By US Daily Review Staff.

In a reversal of recent trends and positive news for the law enforcement community, law enforcement fatalities declined significantly nationwide during the first half of 2012, reaching a 52-year low.

Fifty-three law enforcement officers died in the line of duty during the first six months of this year, according to preliminary figures released today by the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund (NLEOMF), in conjunction with the Concerns of Police Survivors (C.O.P.S.).  This represents a 44 percent decrease over the 94 officers who lost their lives during the same time last year.  Officer fatalities decreased across all circumstances yet peace officer ambushes remain the leading circumstance of fatal shootings.

Of the 53 officers who were killed during the first six months of this year:

• Twenty-one officers were killed in traffic-related incidents representing a 36 percent decrease during the period.  This includes 17 who died in automobile crashes, three who were struck by automobiles while outside of their own vehicles, and one officer who was killed in a motorcycle crash.
• Nineteen were shot to death, representing a more than a 50 percent decrease from the same period last year.
• Thirteen officers died due to causes other than traffic or firearms-related incidents representing a 38 percent decrease.  This includes seven officers who died due to physical-related illnesses, three who were stabbed, and three who died in a fall.

“After two years of rising numbers of peace officer fatalities, the law enforcement community has joined together to make officer safety the utmost priority,” said Memorial Fund Chairman & CEO Craig W. Floyd.  “It is good to see those efforts paying off and the number of peace officer fatalities decreasing thus far in 2012.”

Florida, Georgia, Oklahoma and Texas were the deadliest states in the nation thus far in 2012 with three fatalities each.  Eight states (Alabama, Arizona, Michigan, Missouri, Nevada, New York, North Carolina, and Utah) each lot two officers during the same period.

Nineteen of the officers killed during the first half of the year were municipal officers, 19 were county officers, ten were state officers, three were territorial officers, and two were federal officers.  The average age of the officers who died was 43.  On average, they served for 12 years and eight of the officers who died were women.

“Line of duty deaths are down by almost 50% which is amazing news!” stated Madeline Neumann, National President of Concerns of Police Survivors and surviving spouse of Essex County (NJ) Patrolman Keith Neumann, who was killed in a drug raid on August 3, 1989. “This trend shows the value of raising awareness on safety issues for law enforcement officers.  Both NLEOMF and Concerns of Police Survivors have worked extremely hard to get the word out about how important officer safety is and it is apparent that our efforts are paying off.”

A copy of the full report, “Law Enforcement Officer Deaths:  Mid-Year 2012 Report,” is available at www.LawMemorial.org/ResearchBulletin.

By US Daily Review Staff.

any parents are overwhelmed by fear for their kids, asking how they can protect their children from people like Jerry Sandusky, a former Penn State coach who held a position of respect and power in his community and was recently convicted of 45 counts of child abuse, as reported in the New York Times. A new book from the founder of Kidpower, a nonprofit leader in people safety education, offers five tips for protecting kids from abuse, violence and other dangers.

“Like many sexual predators, Jerry Sandusky developed strong relationships of love and trust with his victims before molesting them,” says van der Zande, child safety expert and the author of The Kidpower Book For Caring Adults, a comprehensive guide on how to protect children from sexual abuse, abduction, bullying and other violence, including clear explanations, inspiring stories, and step-by-step explanations about how to practice skills.

A veteran instructor of self-protection and self-defense workshops to adults as well as children and teens for more than 20 years, van der Zande finds the stories told by Sandusky’s victims in the trial “chillingly similar to the stories we hear from adult survivors of child sexual abuse in our classes.”

After the guilty verdict for Sandusky was announced, van der Zande responded to the latest influx of questions from parents by also publishing an excerpt from The Kidpower Book For Caring Adults on her “Put Safety First” Blog with steps parents can take toprotect kids from abuse:

“As these terrible stories come to light, we need to understand that Sandusky is not unique,” van der Zande writes. “Pedophiles know how to find and manipulate vulnerable kids – and how to put on a great show for everyone else, even members of their family. Almost certainly, as I write this, a child is being abused behind closed doors somewhere in your town – and in mine. And these kids are not speaking up because the person abusing them is someone they love and trust – a member of their family, a mentor, someone they are dependent on.

Here are five steps from Kidpower.org to protect children from being betrayed by someone they love and trust.

1. Accept the reality that many child molesters may seem like wonderful people.  Don’t be fooled by outside appearances. Pay attention to what someone is actually doing with your kids. If someone who is responsible for the care of many kids starts to single your child out for special attention, be careful. Don’t assume that someone is safe just because this person is generous, beloved, charming, and kind.

2. Teach kids about touch in healthy relationships. The Kidpower rules include: “Touch or games for play, teasing, or affection should be the choice of each person, safe, allowed by the grownups in charge, and not a secret.  Other people should not touch your private areas or ask you to touch their private areas. Touch for health and safety is sometimes not a choice but should never be a secret.”  Rehearse with kids how to stop unwanted touch using non-sexual touch, like someone patting their head or holding their hand.  Give kids practice in persisting in setting their boundaries by pretending to act sad or by offering a bribe and having them say “No” again.

3. Teach kids to tell, even if someone they care about will be upset. The Kidpower rule is that “Problems should not be secrets.”  Get kids into the habit of talking to you by listening without lecturing or judging. Ask occasionally, “Is there anything you’ve been wondering or worrying about that you haven’t told me?”  Remind kids that their safety is the most important thing in the world to you and that you want to know if anything happens that is against your safety rules. Rehearse with kids how to interrupt a busy, impatient adult with a safety problem and how to persist in getting help if the adult doesn’t understand or believe them.

4. Take action if someone’s behavior makes you uncomfortable. Speak up about anything someone does with kids that you are not sure is safe. You don’t have to assume child abuse but you do have to be aware of the possibility of someone harming your child either intentionally or accidentally. If this person has good intentions, then you can work out concerns or misunderstandings.  Pay attention to your intuition. Don’t make or accept excuses. Keep supervising to ensure that your child is in safe hands.

5. Understand that Putting Safety First takes an ongoing commitment. Make safety conversations a daily part of your lives. Keep talking to kids and regularly ask, “Is there anything you’ve been wondering about, or worrying about, that you haven’t shared with me?” Keep paying attention and speak up if you see a problem. And keep practicing people safety skills with kids — just like they need to practice anything else, like brushing their teeth, they need to practice boundary setting and self-protection skills like awareness and getting help when they have a problem in order to make it a healthy habit. The Kidpower books provides a fun effective empowering way to do it!

About Irene van der Zande and Kidpower:

Irene van der Zande is the Founder and Executive Director of Kidpower Teenpower Fullpower International. Her new book, “The Kidpower Book for Caring Adults: Personal Safety, Self-Protection, Confidence, and Advocacy for Young People,” with a foreword by Gavin de Becker, is the most comprehensive resource available for parents, teachers, and other adults who care about protecting children and teens from bullying, child abuse, abduction, and other violence and want to learn how to empower young people with skills for taking charge of their emotional and physical safety. Van der Zande is available for interviews or to provide guest blog posts. Kidpower services include educational resources, workshops, and consultation on how to create cultures of caring, respect, and safety for everyone, everywhere. Contact safety(at)kidpower(dot)org with requests for interviews, resources or permission to use requirements.

Kidpower Teenpower Fullpower International®, known as Kidpower® (http://www.kidpower.org), is highly recommended by experts worldwide for taking a positive, skills-based approach to bullying, violence, abuse and kidnapping prevention. Instead of using fear to teach young people about violence prevention, the Kidpower Method™ makes it fun to learn to be safe, building habits that increase the skills and confidence of kids, parents, teachers and other caring adults that can last a lifetime.

Kidpower has served more than 2 million people of all ages and abilities, since its founding as a nonprofit organization in 1989, offering workshops through more than 20 centers and offices across the US and around the world, as well as an extensive free library of articles, podcasts and blog posts online and affordable publications that are used by hundreds of thousands of people every year. Visit http://www.kidpower.org for more information about people safety for children, teens and adults and training opportunities in your area.

By Jeremy Morris, Associate Editor, US Daily Review.

For the first time, Consumer Reports has rated U.S. hospitals for safety, combining six key measures into one composite Rating. Overall, Consumer Reports rates 1,159 hospitals in 44 states in four special regional editions of its August issue and online at www.ConsumerReports.org.

The safety score gives consumers a way to compare hospitals on patient safety. The six categories that comprise the safety score are: infections, readmissions, overuse of scanning, communication about new medications and discharge, complications, and mortality.  Infections, surgical mistakes, and other medical harm contribute to the deaths of 180,000 hospital patients a year, according to projections based on a 2010 report by the Department of Health and Human Services.  And that figure only applies to Medicare patients.

