ben Zimmer, language columnist for the Boston Globe; Executive Producer of visualthesaurus.com
Baby “cured” of HIV
An infant born in rural Mississipi has been “functionally cured” of H.I.V. after aggressive antiretroviral treatment only 30 hours after birth. The success of the treatment is considered to be a major breakthrough for HIV/AIDS treatment because it is the first to cure an individual of the virus without the use of H.I.V. resistant bone marrow.
Although the number of children born with H.I.V. has dropped significantly in the U.S. in recent years, aggressive treatment for infants will have a big impact in developing countries, where an estimated 1000 babies are born each day with HIV. If early cure tactics prove to be successful in other patients, it could help the 330,000 babies born with H.I.V. each year, especially as the treatment becomes more cost-effective.
How could treating infants early help prevent the spread of H.I.V.? Is there a way to make these drugs more affordable? Could the United States see an AIDS-free generation?
Guest:
Michael Gottlieb, MD, a practicing physician and immunologist who is credited with being one of the authors of the first report to the CDC identifying AIDS as a new disease in 1981