Is U.S. security forever tied to Afghanistan's fate? ER study: When parents stay with kids in the ER there’s no negative effect. Dodgers owners’ press conference. What to do about Iran? Three viewpoints. Plus, the latest news.
Is U.S. security forever tied to Afghanistan's fate?
President Barack Obama swooped down on Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan yesterday to mark the one-year anniversary of Osama bin Laden's death and to sign an historic pact with Afghan President Hamid Karzai. It includes a promise to pursue a negotiated peace with the Taliban; a legal framework for transitioning all security to Afghan forces; and a commitment to building democratic institutions.
Staged as a dramatic primetime televised address from Bagram, the president said, "In coordination with the Afghan government, my Administration has been in direct discussions with the Taliban. We have made it clear that they can be a part of this future if they break with al-Qaida, renounce violence, and abide by Afghan laws." This comes just two weeks after coordinated deadly attacks in Kabul and three other Afghan cities – attacks that showed the sustained power of the insurgency.
But President Obama harkened back further – to one year ago, when Navy SEALs ended the long hunt for terrorist mastermind Osama bin Laden. The raid on his Pakistan compound was heralded as a daring operation. The world was shocked to learn bin Laden had been living in a bucolic countryside town. Only one non-governmental official was granted access to the Abbottabad compound before it was demolished.
Peter Bergen, CNN Security Analyst, toured the bin Laden house. Bergen is also one of just two journalists granted access by the White House to pour over documents from the compound. Bergen's new book, "Manhunt," is the most exhaustive and authoritative account of the search for the world's most wanted man. Bergen interviewed all the heavyweights in intelligence and military circles to piece it together. His book is part thriller and part history.
What does the "Manhunt" story tell us about how U.S. interests will fare in Afghanistan and Pakistan in the years ahead? How will this new pact play out on the ground in the region? What can be learned from the long search for bin Laden? What will come of negotiations between the Taliban and the United States? What’s the future of Al-Qaida?
Guests:
Eric Jensen, Lecturer in Law, Stanford Law School; An adviser to the Stanford-based Afghanistan Legal Education Project and recently returned from Afghanistan.
Peter Bergen, Author, “Man Hunt: The Ten-Year Search for Bin Laden from 9/11 to Abbottabad” (Crown Publishers); CNN national security analyst
New study says families aren’t in the way in the trauma ward
It’s a common scene in hospital dramas: the worried mother sobbing over a child that E.R. docs are desperately trying to save from whatever dread injury has been sustained. Inevitably, a nurse bustles the mother out, saying “Let us do our job!” According to a new study, that scene need not play out.
Medical professionals at Children’s National Medical Center in Washington D.C, one of the nation’s highest ranking and busiest children’s hospitals, set up cameras in trauma wards where serious injuries like car accidents and gunshot wounds are treated.
They reviewed 145 cases, in about half of which families were allowed to stick around while the child was treated. Researchers found that medical care didn’t suffer when families stayed, and in fact the study’s lead author, Dr. Karen O’Connell, says the presence of parents helps children deal with pain and provides comfort.
In recent years, an increasing number of hospitals and physicians groups, including the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American College of Surgeons, has come out in support of the practice. However, most hospitals still shuffle parents out of the room when their children are being treated and fewer than 10 percent of hospitals have a written policy in place.
Dr. Lee R. Weiss, regional director of emergency medical services for emergent medical associates in Manhattan Beach, California, said families should be welcomed into the emergency rooms with open arms.
"They are not an impediment to the staff. In situations that require critical care and resuscitation, the staff has done these thousands of times, and they approach the rudimentary part of this as if it were a reflex," he said.
Weiss said he's had a change of heart on this issue during his 30-year career. "In the beginning of my career I was all about, 'We've got to do this, we know everything, we're the efficient ones and everybody else is ancillary.' The whole goal was the save the child," he explained. "But there's a lot of different ways to go about that, and denying the family those critical minutes, maybe the last minutes that they get, outweighs any potential risks in my mind."
Weiss reflected on a personal experience, when he lost an 18-month-old child in a burn accident. "I will tell you that those minutes that the family has, especially in situations that are not successful in resuscitation, those minutes mean everything to the family. The connection, the ability to see that the staff has done absolutely everything possible – being there is a comfort to the family probably for the rest of their lives," he continued.