More than half (51 percent) of the hospitals rated by Consumer Reports received a score below 50 (on a scale of 1-100). “The safety scores provide a window into our nation’s hospitals, exposing worrisome risks that are mostly preventable,” said John Santa, M.D., M.P.H., director of the Consumer Reports Health Ratings Center.  “A consumer who enters a hospital thinking it’s a place to get better deserves to know if that is indeed the case.”  Some highlights:

• Overall Safety Performance:  Even the highest scoring hospitals have room for improvement. Billings Clinic in Montana was at the top of Consumer Reports’ list, but it got a safety score of just 72.   As noted above, 51 percent of hospitals rated by Consumer Reports earned scores below 50 on a scale of 1-100.  Log on to www.ConsumerReports.org to access the Ratings in detail.
• Deadly Infections: About one in 20 hospitalized patients will develop an infection that can be devastating, deadly even. Many can be prevented.  Consumer Reports rates hospitals on surgical-site infections that develop after surgery as well as bloodstream infections caused by central-line catheters in intensive care units.  Of the hospitals rated by Consumer Reports, 202 hospitals reported infections at rates higher than the national benchmark, and only 148 reported zero infections.  CR gleans its data from states that require infection reporting and through the Leapfrog Group, an independent organization that tracks hospital safety and quality.  Some hospitals voluntarily report central-line infection data to Leapfrog.
• Radiation Overload:  CT scans can provide essential diagnostic information. But they pose risks, too.  Radiation from CT scans—which are equivalent to between 100 and 500 chest X-rays—might contribute to an estimated 29,000 future cancers a year, a 2009 study suggests. Consumer Reports’ Ratings report on the percentage of chest and abdominal CT scans that are ordered twice for the same patient, once with contrast, and once without.  According to one doctor interviewed for the report, probably less than 1 percent of patients undergoing chest CT scans should get double scans. Double scans of the abdomen are needed more frequently, often to define abnormalities in the liver, kidney, and pancreas.  Only 28 percent of the hospitals in CR’s Ratings had double-scan rates of 5 percent or less in both categories, the cutoff established by CR to determine a top Rating.  Data about scanning was obtained from Hospital Compare, the online tool from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).  This was also the source for scores on readmissions, mortality, and complications.
• Readmissions: Research suggests that up to three-quarters of readmissions may be preventable. Consumer Reports includes readmissions in its safety composite score in part because the more often a patient enters a hospital, the greater the chance something will go wrong. No hospital earned CR’s highest score for readmissions; 166 hospitals received CR’s lowest score.
• Communication: For Communication, again, no hospital earned CR’s top score while almost 500 hospitals earned CR’s lowest score for communication about new medications and discharge plans.  The Communication scores are based on questions answered by millions of discharged patients in a federally mandated survey.
• Some Well Known Hospitals With Less Than Outstanding Scores:  Many hospitals that are well known perform poorly against Consumer Reports’ new safety score, including Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, with a safety score of 45; Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center, Los Angeles, 43; Cleveland Clinic, 39; New York Presbyterian, New York, 32; and Mount Sinai Medical Center, New York, 30.  However, CR’s safety Ratings do not assess how successful hospitals are at treating medical conditions and are not the only source that should be used to measure hospital safety and quality. The magazine report suggests other sources a consumer can investigate.
• Medical Harm—”Probably One Of Three Leading Causes of Death”:  Peter Pronovost, M.D., senior vice president for patient safety at Johns Hopkins Medicine in Baltimore, Maryland, told Consumer Reports: “Medical harm is probably one of the three leading causes of death in the U.S., but the government doesn’t adequately track it as it does deaths from automobiles, plane crashes, and cancer. It’s appalling.”  Pronovost also observes that hospitals have not given safety the attention it merits.

The CR safety score does not look comprehensively at all medical errors.  As noted above, the Consumer Reports Hospital Ratings are derived from several government and independent sources.  Consumer Reports used the most current data available at the time of its analysis, supplementing its Ratings by interviewing patients, physicians, hospital administrators and safety experts. The Ratings include only 18 percent of U.S. hospitals because data on patient safety still isn’t reported fully and consistently nationwide.

For example, only some states (far from all) require that hospitals report data for surgical-site infections, central-line infections, or both. And some hospitals voluntarily report central-line infection data to the Leapfrog Group. As a result, Consumer Reports cannot provide a safety score on every hospital.  ”The fact that consumers can’t get a full picture of most hospitals in the U.S. underscores the need for more public reporting,” said Dr. Santa.

The report outlines steps the government should take to fix the system, including the implementation of a national system for tracking and publicly reporting medical errors, as recommended by the Institute of Medicine more than 10 years ago. “The public assumes that someone keeps track of all that goes wrong, but that is just not the case,” said Lisa McGiffert, director of the Safe Patient Project at Consumers Union, the advocacy arm of Consumer Reports. For more details about what needs to happen to improve hospital safety, go to www.ConsumerReports.org.

According to the report, “Consumer Reports is the world’s largest independent product-testing organization. Using its more than 50 labs, auto test center, and survey research center, the nonprofit rates thousands of products and services annually. Founded in 1936, Consumer Reports has over 8 million subscribers to its magazine, website and other publications.   Its advocacy division, Consumers Union, works for health reform, food and product safety, financial reform, and other consumer issues in Washington, D.C., the states, and in the marketplace.”

By US Daily Review Staff.

Using consumer fireworks on our nation’s birthday is as American as apple pie, backyard barbecues and parades on Main Street. And it is equally safe if a few common sense rules are followed, says Nancy Blogin, President of the National Council on Fireworks Safety. Nancy notes that thanks to testing of consumer fireworks in China, through the American Fireworks Standards Laboratory and other testing programs, and rigorous enforcement of federal fireworks regulations by the CPSC, consumer fireworks today are safer than ever before. But Nancy notes that fireworks related accidents do occur each year; however, most could be eliminated if some basic safety steps had been taken.

The National Council on Fireworks Safety offers these common sense safety tips for using consumer fireworks in the hopes that injuries to consumers can be greatly reduced this season:

• Parents and caretakers should always closely supervise teens if they are using fireworks.
• Parents should not allow young children to handle or use fireworks.
• Fireworks should only be used outdoors.
• Always have water ready if you are shooting fireworks.
• Know your fireworks. Read the caution label before igniting.
• Obey local laws. If fireworks are not legal where you live, do not use them.
• Alcohol and fireworks do not mix.
• Wear safety glasses whenever using fireworks.
• Never relight a “dud” firework. Wait 20 minutes and then soak it in a bucket of water.
• Soak spent fireworks with water before placing them in an outdoor garbage can.
• Avoid using homemade fireworks or illegal explosives: They can kill you!
• Report illegal explosives, like M-80s and quarter sticks, to the fire or police department.

And note these special safety tips, if using sparklers:

Always remain standing while using sparklers.

• Never hold a child in your arms while using sparklers.
• Never hold, or light, more than one sparkler at a time.
• Never throw sparklers.
• Sparkler wire and stick remain hot long after the flame has gone out. Be sure to drop spent sparklers in a bucket of water.
• Teach children not to wave sparklers, or run, while holding sparklers.

The National Council on Fireworks Safety urges Americans to follow these common sense safety rules this Fourth of July in their holiday celebrations.

By US Daily Review Staff.

Despite a high frequency of self-reported distracted driving habits (84% of new car buyers reported one or more experiences in the average month), the adoption of safety technologies is of greatest interest among American new car buyers. Safety technologies like  back-up cameras, blind spot warning systems, and pedestrian sensors gained the most consumer interest over the past year compared to technologies focused on entertainment and comfort such as satellite radio and voice-activated controls. This is according to the 2012 Harris Poll AutoTECHCAST(SM) study released by Harris Interactive.

On average, new car buyers admit to engaging in nearly 37 distracted driving habits in an average four week period. Many of the habits that topped the list were related to technology, including sending or receiving a phone call (11 times), drinking a beverage (8 times), texting (5 times), or emailing (3 times). New car buyers between the ages of 18 to 34 engage in the most distracted driving habits (up to 57 times in four weeks). Yet, the same age group has a lower frequency of making or receiving phone calls compared to new car buyers ages 35 to 44. When looking at gender differences, it’s men who engage in distracted driving habits the most, especially when making and receiving calls (12 times) compared to women (10 times).

Thankfully, those that more frequently engage in distracted driving habits are more likely to consider safety and intelligent sensing technologies than others.

“While ideally these drivers should practice fewer of these distracted driving habits,” stated Mike Chadsey, Vice President, Automotive Solutions Consultant, Harris Interactive, “it is also comforting to know that this distracted driving group is aware of the importance of safety features and is actively considering them for their next vehicle purchase.”

“Plug In” Technology Options Win Out Over More Integrated Technology
As car manufactures anticipate what automobile technology consumers will desire most, many original equipment manufacturers are pondering whether they should enable docking and connecting for current technology, create their own technology features, or partner with technology firms to meet today’s changing consumer demands. When evaluating consumer interest in automobile connectivity options, including built-in applications and options for docking smart phones, the study concluded that flexibility to “plug in” current consumer electronics wins out over integration.

Before exposure to a price, new car buyers prefer the option of smart phone docking over built-in applications, with 24% stating they would consider the option of docking their smart phone in their vehicle compared to just 14% who would consider having applications built-in. Once exposed to a price, consideration is just slightly less, at 20%, even though smart phone docking technology was priced $100 higher than built-in applications.

