Protecting patients: Shorter shifts for new doctors is a smart idea
By Dean I Weitzman, Esq. on June 25th, 2010
Imagine being at work for 24 hours or more in one stretch and having to maintain your peak performance every long hour and minute. That's a tough challenge. Now imagine that your work involves patient care and life or death decisions as a medical resident in a teaching hospital, with shifts lasting 24 to 30 hours at a time. That's how things have been set up in teaching hospitals for years, but it's not necessarily...
Hospitals that make sick people sicker: hospital-acquired infections continue to be a big risk for patients
By Dean I Weitzman, Esq. on June 24th, 2010
Being a patient in a hospital can help extend your life through excellent medical care, but at the same time, hospitals can be one of the most dangerous places to get a life-threatening infection that can complicate your treatment. A new state report from the Pennsylvania Department of Health concludes that 25,914 patients undergoing surgeries and other treatments in hospitals last year had their conditions complicated by infections they picked up during their stays, according...
Your family and the law: Be on guard against scams unleashed by thieves who prey on the elderly
By Dean I Weitzman, Esq. on June 22nd, 2010
Behind almost every news event, there seems to always be some scammer who is trying to find tricky ways to steal money from unsuspecting elderly victims. We read about examples like this almost every day in the newspaper. Older people get visits at their front doors from someone who says they won a contest and have to pay a fee to collect their prizes. [caption id="attachment_865" align="alignleft" width="200" caption="Scammers bait the hook and steal money,...
Is cursing a crime, or is it free speech?
By Dean I Weitzman, Esq. on May 13th, 2010
Imagine you are driving in traffic on a public street and another driver cuts you off. Imagine going to a sporting event and watching a player on your favorite team doing something that really irks you, like dropping a ball. Or imagine walking down a street on the sidewalk and having an outrageously loud vehicle drive by, disturbing the peace. How would you react to any of these scenarios? You might angrily yell something out,...
Bad cops: When the police can’t be trusted, we are all endangered
By Dean I Weitzman, Esq. on May 12th, 2010
It is one of the nightmares of a free society when bad cops break their oaths and crush the very laws they are sworn to uphold. That's what happened recently in Camden, N.J., when one Camden police officer pleaded guilty in March to federal conspiracy charges. According to reports in The Philadelphia Inquirer, the officer and at least four of his fellow officers "planted evidence and threatened suspects with arrest if they did not provide...
How to stop the “flash mob” mentality
By Dean I Weitzman, Esq. on March 30th, 2010
Two weekends ago, Philadelphia's South Street residents, merchants and community suffered from yet another "flash mob" incident, where bands of teenagers summoned each other via cell phone text messages and social media Web sites including Twitter, Facebook and MySpace to hang out and get together. But as it's happened in the past, it was way more than just "hanging out." Many of the teens became agitated, some became violent and all became essentially out of...
Sexting update: Court rules teen girl can’t be charged with a felony
By Dean I Weitzman, Esq. on March 25th, 2010
A U.S. Court of Appeals got it right recently when it ruled that a teenaged girl whose semi-nude photo was transmitted via a cell phone text message cannot be charged with felony child abuse charges. That was the correct decision in this so-called "sexting" case that got big headlines and showed just how ridiculous the legal system can get when it is fueled by ideologies rather than by reality. We last wrote about this case...
Damage caps on injury cases harm accident and medical malpractice victims a second time
By Dean I Weitzman, Esq. on March 16th, 2010
Are you willing to give up your rights to be compensated fully for ALL of the damages caused by another? If you are injured in an accident, you can be sure that you want to recover every dollar you are entitled to for your treatment and for your pain and suffering. But insurance companies for years have been trying to fight you tooth and nail to minimize what they pay out to you for pain...
Need a lawyer? Here are some helpful hints about how to select the right one
By Dean I Weitzman, Esq. on March 10th, 2010
At some point in your life, you will probably need to hire a lawyer. It may be for help when you are injured in a vehicle accident or fall, or if you are going through a divorce, tax dispute, criminal charges or custody or other legal issues. It's uncommon today if at some point you don't have to at least consult an attorney about something in your life. So if that happens, where in the...