According to Weiss, uncontrollable hysteria is inordinately rare, and at facilities that address this issue best, ample staff, including social workers and volunteers, is there to help. Furthermore, he thinks issues of liability would be lower if families could be in proximity to their children.
"When people are given information, and when families see how hard we work to take care of their loved ones, those are things that dispel the likelihood of litigation and mal-issues. ... People want to know that you've done everything that you can. People want to know and see the concern that's shown routinely by the expertise by nurses and paramedics," he said.
From the phones:
Anthony in Woodland Hills has worked in the E.R. in one capacity or another for 55 years. He explains that it's not the physicians who get uncomfortable with parental presence.
"I think it's interpersonal skill that really challenges the provider," he said. "How comfortable are you with dealing with people in a critical situation? Some people are task masters and they just want to work. Other people bring the human element to it, and kind of act as an announcer of sorts. That's the variability."
Cliff from Cerritos is also an E.R. nurse. He said staff does get nervous. "It gets a little more pressed around them when family gets inside. But the outcome is better for family to be at the bedside, so I favor it. From a staff's point of view, it's just more nerve-racking," he said. Cliff said that with more exposure to family, medical staff can acclimate to their presence.
Steve in Trabuco Canyon flies for a helicopter/ambulance company and said a hysterical parent can be dangerous if with medical personnel as they transport a child to a care center. "I leave it often to the medical crew to determine if the parent is suitable for flying with us. For me, it's a case by case basis as for whether or not we decide to bring the parent," he said.
If you’re a parent, would you want to stay? And for doctors, are parents in the way? Would it make you nervous to treat patients in front of their parents?
Guest:
Lee R. Weiss, M.D., Regional Director of Emergency Medical Services for Emergent Medical Associates in Manhattan Beach California, supervises emergency departments throughout Southern California
Dodgers’ new owners step up to the plate
Dodgers fans – the wait is over. Frank McCourt is officially out. And today, the Dodgers’ new ownership will address the public from Dodger Stadium, for the first time.
The $2-billion sale closed yesterday, with the team going to Guggenheim Baseball Management. Legendary Lakers star Magic Johnson brings bling to the ownership group. But it’s Mark Walter, CEO of Guggenheim Partners, who’ll be at the helm.
Also in play is Stan Kasten, the former Atlanta Braves President, who will be the Dodgers' new president. Walter and Kasten will be on the green for this morning’s press conference, along with LA’s Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, Vin Scully and Tommy Lasorda. In a statement, Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig said he’s happy the sale is a done deal and “that today's change marks the start of a new era for the Los Angeles Dodgers and that this historic franchise will once again make the city of Los Angeles proud."
What will the new owners have to say? Are fans ready to forgive and forget?
Guest:
Corey Moore, KPCC reporter covering today’s Dodgers press conference
What to do about Iran? Three viewpoints
Negotiations with Western powers in Turkey, internal turmoil in Iran, the Stuxnet virus, harsher sanctions, tough talk from Prime Minister Netanyahu….the headlines continue. What should the West, America and Israel do about the looming threat of a nuclear Iran? There are three leading points of view on how the United States should handle Iran; that we should take muscular military action to curb Iran’s nuclear threat, that we proceed with a “wait and see” approach, or that we should learn to live with a nuclear Iran as we have with other nuclear states like Pakistan and India. These and other options are discussed by a distinguished panel of experts.
Guests:
Jim Walsh, an expert in international security and a Research Associate at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Security Studies Program. He is one of a handful of experts who has traveled to Iran and North Korea for talks with officials about nuclear issues. He has written articles on the Iran issue in The New York Times, the New York Review of Books and numerous other journals. He has taught at both Harvard and MIT.
Robert G. Kaufman, professor of public policy at Pepperdine University and a political scientist specializing in foreign policy and national security matters. He earned his law degree from Georgetown University and his doctorate from Columbia University. His articles have appeared in The Weekly Standard, the Washington Times, the Baltimore Sun and the Philadelphia Inquirer, among others. His most recent book is In Defense of the Bush Doctrine. He has taught at the Naval War College, Colgate University, and the University of Vermont.
Reza Aslan, an acclaimed writer and scholar of religions. He has authored the international best seller, No God But God: The Origins, Evolution and Future of Islam and How to Win A Cosmic War. He received his doctorate from the University of California, Santa Barbara and is on the faculty at UC Riverside. He is the co-founder and chief creative officer of BoomGen Studios, the premier entertainment brand for creative content from and about the greater Middle East.