“Consumers are indicating that they want their automotive technology to help improve safety while giving them more flexibility, even if it costs a little more,” added Chadsey. “Personalization is the future of the connected car. Drivers want to use technology they already know and love in their vehicles. By integrating technologies they already own, it also eliminates some of the technology usage issues plaguing the industry today.”

By US Daily Review Staff.

Few homeowners prepare for a wildfire or take steps to reduce wildfire risk unless one is threatening their home. However, the fires raging in Colorado, Utah and New Mexico, along with the dry, drought-like conditions across the country should have every homeowner taking steps to reduce wildfire risk.

Allstate recommends homeowners reduce wildfire hazards by taking a few simple steps that can make a big difference if a wildfire threatens your community.

According to the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS), homeowners should remove potential fuel sources and create a defensible zone around a home which will dramatically reduce wildfire hazards This may help slow flames or help direct the flames away from your home during a wildfire. Allstate and IBHS also recommend homeowners do the following within 30 feet of most houses to reduce wildfire risk:

• Eliminate fuel sources like dry landscaping, woodpiles and decks.
• Prune trees and shrubs.
• Trim taller trees so lowest branch is no less than six feet from the ground.
• Remove dead leaves and branches from the yard.
• Clear branches from around the roof and chimney.
• Mow lawn regularly and dispose cuttings and debris promptly.
• Clear roof, gutters and eaves of debris.
• Maintain your irrigation system.
• Move firewood and storage tanks at least 50 feet away from the home.
• Store flammable liquids properly.

By US Daily Review Staff.

Approximately 400 people die every day because of a preventable hospital error – the equivalent of a jet crashing every day and killing all aboard. In response to this silent epidemic, more than 2,600 U.S. hospitals will now receive an A, B, C, D or F Hospital Safety Score(SM) based on patient safety via a first-of-its-kind initiative. A Blue Ribbon Panel of the nation’s top patient safety experts provided guidance to The Leapfrog Group, an independent national nonprofit run by employers and other large purchasers of health benefits, to develop the Hospital Safety Score. The Hospital Safety Score is calculated using publicly available data on patient injuries, medical and medication errors, and infections.

“The Leapfrog Group’s goal is to give patients the vital information they need and deserve before even entering a hospital,” said Leah Binder, president and CEO, The Leapfrog Group. “We hope people will use this score to talk with their doctor, make informed decisions about where to seek care, and take the right precautions during a hospital stay.”

For the first time, the Hospital Safety Score will highlight the country’s best hospitals and warn against the worst to save lives and bring attention to the nation’s silent safety epidemic. According to recent studies, one in four Medicare patients will leave a hospital with a potentially fatal issue they didn’t have prior to hospitalization. On average, one medication error per day occurs for each hospitalized patient, and more than 180,000 Americans die every year from hospital accidents, errors, and infections.

The Hospital Safety Score website – www.hospitalsafetyscore.org – allows visitors to search hospital scores for free, and also provides information on how the public can protect themselves and loved ones during a hospital stay. More information on the Hospital Safety Score can also be found on Sharecare, an online resource of health questions and answers, atwww.sharecare.com/group/hospital-safety-score.  Patients should visit the Sharecare website for detailed questions and answers on how to stay safe and protect themselves during a hospital stay.

“The Leapfrog Group board has been frustrated with the lack of progress in improving patient safety, despite significant industry efforts over the past decade,” said David Knowlton, immediate past chair of The Leapfrog Group Board of Directors and chair of The Leapfrog Group’s Patient Safety Committee. “It is time for a game changer. It’s time to give American families the heads-up they need to protect themselves if they face the need for a hospital stay.”

The Leapfrog Group’s membership of employers and other purchasers of health benefits, and business coalitions on health across the country, will be working to engage communities, employers, health plans, and hospitals in using the Hospital Safety Score to improve safety. The Hospital Safety Score will be reissued using updated data in November 2012, with an annual Hospital Safety Score to follow in 2013 and beyond.

Key Findings

Of the 2,652 general hospitals issued a Hospital Safety Score, 729 earned an “A,” 679 earned a “B,” and 1243 earned a “C” or below.

A wide range of hospitals earned “As,” with no one class of hospitals dominating among those showing the highest safety scores. Hospitals earning an “A” include academic medical centers Massachusetts General, NYU Langone Medical Center, and University of California San Francisco. Many rural hospitals earned an “A,” including Grinnell Regional Medical Center in Iowa and Baptist Health South Florida Homestead Hospital in Florida.

• Hospitals with myriad national accolades, such as Mayo Clinic, Virginia Mason Medical Center, and University of Michigan Medical Center, each earned an “A.”
• Less predictable were the “A” scores earned by hospitals serving highly vulnerable, impoverished, and/or health-challenged populations, such as Bellevue Hospital, Montefiore Hospital, and Detroit Receiving Hospital.
• “A” scores were awarded to for-profit hospitals including many in the HCA systems, as well as hundreds of not-for-profit and public hospitals.
• Community hospitals showed excellence as well, such as OSF St. Joseph Medical Center in Illinois.

Not all hospitals earned an “A,” and there are some surprises, including hospitals with outstanding reputations for quality appearing with Hospital Safety Scores of “B,” “C,” or below. “The Hospital Safety Score exclusively measures safety – meaning errors, accidents, and infections. Even hospitals with excellent programs for surgical and medical care, state-of-the-art diagnostic equipment, and dedicated physicians may still need this score as a reminder that patient safety should be a top priority,” said Dr. Ashish Jha of Harvard, a member of the Blue Ribbon Expert Panel.

States had variations in performance. Massachusetts hospitals on average had the highest Hospital Safety Scores, while District of Columbia had the lowest average scores.

Methodology and Experts

Calculated under the guidance of The Leapfrog Group’s nine-member Blue Ribbon Expert Panel, the Hospital Safety Score uses 26 measures of publicly available hospital safety data to produce a single score representing a hospital’s overall capacity to keep patients safe from infections, injuries, and medical and medication errors. The panel includes: John Birkmeyer (University of Michigan), Ashish Jha (Harvard University), Lucian Leape (Harvard University), Arnold Milstein (Stanford University), Peter Pronovost (Johns Hopkins University), Patrick Romano (University of California, Davis), Sara Singer (Harvard University), Tim Vogus (Vanderbilt University), and Robert Wachter (University of California, San Francisco).

“Developing the Hospital Safety Score was an intensive nine-month process led by a group of patient safety experts from across the country, and we believe it resulted in a fair metric to assess a hospital’s performance on patient safety,” said Dr. Jha. “There is an overwhelming amount of information out there that could be useful when we are admitted to the hospital, but very few of us know what it is or where to find it. Everyone deserves the same information to protect their families. We’ve been glad to guide The Leapfrog Group in developing the Hospital Safety Score to give the public a way to guide their own decisions.”

The Blue Ribbon Expert Panel designed the methodology for hospitals with the most data publicly available at the national level: general short-stay hospitals. As a result, excluded from this first round of the Hospital Safety Score are critical access hospitals, specialty hospitals such as children’s hospitals and cancer hospitals, government hospitals such as VA and military hospitals, and long-term care facilities.

To develop the Hospital Safety Score, the Blue Ribbon Expert Panel gathered data publicly reported at the national level, including measures reported by the federal government via the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and the annual Leapfrog Hospital Survey. The final 26 measures calculated in the Hospital Safety Score cover falls and trauma, central line-associated bloodstream infections, very severe pressure ulcers, and preventable complications from surgery such as foreign objects retained in the body, postoperative hazards, and accidental punctures or lacerations. The Hospital Safety Score also credits hospitals on measures of the procedures and protocols known to prevent infections, errors and accidents, such as strong nursing leadership and engagement, hand hygiene policies, computerized physician order entry systems, adherence to medical and medication protocols that prevent complications, safety-first organizational leadership and culture, and the right level of staffing for the ICU.

Not all hospitals make the full list of 26 measures publicly available, in which case the Hospital Safety Score was calculated only for the available measures. The Blue Ribbon Expert Panel required at least 14 measures for a hospital in order to calculate a Hospital Safety Score. Those without 14 measures were not scored. Unscored hospitals include all hospitals from the State of Maryland, and certain territories including Guam and Puerto Rico, which the federal government excluded from required public reporting at the national level.

“Residents of Maryland, Guam, and Puerto Rico should be very concerned that they do not have information on safety that other U.S. residents have,” said Binder, a Maryland resident. “We will be working to improve hospital transparency, and people should contact their elected officials and local hospitals to insist on better public disclosure.”

For more information about the Hospital Safety Score, please visit www.hospitalsafetyscore.org.

By Jeremy Morris, Associate Editor, US Daily Review.

In preparation of the upcoming storm season, Briggs & Stratton reminds residents to be mindful of the dangers of carbon monoxide while operating portable generators.

