Bits and Pieces

Well, this morning it is bits and pieces of news and maybe other things..
I see that the Senate confirmed Mukasey as the new Attorney General with a 53-40 vote. I have no opinion at this time whether that is good or bad. Doesn't really matter, it is a done deal anyway.

" Baxter Healthcare Corp., the U.S. operating subsidiary of Baxter International Inc has received 510(k) clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for its V-Link Luer-activated device with VitalShield protective coating. The Deerfield, Ill., medical-devices company plans to launch the V-Link device with VitalShield coating in the U.S. beginning in the first half of 2008. V-Link with VitalShield is a needleless IV connector containing an antimicrobial coating, shown to kill specific common pathogens known to cause catheter-related blood stream infections, including MRSA."

Now my opinion on this … this is good… but at the same time we would not have MRSA if we didn’t have so much protection. All this protection with antibiotics has helped create MRSA. Why, because it makes health care givers more careless, with a care less attitude. I had a doctor tell me one time, “that doesn’t make any difference, we will give him some penicillin and take care of any potential infection”. That was some 40 plus years ago.. I thought then why not just get a new catheter rather than take any chances.. but he was in a hurry and it was too late anyway. He had already used the contaminated one. The patient didn’t get an infection. So, it worked then.

But it seems as though the more protection we have the more careless we get.. seat belts, airbags, antibiotics, school crossing guards, helmets, knee pads, etc. We are just expecting someone to look out after us instead of doing it ourselves and teaching our children to do it for themselves. All the protection is good, if we wouldn’t allow it to take away our incentive to take care of our own selves. Guess that is what they call Yin and Yang. The good with the bad. Come to think of it what about the “help I’ve fallen and can’t get up”? WONDERFUL! But might it make us old folks just a might less cautious, KNOWING we can call if we fall or whatever? Hummm, have to think about that.