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SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2009
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NEWS ABOUT: emergency room

emergency room stories: 15 news summaries

 Flu Fear Swamps US Hospitals 

System strained as people with mild symptoms demand swine flu tests

May 1, 09 4:37 AM CDT
(Newser) - Hospitals and clinics across the country are being overwhelmed by panicky people seeking to be tested for swine flu, reports the Los Angeles Times. Experts warn the signs of strain already show that the system is ill-equipped to deal with a full-scale outbreak. Health officials struggling to cope with the... More »

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emergency room • hospital • outbreak • influenza • pandemic • swine flu • H1N1 virus

OPINION

ER Finale Did What Show Did Best: Critics

Show ends doing what it does best

Apr 3, 09 1:54 PM CDT
(Newser) - ER capped 15 seasons last night with a finale that satisfied many critics happy with cameos by original cast members and the series’ trademark fast pace.
  • Alan Sepinwall, Star-Ledger: "The finale worked hard to bring as many elements from that pilot full circle as they could, while showing
... More »

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NBC • emergency room • TV shows • doctor • network television • network dramas • Noah Wyle • Eriq La Salle

critical roundup

 ER Checks Out Tonight 

Critics, fans, brace for last episode tonight

Apr 2, 09 10:54 AM CDT
(Newser) - After 15 seasons, viewers will make their final trip to County General Hospital tonight in the series finale of ER. Critics and fans are reflecting on the groundbreaking show:
  • Mixing “medical triumph” with “personal angst,” ER “may have begun as a show about salvation, but
... More »

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television • NBC • emergency room • reviews • TV series • ER

(Newser) - George Clooney’s appearance on ER last night gave the NBC standby a boost, E! Online reports. Thursday’s episode, which also featured cameos by Noah Wyle, Julianna Margulies, and Eriq La Salle brought in 10.7 million viewers, 2 million more than the previous week—though CBS’ Eleventh Hour,... More »

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emergency room • TV ratings • Eleventh Hour • CSI • George Clooney • Susan Sarandon • guest appearance • cameo • Julianna Margulies • Noah Wyle • Eriq La Salle

(Newser) - Set your TiVo to stunned: George Clooney will make a return appearance on ER tonight, Entertainment Tonight reports. Clooney, who left the show in 1999, will star with his onetime on-screen love interest, Julianna Margulies. “I want their story to be very fulfilling in the end,” the... More »

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television • NBC • emergency room • reunion • George Clooney • guest appearance • ER • Julianna Margulies • Noah Wyle • Eriq La Salle

OPINION

 Ditch the Snake 
 Before ER Trip 

It's one of several items emergency-room docs don't appreciate seeing

Nov 9, 08 5:37 AM CST
(Newser) - Yes, your doctor wants to know everything about you. But that doesn't mean he needs to see it, physician Edwin Leap writes on his blog. Here are a few things he'd prefer emergency-room patients leave at home:
  • The snake that bit you: "Irrational? Probably. But phobias are phobias.
... More »

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emergency room • hospital • Edwin Leap

Mass. Trumpets Success of Health Mandate

Under new law, state says 75% of uninsured are now covered

Aug 20, 08 1:55 PM CDT
(Newser) - About 75% of Massachusetts residents who had been uninsured now have health coverage, thanks to the state’s closely watched, near-universal health care mandate, says a new report from Gov. Deval Patrick. Nearly half of the 439,000 newly insured bought private insurance, rather than taxpayer-funded plans, the Boston ... More »

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health insurance • emergency room • Massachusetts • universal health care • insurance • Deval Patrick

ERs Will Offer Anonymous Rape Tests to Victims

Anonymity removes barrier, gives option to press charges after the fact

May 14, 08 11:29 AM CDT
(Newser) - Starting next year throughout the US, rape victims will be able to take an anonymous forensic rape test in the ER and save the evidence in case they want to press charges. The so-called "Jane Doe" kits will be paid for by states, reports the AP. "Sometimes the... More »

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emergency room • rape • forensics • Violence Against Women Act

 Hospitals Can't  Handle Terror Attack: Study

Trauma centers couldn't treat influx of victims

May 6, 08 9:02 AM CDT
(Newser) - Hospitals in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, and other major US cities don't have the emergency room capacity to handle even a moderate terrorist attack, a congressional committee says. A survey last month of 34 hospitals revealed they could not handle a sudden surge of trauma victims, a situation described... More »

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terrorism • Minneapolis • Chicago • Washington DC • New York • Denver • Los Angeles • emergency room • Houston • emergency responders • terrorist attack • National Center for Disaster Preparedness • House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform

Coke Can Mimic Heart Attack Symptoms

Docs must ask ER
patients if they use cocaine, AHA says

Mar 17, 08 7:56 PM CDT
(Newser) - Doctors should ask younger patients if their heart attack symptoms are really due to cocaine use, the American Heart Association said today. Coke can cause chest pain similar to a heart attack, it said, but heart medication can be fatal to cocaine users. "Not knowing what you are dealing... More »

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hospitals • cocaine • emergency room • blood pressure • doctor • heart attack • American Heart Association

ER Waiting Times Tripled Since 1997

Average waits for heart attack patients rose from 8 to 20 minutes

Jan 16, 08 4:51 PM CST
(Newser) - With emergency room visits and hospital overcrowding on the rise, waiting times have grown dangerously long—36% longer than they were in 1997. A new study in medical journal Health Affairs cites especially troubling waits for heart attack victims, with 25% waiting at least 50 minutes to see a doctor... More »

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health care • hospitals • emergency room • heart attack • health study

Minorities Denied Potent Painkillers, Study Finds

ER docs prescribe more drugs to whites

Jan 2, 08 4:14 AM CST
(Newser) - Minority patients are less likely than white patients to receive powerful painkillers in hospital emergency rooms, a new study has found. Researchers discovered that 31% of white people in pain were given opioid drugs—narcotic painkillers like morphine and codeine—while Hispanic patients got them 24% of the time and... More »

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drugs • opioids • emergency room • prescription drugs • painkiller • Hispanic • minorities

Give Rescue Workers a Break: Just
Add ICE

Cell phone entry lets them know who to call

Dec 27, 07 5:53 PM CST
(Newser) - The practice of putting the letters ICE—short for "in case of emergency"—in front of a person's name in a cell phone seems to be catching on. The idea is to help paramedics or other emergency personnel zip through the phone and find the right person to... More »

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cell phones • emergency room • Houston • ICE

Marathoner Who Died Was Hauled to Wrong ER

Collapsed runner's ambulance got lost

Oct 24, 07 11:05 PM CDT
(Newser) - Earlier this month at the sweltering Chicago Marathon, the ambulance transporting the runner who died got lost, had to get directions from another ambulance, and eventually ended up in the wrong emergency room. The man was in full cardiac arrest when the ambulance arrived on the scene and was, according... More »

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Chicago • emergency room • Chicago Marathon • hospital • cardiac arrest • running • Detroit marathon deaths

Kids Skate on Heelys to Emergency Room

Skater shoes set off scraped knees epidemic

Jun 7, 07 10:17 PM CDT
(Newser) - A new craze has kids gliding across hard surfaces on tiny skate wheels built into their sneakers—but the "heelys" are deceptively unsafe, a new study says. The report claims the skate shoes sent 1,600 youngsters to the emergency room last year. More »

MORE ABOUT:
children • shoes • sneakers • American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons • helmets • emergency room • skating • heeling • doctor • Heelys

15 Stories


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