“Portable generators are designed to thrive during storm season, when it’s more likely power outages will abruptly put families in the dark,” said Eric Loferski, marketing manager for Briggs & Stratton Portable Power. “But generators can be dangerous if not operated properly.”

Portable generators are powered by small engines that emit potentially-harmful carbon monoxide gases. If carbon monoxide is not allowed to exhaust from the engine in a safe manner, harmful effects — even death — can occur in a matter of minutes.

Carbon monoxide is especially dangerous because it is tasteless, colorless and odorless. Even if exhaust fumes cannot be detected, carbon monoxide could still be present.

The best way to operate a portable generator and safely control carbon monoxide gases is to read and follow the operator’s manual before starting the generator. Other steps to ensuring safe operation of portable generators include:

• Operate the portable generator only outside, far away from windows, doors and vents to reduce the risk of carbon monoxide gas from accumulating and potentially being drawn towards occupied spaces.
• Install battery-operated carbon monoxide alarms or plug-in carbon monoxide alarms with battery back-up according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Smoke alarms cannot detect carbon monoxide gas.
• Do not run portable generator inside homes, garages, basements, crawlspaces, sheds, or other partially-enclosed spaces even if using fans or opening doors and windows for ventilation.  Carbon monoxide can quickly build up in these spaces and can linger for hours, even after this product has shut off.
• Always place portable generator downwind and point the engine exhaust away from occupied spaces.
• If you start to feel sick, dizzy, or weak while using the portable generator, shut it off and get to fresh air immediately. See a doctor. You may have carbon monoxide poisoning.

By Jeremy Morris, US Daily Review Staff.

With summer officially upon us, it’s almost time for relaxing vacations and sunny beaches. According to the U.S. Travel Association, 64 percent of Americans plan to take a leisure trip between May and October of 2012. This is up from 61 percent last year. But while you’re packing your new swimsuit and favorite sunglasses don’t forget about protecting your jewelry. A recent survey conducted by Perfect Circle Jewelry Insurance, a product of Jewelers Mutual Insurance Company, found that over one-quarter of people surveyed had lost a piece of jewelry while vacationing.

The survey of 600 married women in the United States also found that almost two-thirds of people bring or wear valuable jewelry while on vacation. The most common place people left their jewelry was in the room safe, which is the best option next to wearing your jewelry and keeping it with you at all times. But almost one-quarter of people left pieces of jewelry in their luggage, which is not advisable when it comes to protecting your favorite diamond earrings or new pearl bracelet.

It’s no surprise that people bring jewelry with them on their vacation. “Jewelry is part of who you are, it’s part of your personality. You want to wear it while traveling, not leave it behind,” says Mike Maley, vice president of personal lines with Jewelers Mutual. “It’s perfectly fine to bring your jewelry on vacation, just take extra precautions to ensure its safety.”

So whether you’re a jet-setter or weekend road-tripper, here are some helpful safety tips from your travel-savvy friends with Perfect Circle Jewelry Insurance by Jewelers Mutual, your jewelry insurance experts:

1. Choose wisely. Pack light and take only the jewelry you’ll wear while traveling and at your destination. The 4-carat diamond ring you save for special occasions? Probably not. The pearls that go with everything? Definitely.
2. Make a list. List all the jewelry you’ll take with you. Make two copies. Take one copy with you and store it separately from your jewelry. Leave the other copy at home. Also helpful: take pictures or a video of your jewelry.
3. Carry it on. Never put jewelry in checked bags. Instead, wear it or stow it in your carry-on bag. If you wear it, take extra care by slipping a pendant inside a sweater or turning your ring so only the band shows.
4. Keep it with you. Put your jewelry in a favorite bag you’ll carry while traveling. Don’t leave your jewelry in an unattended car or suitcase. When checking into your hotel or condo, don’t hand your jewelry bag to hotel staff. Carry it personally.
5. Use the safe. Always store jewelry in the in-room safe when you’re not wearing it.
6. Insure it right. Perfect Circle Jewelry Insurance provides personal jewelry protection against loss, damage, theft and mysterious disappearance wherever your travels take you, worldwide. So get the right insurance. Then relax and have fun.

By US Daily Review Staff.

Following each of the world’s worst nuclear accidents—Three Mile Island, Chernobyl, and Fukushima—governments and plant operators adopted safety and security measures to help prevent future disasters. Most recently, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission has designed a new set of rules to harden American reactors against earthquake-triggered failures like those that crippled Japan’s Fukushima-Daiichi plant last year.

But has the response from industry and nuclear regulators always been adequate?  Lessons Learned from “Lessons Learned”: The Evolution of Nuclear Power Safety after Accidents and Near-Accidents, a new paper from the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, examines the changes in safety procedures and protocols that were or were not implemented after major nuclear disasters. The authors evaluate several less catastrophic accidents and near-mishaps as well, noting that those less serious incidents also offer critical lessons.

The paper provides recommendations for increasing plant safety and security as commercial nuclear power spreads globally. Authors, Michael M. May and Edward D. Blandford stress the need for better communication among nuclear states. “Mechanisms to facilitate and, where needed, enforce mutual learning have not always been adequate,” they write. “Information-sharing, import/export agreements based on safety standards, agreements to facilitate cooperation among regulatory authorities, and the participation of financial interests such as investors and insurers all have a role to play in improving mutual learning among different states.”

This paper, published as part of the American Academy’s Global Nuclear Future (GNF) Initiative, is available online at http://www.amacad.org/projects/globalnuclearbooks.aspx.

Members of the GNF Initiative are working with policy-makers in the United States, Middle East, and Asia to advance effective policies and procedures to ensure that the spread of nuclear power does not aggravate, and in fact reduces, concerns over international safety, security, and nonproliferation. Because the Academy is not identified with a particular stance on nuclear questions, yet has a fifty-year-old tradition of work on arms control, it offers a neutral forum for discussing these issues.

Michael M. May is Professor Emeritus (Research) in the School of Engineering at Stanford University, where he is also a Senior Fellow in the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies. Edward D. Blandford is a Stanton Nuclear Security Postdoctoral Fellow at Stanford’s Center for International Security and Cooperation as well as an adjunct Research Assistant Professor in the Department of Chemical and Nuclear Engineering at the University of New Mexico.

Recent Academy Publications from the Global Nuclear Future Initiative include:

Nuclear Collisions: Discord, Reform & the Nuclear Nonproliferation Regime, Steven E. Miller (American Academy of Arts and Sciences, 2012)

The Back-End of the Nuclear Fuel Cycle: An Innovative Storage Concept, Robert Rosner, Stephen M. Goldberg, and James P. Malone (American Academy of Arts and Sciences, 2012)

Game Changers for Nuclear Energy, Kate Marvel and Michael May (American Academy of Arts and Sciences, 2011)

Nuclear Reactors: Generation to Generation, Stephen M. Goldberg and Robert Rosner (American Academy of Arts and Sciences, 2011)

Shared Responsibilities for Nuclear Disarmament: A Global Debate, Scott D. Sagan, James M. Acton, Jayantha Dhanapala, Mustafa Kibaroglu, Harald Muller, Yukio Satoh, Mohamed I. Shaker, and Achilles Zaluar (American Academy of Arts and Sciences, 2010)

Multinational Approaches to the Nuclear Fuel Cycle, Charles McCombie and Thomas Isaacs, Noramly Bin Muslim, Tariq Rauf, Atsuyuki Suzuki, Frank von Hippel, and Ellen Tauscher (American Academy of Arts and Sciences, 2010)

On the Global Nuclear Future, vols. 1–2, Daedalus (MIT Press, 2009–2010)

All of these publications are available on the Academy’s website at http://www.amacad.org/projects/globalnuclearbooks.aspx.

According to a statement, “Founded in 1780, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (www.amacad.org) is an independent policy research center that conducts multidisciplinary studies of complex and emerging problems. Current Academy research focuses on science and technology policy; global security; institutions of democracy; the humanities and culture; and education. With headquarters in Cambridge, Massachusetts, the Academy’s work is advanced by its 4,600 elected members, who are leaders in the academic disciplines, the arts, business, and public affairs from around the world.”

By the Price of Business, Radio Partners of US Daily Review.

By US Daily Review Staff.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (1), the deadliest days of the year for teens aged 15 to 19 are in the summer months of June, July, and August. As summer approaches, AutoTrader.com, the ultimate automotive marketplace, aims to draw parents’ attention to this issue by outlining important tips to help parents keep teens safe while driving this summer.

“Most safe driving tips are packed full of ideas that seem obvious to most people; however, what seems obvious to an adult with even a few years of driving experience, may not be obvious to a teen driver,” said Brian Moody, automotive expert at AutoTrader.com. “At AutoTrader.com, we review and test-drive nearly every car on the market, and safety is always a top feature we look for. It is imperative for parents to equip their teens with the right tools, technology and education on how to be a safe driver.”

