Figures published recently in The Oregonian paint a distressing picture of the safety situation for pedestrians here in Oregon. Citing data compiled by the Oregon Department of Transportation the paper reports that “pedestrian deaths in Oregon are up 23 percent over last year.” With the death in late October of…
Last week The Oregonian reported on the ordeal of an Albany man, a story that is both inspiring and, in some ways, troubling. The paper reports that the man, a 40-year-old machine operator at a lumber mill, was scheduled to be released from Legacy Emanuel Medical Center after nearly 10…
In a recent article in the New York Times Dr. Robert C. Cantu, a professor of neurosurgery at Boston University, issued a thoughtful, yet passionate, call for parents and school officials to rethink the way we approach youth sports here in the United States. Writing that he meets with some…
Last week the US Chamber of Commerce held its annual Legal Reform Summit – an event designed to scare Americans into believing that our courts are out of control. The American Association of Justice took this opportunity to set the record straight, posting an online slide show designed to educate…
A lengthy article published this week in Washington’s Kitsap Sun looks at the issue of traumatic brain injuries – particularly concussions – among young athletes. As the paper notes, “the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates more than 3.5 million concussions – defined as traumatic brain injuries –…
Television station KOIN, citing the Oregon State Police, reports on a two-vehicle head-on Oregon car crash over the weekend near Rainier, Oregon on the Columbia River, north of Portland. The station reports that at about 10:30pm last Friday a pick-up truck traveling “southbound on Highway 30 near milepost 44” collided…
One of the things that distinguishes Portland from less bicycle-friendly metropolises is our bike boxes. These large green-painted areas at key intersections give riders a designated place to wait for the light to change, and serve as a constant remainder to drivers of their obligation to share the road. According…
The recent death of an 11-year-old girl who was accidently thrown from a Portland party bus, as outlined in The Oregonian, is raising many disturbing questions about this often under-regulated industry and about the conduct of the adults involved. According to the newspaper, the child died when she “tumbled out…
This week, a story from the other side of the continent turned a harsh light on an issue of great concern to us here in Oregon: propane explosions and the potential they have, as industrial accidents, to cause great damage. According to an article from the Pennsylvania newspaper The Intelligencer,…
An opinion piece published earlier this month in the Wall Street Journal is an impassioned plea for greater accountability among physicians and greater engagement by patients all in the name of dramatically improving medical care and patient safety. The piece by Dr. Marty Makary, a surgeon at Johns Hopkins, begins…