• Pick the Right Car. Keeping teens safe on the road starts with ensuring they have the right car. While many teens inherit their parent’s vehicle as their first car – mainly due to simplicity and cost efficiency – parents should step back and thoughtfully consider their choice, keeping safety top of mind. For example, SUVs and trucks behave differently on the road than coupes and sedans. A teen driver may lack the skills to cope with evasive maneuvers in a big truck. Parents should opt for something that sits close to the ground (to minimize rollover risk) and something that isn’t overly powerful.
• Educate Teens on Car Maintenance. With the radio playing the summer’s top tunes, it’s easy for teens to miss important car maintenance signs; therefore, parents should add car maintenance, such as checking tire pressure and fluids, to their list of things to discuss with their teens. Even if just one tire has low pressure, it can dramatically change the way a car handles. Also, parents should be sure that their teen drivers check all fluids like window washing fluid, coolant, oil, transmission fluid, brake fluid and power steering fluid. Making sure these fluids are properly maintained can help prevent a breakdown far from home.
• Say it Again: Seatbelts Save Lives. Obvious tip? Not to one in every seven drivers that still don’t wear their seatbelts (2). According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC) (2), automotive accidents are the number one cause of death in the U.S. among people aged 5 to 34. Furthermore, the CDC says that drivers who buckle their seat belts cut their chances in half of being seriously injured or killed in a crash (2). Reiterate the importance of wearing a seatbelt, and note that technology can also help. For example, some Ford vehicles can be equipped with the MyKey feature, making it possible for parents to limit certain aspects of their teen’s car. With MyKey, top speed, radio volume and seatbelt chime parameters can be altered.
• Discourage Distracted Driving. According to Distraction.Gov (3), cell phone use was reported in 18% of distracted-related fatalities in America. Additionally, having multiple passengers, changing iPod tracks or operating the car’s navigation system can be just as dangerous. Parents should discuss all the ways drivers can be distracted with their teens to help keep them safe on the road.
• Discourage Over-Use of Cruise Control. Cruise control can work well on long trips and may even limit driver fatigue. However, teen drivers who may be more likely to stay out late should limit the use of cruise control at night. The lack of engagement might lead to a slightly drowsy driver falling asleep more quickly.

By US Daily Review Staff.

Last week at the Capitol Building, Arkansas State Senator Gilbert Baker (R) announced that Arkansas has become the first in the nation to launch Smart911 statewide, ushering in a new era of public safety for all of its citizens. In an initiative marked by bipartisan leadership, and the overwhelming support of public safety officials and public service groups, the Smart911 deployment will give 9-1-1 telecommunicators, police, fire and emergency medical services (EMS) more detailed information, enabling them to respond to an emergency in the right location, with the right personnel and right equipment to improve the incident outcome.

Smart911 is a service provided by Rave Mobile Safety, a software partner for campus and public safety. Smart911 is a public/private partnership which gives citizens the ability to create a free, private and secure Safety Profile that integrates with the 9-1-1 system. Endorsed nationwide by leading public safety and health officials, as well as local emergency responders and advocacy groups, the rapidly-growing Smart911 service is now helping emergency responders across dozens of states protecting millions of citizens.

“With Smart911, we are providing our 9-1-1 centers and emergency responders with the best possible tool to protect all of our citizens. Regardless of political affiliation, there is no greater priority than the well-being of those we serve,” said Senator Gilbert Baker of Arkansas. “Through new technology and at no cost to taxpayers, Arkansas is leading the way in public safety by helping front-line responders in each and every city and town to resolve emergencies more effectively and save lives.”

Smart911 allows citizens to create a Safety Profile online at www.smart911.com that is automatically displayed to 9-1-1 during emergency calls.  This can include home addresses associated with mobile phone numbers, medical conditions and disabilities, photos of family members, floor-plans and other rescue-related data.

This information enables emergency responders to have a comprehensive understanding of the scene before they arrive. For example, EMS will know about medical conditions, allergies and disabilities, facilitating precise life-saving treatment. Fire crews will know not only how many residents are at a home, but locations of bedrooms, residents with special needs and even if there are pets on-premise. Police will have instant access to a child’s personal information and a photograph if a child goes missing.

“Arkansas’ leaders understand that their citizens deserve the most effective emergency service possible and they’re committed to helping responders improve incident outcomes,” said Tom Axbey, president and CEO, Rave Mobile Safety. “While Smart911 is growing rapidly, Arkansas’ statewide launch sets an important public safety example. We look forward to working with public safety leaders to quickly roll the service out across the state.”

Citizens are encouraged to create their Safety Profile with Smart911 today to have their information immediately available to 9-1-1. Smart911 data is private and secure, is only used for emergency responses, and only made available to the 9-1-1 system in the event of an emergency call.

By US Daily Review Staff.

Home remedies for jellyfish stings – such as vinegar, alcohol, meat tenderizer, baking soda and urine –may be less effective at relieving pain than plain hot water and lidocaine, according to a paper published online Tuesday in Annals of Emergency Medicine (“Evidence-Based Treatment of Jellyfish Stings in North America and Hawaii”)

“Some of the remedies promoted by word of mouth and online, such as vinegar, actually make the pain worse with certain species of jellyfish,” said lead study author Nicholas T. Ward, MD, of the University of California San Diego Department of Emergency Medicine. “Current evidence suggests hot water and topical lidocaine, which is available at local pharmacies, may be more universally beneficial in treating pain from a jellyfish sting.  Topical lidocaine, a local anesthetic, may also inactivate the stinging cells of the jellyfish, preventing further envenomation.”

Dr. Ward and his team performed a systematic review of 19 studies of various treatments for envenomation by jellyfish and related organisms in North America and Hawaii.  Although vinegar exacerbates pain in stings from most species, it may be beneficial in treating stings by the Bluebottle jellyfish, also known as Portuguese man-o-war.

The most consistently effective treatment for stings from jellyfish species common to around beaches in the United States is careful removal of the nematocysts, followed by washing the afflicted area with water – hot is ideal, but saltwater is also effective – and application of topical lidocaine or benzocaine.

Researchers did not find sufficient evidence to support or refute the use of pressure bandages, which is recommended in some first aid manuals.

“The perfect treatment would be readily available, cheap, capable of inactivating venom and applicable across multiple species of jellyfish,” said Dr. Ward.  “Until that remedy is discovered, hot water or topical lidocaine may be the best bet for a jellyfish sting in North America or Hawaii.”

By US Daily Review Staff.

In a new report, The Facts Hurt: A State-By-State Injury Prevention Policy Report, 24 states scored a five or lower on a set of 10 key indicators of steps states can take to prevent injuries.  Two states, California and New York, received the highest score of nine out of a possible 10, while two states scored the lowest, Montana and Ohio, with two out of 10.

Injuries – including those caused by accidents and violence – are the third leading cause of death nationally, and they are the leading cause of death for Americans between the ages of one and 44.

The Facts Hurt report, released today by the Trust for America’s Health (TFAH) and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF), concludes that millions of injuries could be prevented each year if more states adopted additional research-based injury prevention policies, and if programs were fully implemented and enforced.

Overall, New Mexico has the highest rate of injury-related deaths in the United States, at a rate of 97.8 per 100,000 people, while New Jersey has the lowest rate at 36.1 per 100,000.  Overall, the national rate is 57.9 per 100,000 Americans who die in injury-related fatalities.

Approximately 50 million Americans are medically treated for injuries each year, and more than 2.8 million are hospitalized.  Nearly 12,000 children and teens die from injuries resulting from accidents each year and around 9.2 million are treated in emergency rooms.  Every year, injuries generate $406 billion in lifetime costs for medical care and lost productivity.

For The Facts Hurt report, TFAH and RWJF worked with a committee of top injury prevention experts from the Safe States Alliance and the Society for the Advancement of Violence and Injury Prevention (SAVIR) to develop a set of indicators of leading evidence-based strategies that have been shown to reduce injuries and save lives.  Some key findings include:

• 29 states do not require bicycle helmets for all children;
• 17 states do not require that children ride in a car seat or booster seat to at least the age of eight;
• 31 states do not require helmets for all motorcycle riders;
• 34 states and Washington, D.C. do not require mandatory ignition interlocks for convicted drunk drivers;
• 18 states do not have primary seat belt laws;
• 44 states scored a “B” or lower on a teen dating violence law review by the Break the Cycle organization; and
• 14 states do not have strong youth sport concussion safety laws.

“There are proven, evidence-based strategies that can spare millions of Americans from injuries each year,” said Jeff Levi, Ph.D., Executive Director of TFAH.  “This report focuses on specific, scientifically supported steps we can take to make it easier for Americans to keep themselves and their families safer.”

The report found that many injury prevention activities have been scientifically shown to reduce harm and deaths, for instance:

• Seat belts saved an estimated 69,000 lives from 2006 to 2010;
• Motorcycle helmets saved an estimated 8,000 lives from 2005 to 2009;
• Child safety seats saved around 1,800 lives from 2005 to 2009;
• The number of children and teens killed in motor vehicle crashes dropped 41 percent from 2000 to 2009; and
• School-based programs to prevent violence have cut violent behavior among high school students by 29 percent.

The report also identified a set of emerging new injury threats, including a dramatic, fast rise in prescription drug abuse, concussions in school sports, bullying, crashes from texting while driving and an expected increase in the number in falls as the Baby Boomer generation ages.

“Seat belts, helmets, drunk driving laws and a range of other strong prevention policies and initiatives are reducing injury rates around the country,” said Amber Williams, Executive Director of the Safe States Alliance.  “However, we could dramatically bring down rates of injuries from motor vehicles, assaults, falls, fires and a range of other risks even more if more states adopted, enforced and implemented proven policies.  Lack of national capacity and funding are major barriers to states adopting these and other policies.”

“While tremendous progress has been made in preventing and treating injury, it remains a leading cause of death for people of all ages and the number one cause of death for children,” said Dr. Andrea Gielen, ScD, Past President, SAVIR, and Director, Johns Hopkins Center for Injury Research and Policy. “Texting while driving, the increasing numbers of falls in older adults, domestic violence and the astonishing rise in misuse of prescription drugs mean we need to redouble our efforts to make safety research and policy a national priority.”

The report also finds that funding for injury prevention for states from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) averages only $0.28 per American – and has dropped 24 percent from fiscal years 2006 to 2011 – and only 31 states have full-time injury and violence prevention directors, which limits injury prevention efforts.

The report was supported by a grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and is available on TFAH’s website at www.healthyamericans.org.

Score Summary:

A full list of all of the indicators and scores, listed below, is available along with the full report on TFAH’s web site at www.healthyamericans.org and RWJF’s Web site at www.rwjf.org.  For the state-by-state scoring, states received one point for achieving an indicator or zero points if they did not achieve the indicator.  Zero is the lowest possible overall score, 10 is the highest.  The data for the indicators are from a number of sources, including:  the Governors Highway Safety Association; the American Academy of Pediatrics; Break the Cycle; the Network for Public Health Law; momsTeam.com; the Alliance of States with Prescription Drug Monitoring Programs; and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

9 out of 10: California and New York
8 out of 10: Maryland, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island and Washington
7 out of 10: Connecticut, Washington, D.C., Hawaii, Illinois, Kansas, Louisiana, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Mexico and Tennessee
6 out of 10: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Maine, Nebraska, Virginia and Wisconsin
5 out of 10: Arkansas, Colorado, Indiana, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Texas, Utah, Vermont and West Virginia
4 out of 10: Michigan, Mississippi and New Hampshire
3 out of 10: Idaho, Kentucky, Nevada, North Dakota, South Carolina, South Dakota and Wyoming
2 out of 10: Montana and Ohio

The 10 indicators include:

• Does the state have a primary seat belt law? (32 states and Washington, D.C. meet the indicator and 18 state do not)
• Does the state require mandatory ignition interlocks for all convicted drunk drivers, even first time offenders?  (16 states meet the indicator and 34 states and Washington, D.C. do not)
• Does the state have a universal helmet law requiring helmets for all motorcycle riders? (19 states and Washington, D.C. meet the indicator and 31 states do not)
• Does the state require car seats or booster seats for children to at least the age of eight? (33 states and Washington, D.C. meet the indicator and 17 states do not)
• Does the state require bicycle helmets for all children? (21 states and Washington, D.C. meet the indicator and 29 states do not)
• Does the state allow for people in dating relationships to get protection orders? (44 states and Washington, D.C. meet the indicator and 6 states do not)
• Did the state receive an “A” grade in the teen dating violence laws analysis conducted by the Break the Cycle Organization?  (6 states and Washington, D.C. meet the indicator and 44 states did not)
• Does the state have a strong youth sports concussion safety law? (36 states and Washington, D.C. meet the indicator and 14 states do now)
• Did the state enact a prescription drug monitoring program? (48 states meet the indicator and 2 states and Washington, D.C. do not)
• Did more than 90 percent of injury discharges from hospitals receive external cause-of-injury coding in the state, which help researchers and health officials track industry trends and evaluate prevention programs?  (23 states meet the indicator and 27 states and Washington, D.C. do not)

STATE-BY-STATE INJURY DEATH RANKINGS

Note: Rates include all injury deaths for all ages, for injuries caused by accidents and violence (intentional and unintentional) 1 = Highest rate of injury fatalities, 51 = lowest rate of injury fatalities. Rankings are based on combining three years of data (2007-2009) from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Web-based Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System to “stabilize” data for comparison purposes.  The data are age-adjusted using the year 2000 to standardize the data.  This methodology, recommended by the CDC, compensates for any potential anomalies or usual changes due to the specific sample in any given year in any given state.  The numbers are based on how many deaths per 100,000 people.

1. New Mexico (97.8); 2. Montana (86.5); 3. Alaska (85.8); 4. Wyoming (84.7); 5. Mississippi (84.3); 6. Oklahoma (83); 7. West Virginia (82.2); 8. Louisiana (80.1); 9. Arkansas (76.9) 10. (tie) Alabama and Kentucky (76.5); 12. Tennessee (75.6); 13. South Carolina (71.7); 14. Nevada (71.3); 15. Arizona (70.7); 16. Missouri (70.2); 17. Colorado (67.8); 18. Florida (66.8); 19.North Carolina (66); 20. Idaho (65.3);  21. Utah (64.8); 22. Georgia (61.4); 23. Vermont (61.3); 24. Oregon (61.2); 25. North Dakota (61.6); 26. South Dakota (60.7); 27. (tie) Indiana and Kansas (60.4); 29. Washington, D.C. (60.2); 30. Pennsylvania (59.4); 31. (tie) Maine and Wisconsin (58.7); 33. Texas (58.5); 34. Washington (58.1); 35. Delaware (56.9); 36. Michigan(56.8); 37. Maryland (56.1); 38. Ohio (55.9); 39. Virginia (53.4); 40. Iowa (52.5); 41. Nebraska (51.3); 42. Minnesota (51.2); 43. Rhode Island (50.4); 44. New Hampshire (50); 45. Illinois (48.7); 46. Hawaii (48.3); 47. Connecticut (47.9); 48. California (47.6); 49. Massachusetts (41.1); 50. New York (37.1); New Jersey (36.1).

Source: PR Newswire (http://s.tt/1cuW9)

By US Daily Review Staff.

As Memorial Day approaches heralding the summer pool season, a new survey on swimmer hygiene conducted by the Water Quality & Health Council (WQHC) finds that although nearly all Americans (93 percent) say they would never re-use someone else’s bath water, almost seven in 10 (68 percent) admit they do not always shower before getting in the pool.  Failing to shower before swimming adds contaminants to the pool that can lead to unhealthy swimming conditions.

“Swimming is not a substitute for bathing.  Too many people unknowingly treat the pool as a communal bathtub,” said Dr. Chris Wiant, chair of the Water Quality & Health Council. “It may seem counter-intuitive, but it’s important to shower before you jump in the pool to help keep swimming healthy for everyone in the pool.”

“The pre-swim shower removes a lot of the sweat, cosmetics and urine that can mix with chlorine to create irritants in pool water,” said Michele Hlavsa, Chief of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC’s) Healthy Swimming Program. “These irritants, not the chlorine itself, cause red eyes when we swim and the strong chemical smell of some pools.”

The survey(1) found that one in five respondents admit to peeing in the pool, echoing the results from a WQHC survey conducted three years ago.  According to Dr. Wiant, “No matter how easy it is to pee anonymously in the pool, swimmers should avoid doing so and take their children on frequent bathroom breaks.  Pool operators should also monitor and maintain proper pool water chemistry, especially pH and chlorine levels, which CDC calls ‘the first defense against germs that can make swimmers sick.’”

The WQHC is again making available this year free pool test strips so swimmers can check pH and chlorine levels using a simple, color-coded test strip.  Proper chlorine levels and pH help keep pools healthy by destroying waterborne germs that can cause diarrhea, swimmer’s ear, and skin infections.

Free test strips can be requested and results uploaded by visiting http://www.healthypools.org/freeteststrips. Last summer, WQHC mailed over 32,000 free pool test strips to swimmers who requested them on the Healthy Pools website.  Data submitted by swimmers across the nation last summer showed that 54 percent of pools tested had unacceptable chlorine levels and 47 percent had inappropriate pH levels.

By US Daily Review Staff.

As families across the country get ready to kick off the summer and honor our military heroes this Memorial Day weekend, Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) urges motorists to stay safe on the road during a time of year when drunk driving deaths typically increase. Over Memorial Day weekend in 2010 (the most recent year for which there is data), 158 people were killed in drunk driving crashes nationwide.

“MADD wants people to be safe on the roads this holiday weekend, so we have some tips to help,” said MADD National President Jan Withers. “Coupled with law enforcement’s efforts to deter and detect drunk driving, we hope this information will help keep our loved ones safe.”

Here are five tips for safe driving over the holiday weekend and year-round:

1)    Plan a safe way home. Arrange a sober ride home, or offer to be the sober designated driver.

2)    Wear a seat belt. Seat belt usage is one of the best ways to stay safe on our roadways.

3)    Don’t call or text. Any form of impaired driving poses a serious threat to those on the road.

4)    Slow down. Respect all posted speed limits.

5)    Be aware. Pay attention to other drivers on the road and avoid those driving erratically.

Law enforcement agencies across the country will be intensifying their efforts over the holiday weekend, so MADD encourages drivers to utilize these tips, which have the power to save lives and prevent injuries.

For more information about how to spot a drunk driver, visit http://www.madd.org/drunk-driving/how-to-spot-a-drunk-driver.html. If you do see a drunk driver, here are some tips about what to do: http://www.madd.org/drunk-driving/what-to-do-if-you-see-a-drunk.html.

To learn more about MADD’s Campaign to Eliminate Drunk Driving, which includes support for high-visibility law enforcement, visit www.madd.org/campaign.

Source: PR Newswire (http://s.tt/1cq1O)

By US Daily Review Staff.

Summer is a wonderful time for outdoor activities with family and friends. For many people, a day at the beach, on the boat, or at a backyard barbecue will include drinking alcoholic beverages. But excessive drinking and summer activities don’t mix. Drinking impairs both physical and mental abilities, and it also decreases inhibitions—which can lead to tragic consequences on the water, on the road, and in the great outdoors. In fact, research shows that half of all water recreation deaths of teens and adults involve the use of alcohol.

Swimmers can get in over their heads.

Alcohol impairs judgment and increases risk-taking, a dangerous combination for swimmers. Even experienced swimmers may venture out farther than they should and not be able to make it back to shore, or they may not notice how chilled they’re getting and develop hypothermia. Surfers could become over-confident and try to ride a wave beyond their abilities. Even around a pool, too much alcohol can have deadly consequences. Inebriated divers may collide with the diving board, or dive where the water is too shallow.

Boaters can lose their bearings.

According to research funded by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, alcohol may be involved in 60 percent of boating fatalities, including falling overboard. And a boat operator with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) over 0.1 percent is 16 times more likely to be killed in a boating accident than an operator with zero BAC. According to the U.S. Coast Guard and the National Association of State Boating Law Administrators, alcohol can impair a boater’s judgment, balance, vision, and reaction time. It can also increase fatigue and susceptibility to the effects of cold-water immersion. And if problems arise, intoxicated boaters are ill equipped to find solutions. For passengers, intoxication can lead to slips on deck, falls overboard, or accidents at the dock.

Drivers can go off course.

The summer holidays are some of the most dangerous times of the year to be on the road. When on vacation, drivers may be traveling an unfamiliar route or hauling a boat or camper, with the distraction of pets and children in the car. Adding alcohol to the mix puts the lives of the driver and everyone in the car, as well as other people on the road, at risk.

Stay hydrated and stay healthy.

Whether you’re on the road or in the great outdoors, heat plus alcohol can equal trouble. Hot summer days cause fluid loss through perspiration, while alcohol causes fluid loss through increased urination. Together, they can quickly lead to dehydration or heat stroke.

But this doesn’t have to happen. At parties, make at least every other drink a nonalcoholic one. If you’re the host, be sure to provide plenty of cold, refreshing nonalcoholic drinks to keep your guests well hydrated. If you know you’ll be driving, stay away from alcohol. And remember, there’s no shame in taking a cab or sleeping on a friend’s couch if you feel at all unsure if you should be driving.

Summer will end, but consequences can endure.

You can have fun in the sun and still be safe. Avoiding beverages that cause mental and physical impairment while piloting a boat, driving a car, exploring the wilderness, and swimming or surfing is a good place to start. Be smart this summer—think before you drink, and make sure that you and your loved ones will be around to enjoy many summers to come.

Myths and Facts

MYTH: If you drink just beer or wine, you’ll be fine.

FACT: It doesn’t matter what type of alcohol you chose to consume—a drink is a drink. Your blood alcohol content (also known as BAC, the percentage of alcohol in your blood) is what determines how drunk you are.

MYTH:  Drink coffee. Caffeine will sober you up.

FACT: Caffeine may help with drowsiness, but not with the effects of alcohol on decision-making or coordination. The body needs time to metabolize (break down) alcohol and then to return to normal. There are no quick ways to sober up—only time will help.

For more information on preventing problems with alcohol this summer, and tips on cutting back, visit http://www.rethinkingdrinking.niaaa.nih.gov.

Source: PR Newswire (http://s.tt/1cv6u)

By US Daily Review Staff.

According to the most recent data, over 1,000 youth were killed on our nation’s highway during the summer of 2010 and preliminary numbers for 2011 are not looking any better. It’s that time of year when young people get to enjoy the wondrous summer break.  They are ready for tans, summer jobs, beach trips, more free time, and all of the extra activities summer brings.  But with all of this fun comes some very sobering news.  Teens are now entering the deadliest months on our nation’s highways for young people. The 2010 Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) data revealed that during the summer of 2010 we lost an average of 45 youth every weekend in motor vehicle crashes. This data also revealed summer was the deadliest season for U.S. youth with July as the most devastating month where we lost 364 youth ages 15-20 in traffic crashes.

Youth are joining forces around the country in May to put a stop to these sad statistics.  As the May campaign, National Youth Traffic Safety Month® rallies youth to get involved to promote traffic safety for the summer months, youth are calling their peers to Act Out Loud® for youth traffic safety and take a pledge to make this the safest summer ever.  This campaign led by the National Organizations for Youth Safety®(NOYS) Coalition supports youth leading the way to message to their peers to enjoy a safe, fun summer. The U.S. Senate is supporting these efforts and has introduced a resolution led by Senator John D. Rockefeller IV, WV recognizing National Youth Traffic Safety Month.

Everyone who travels on our highways shares the road with these young drivers and supporting their safety is supporting safety for all.  Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, Senator John D. Rockefeller IVstated, “Preventing risky behavior that can result in tragic crashes is something that everyone should take seriously. Too many young lives are cut short due to drunk driving, distracted driving, and the failure to use seat belts.  More and more people realize that a text or phone call is never worth risking a deadly crash. In recognition of National Youth Traffic Safety Month, I encourage all young drivers and passengers to focus on safety.  With advances in vehicle safety and greater awareness of safe driving behaviors, driver fatalities have been steadily decreasing.  We can prevent the loss of young lives in traffic crashes by working in our communities to prevent dangerous driving practices,” Rockefeller said.

“These tragic crashes and statistics are preventable and it is time we all work together to put an end to summer breaks that end in loss and pain for families of young drivers.  The National Organizations for Youth Safety (NOYS) Coalition leads this annual campaign with national youth organizations, federal and state leaders, and business and industry partners. Together these groups supporting and promoting youth efforts will save lives and prevent injuries,” said Sandy Spavone, NOYS executive director.

Youth leaders of national organizations are recognizing and thanking leaders who have made a difference and are leading the way to support youth traffic safety by presenting them with 2012 National Youth Traffic Safety Month Youth Choice Awards.  These youth are presenting awards to legislative leaders including U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, Senator Rockefeller, Senator Hutchison, Senator Thune, Senator Gillibrand; business and industry leaders including The Allstate Foundation and AT&T; and national non-profit youth organization Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD).  A rally will be held at Senate Park in Washington, D.C. on May 8 to celebrate the work of youth and these leaders as well as launching the campaign in several sites across the U.S.

“We’re proud to support the work of NOYS, and honored to work alongside its leaders to save young lives and amplify youth voices calling for safety on the road,” said Charlene Lake, chief sustainability officer and senior vice president. “As more teens head to the roads this summer, we urge them to be aware of the risks to their lives. We’ve designed a toolkit of information – including a documentary we hope teens will watch with their friends and parents – and are asking teens to take an official pledge to not text and drive. We’re committed to this cause. When it comes to texting and driving … it can wait.”

Tips for Parents and Teens

Limit Passengers – most states limit how many passengers a young driver can have in their car. Adults can help by understanding these limits, providing rides to events, and monitoring youth coming or leaving activities at your home or event.

Limit Nighttime Driving – most states have young driver curfews – these are still enforced for summer too! Help teens get around after curfew by providing rides for them.

Limit Distractions – distractions can include too many passengers, young siblings, eating, changing radio stations, and of course phone use.  When in the driver’s seat and the car is in drive we all (teens and adults) should do nothing else other than driving – it’s that simple – just drive!

Limit Speed – driving too fast can end in devastating results, it may seem like the cool thing to do – but the families and loved ones we share the road with are counting on us to drive safely.  Follow the speed limits and safely share the road. Resources are available for parents to help monitor speed and hard braking. These simple tools can make the difference between knowing and thinking your teen is driving safely. More information on resources for parents is available athttp://www.underyourinfluence.org

Do NOT Drive Impaired – drinking age limits protect more than just teens, they protect all of us who share the roads with them.  According to a report from the U.S. Public Health Service’s Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMSHA) more than half of teenage drinkers obtain alcohol from someone over the age of 21, the report shows. Twenty-six percent of those adults are parents or family members. Set the example by never providing alcohol to anyone under 21 and never driving impaired.

Although summer statistically is the most dangerous time on the road for youth, teens are saying enough is enough and let’s all enjoy summer and stay safe on the roads.  Corporations are supporting efforts through new research, youth-led contests, and new resources that improve safety.  Youth around the country will be rallying on May 8 to launch the National Youth Traffic Safety Month campaign.  To find a rally or youth group in your area, contact NOYS at info@noys.org.

According to a statement,”National Organizations for Youth Safety® (NOYS) is a coalition of national organizations and federal agencies who serve youth and focus on youth safety and health. Through this coalition, NOYS influences more than 80 million young people and their adult advisors.  The mission of NOYS is to promote youth empowerment and leadership, and build partnerships that save lives, prevent injuries, and enhance safe and healthy lifestyles among all youth.”

By US Daily Review Staff.

Take out your wireless device and read the last text message you received. Would reading or responding to that text while driving be worth risking a car accident or worse? Chances are, that text message could wait. That’s why here in California, AT&T is presenting a virtual simulator tour, a “No Texting and Driving” youth summit, and releasing brand new national poll results that illustrate the severity of texting while driving.

The simulator – also appearing across the country throughout May – is part of AT&T’s goal to educate all wireless users, but especially teen drivers, that when it comes to texting and driving, it can and should wait. AT&T’s “Texting & Driving . . . It Can Wait“ campaign seeks to raise awareness about the severity of the issue and activate all mobile users to be a part of the solution.

“Many people don’t realize how big a risk they are taking every time they take their eyes off the road,” said Ken McNeely, President of AT&T California. “But the reality is, they are risking not only their own lives, but the lives of others, every time they send or read a text while driving. It is a serious issue that has a simple solution: just don’t do it.”

Today, AT&T released a survey about the real dangers of texting and driving that demonstrates just how significant this issue is among teenagers.

Key Findings:

• 75 percent of teens say texting while driving is very dangerous – but 43 percent admit to doing so.
• 61 percent of teens say they have seen their friends read or send an email or text while driving.
• 60 percent of teens admit to texting at a red light and 73 percent admit glancing at their phone at a red light.
• 89 percent of teens said a phone app to prevent texting & driving – like AT&T DriveMode™  – would be an effective way to get them or their friends to stop texting and driving. AT&T DriveMode™ provides a customizable auto-reply message notifying friends that the user is driving and will respond when it is safe.

Through this research, it is clear that more needs to be done to spread awareness of the dangers – and helpful tools to prevent the practice and keep our roads safer.

One of the ways AT&T is driving home the anti-texting-and-driving message in California is by bringing a virtual reality simulator to a local television station and several area high schools. This state-of-the-art simulator uses a computerized system to demonstrate what it is like to text and drive – giving drivers a way to learn, in a safe environment, just how dangerous taking your eyes off the road can be.

California Simulator Tour Stops:

• Monday, May 14 – Sacramento, Sacramento Charter High School
• Tuesday, May 15 – San Francisco, Gateway High School
• Wednesday, May 16 – Bakersfield, Bakersfield High School
• Thursday, May 17 – Fresno, Fresno High School
• Friday, May 18 – Los Angeles, CBS/KCAL TV Station
• Monday, May 21 – San Diego, Hilltop High School

Another way the “Texting & Driving . . . It Can Wait” campaign is raising awareness in the Golden State is through a youth summit at Leuzinger High School in Lawndale, California. In conjunction with the National Organizations for Youth Safety (NOYS), students from the school will participate in this educational summit. Professional race car driver Andrew Murray, local city officials and California Highway Patrol representatives, will headline the May 19 event to educate teens about the dangers of texting and driving.

Last week, AT&T received National Organizations for Youth Safety’s 2012 Youth Choice Award for ongoing efforts and working with teens to address the issue of texting while driving.

By the American Red Cross

Parents say that good babysitters are hard to find, according to a new American Red Cross poll.

The Red Cross poll found that in the past 24 months, 55 percent of parents surveyed decided to stay home because they couldn’t find a babysitter. The survey also found that nearly a third (30 percent) of parents rejected a potential babysitter because of safety concerns.

Parents want to entrust their children to babysitters trained in first aid, CPR and childcare skills, and more than 80 percent of parents believe that teenage babysitters should be paid more if they have these skills. However, eight in 10 parents (83 percent) have looked to adult relatives, while nearly half (48 percent) have relied on adult friends to watch their children.

“Parents want recommended sitters who have childcare training and CPR certification,” said Tener Goodwin Veenema Ph.D., MPH, RN, FAAN, a member of the Red Cross Scientific Advisory Council. “As a mother of four, I know that there is more to choosing a babysitter than price or availability. The safety and welfare of our children is first and foremost.”

About half (51 percent) of Americans rely on unpaid babysitters, and nearly a quarter (24 percent) pay between $6 and $10 an hour for someone to watch their children. Ten percent pay between $11 and $15 an hour; while four percent pay between $16 and $20 an hour, making babysitting a potentially lucrative option for qualified teenagers.

A majority of parents believe sitters should be paid more if they are trained to help a child who is choking, recognize potential emergency situations, identify items that could be hazardous to small children, and give first aid for minor cuts and bruises. More than three in four (77 percent) of parents with children younger than 17 feel teenagers should receive some training before they begin babysitting.

The Red Cross babysitting, CPR and first aid courses teach teens how to care for young children and handle emergency situations. The American Red Cross babysitting certification course gives youth the knowledge and confidence to care for infants and school-aged children. Adults can also boost their babysitting skills by enrolling in CPR and First Aid courses. To learn more about Red Cross training courses, please visit redcross.org.

By US Daily Review Staff.

Thanksgiving weekend for millions is when the boxes of lights come out and the decorating begins. Unfortunately, every year people are hurt in decorating accidents. The U.S. Consumer and Product Safety Commission reports that during the two months surrounding the holiday season, more than 14,000 people are treated in hospital emergency rooms due to injuries related to holiday decorating.

Keep your holiday season safe and bright, and learn from the tragic experience of Shawn Miller who was helping his mother light her yard for the holidays.

“I was just hanging Christmas lights at my mom’s house like I do every year,” Miller said. “Only this time, I was decorating a new area – the trees that lined the front of the yard.” As he tossed lights up into the trees, 7200 volts of electricity entered his body, traveling from the overhead power lines through his strand of lights. He suffered 27 exit wounds and the loss of his left hand, among other injuries.

“Please take note of your surroundings before decorating outside,” Miller urges, “especially power lines and the service connection to your home. Make sure to keep yourself, ladders, and lights far away from them. I’m lucky to be alive. I want everyone to be careful – be aware of power lines.”

“Shawn Miller has a lot to teach us about electrical safety, and we are grateful he has shared his story,” says Molly Hall, executive director of the Safe Electricity program.

“Had I known more before this happened, I might still have two hands and the job I loved,” Miller said. “I want to help people learn from what has happened to me. Safe Electricity is helping me help others.”

Hall encourages people to visit http://www.SafeElectricity.org to see the video of Miller’s story, as well as a checklist of safety tips when decorating outdoors and inside.

Safe Electricity is the award-winning program of the Energy Education Council, a non-profit organization that is dedicated to promoting electrical safety and that also provides information on energy efficiency and renewable resources. Energy Education Council members include more than 400 utilities in 26 states as well as energy-related organizations and educators.

By US Daily Review Staff.

It is that time of the year — visions of turkey going through our minds, and exploding in our kitchens?  William Shatner. Veteran thespian. Accomplished author. Song stylist. Master of the spoken word. Turkey fryer burn survivor.

His contributions to the entertainment industry are numerous, but an accident with a turkey fryer several years ago made him more than just a hot celebrity (pun clearly intended). He was a man on fire, literally, and he doesn’t want it to happen to you.

“I love to fry turkey and have been doing it for years but I am not immune to frying accidents,” says Shatner. “In fact, my family now gathers together to watch my mishaps. Several years ago I was even burned on my arms after accidently dropping the turkey in the hot oil. People need to remember that hot oil and turkey can be a dangerous combination.”

To warn others in the Shatnerverse that these turkey fryer accidents actually do happen, Shatner is teaming with insurance giant State Farm to produce a short online “docudrama” recounting his experiences.

“Only one person was truly capable of getting this important message across in a fun way. The fact that Mr. Shatner actually experienced a turkey fryer accident only brought more realism to his portrayal,” said David Beigie, State Farm Public Affairs Vice President. “In all seriousness, he’s been a good sport in helping us get the word out about frying safely.”

You can see Shatner’s work on the State Farm YouTube Channel. Fans are encouraged to join Shatner’s “Fryers Club” by liking or commenting on the video. In doing so, viewers are committing to take Shatner’s advice to stay safe if they fry a turkey. “Ignorance is the friend of accidents,” says Shatner. “Be enemies with ignorance.”

According to State Farm claims data, more cooking fires occur on Thanksgiving than any other day of the year. In fact, grease and cooking-related claims more than double on Thanksgiving Day compared to an average day in November.