short notes:
will brady's ruminations
will brady's ruminations
2007-02-15
blips + updates
homelessness: Homeless children are one of America's dirty secrets. An estimated one million young people experience homelessness each year. Many are unaccompanied teenagers, sleeping in parks, abandoned buildings or "couch surfing" at friends’ houses. Others are younger children, often in the care of a single parent, who double-up in relatives’ homes or in crowded shelters. The even-less fortunate live in cars, tents and under freeway overpasses.
Children and families are the fastest growing segments of the homeless population, according to advocates, who say this serious social problem driven by poverty and a scarcity of affordable housing is not widely recognized by the public.
"The reason why this isn’t a priority for people is because people don’t see children on the streets. It’s not visible, it’s not shown," said Dr. Ralph Nunez, president of the New York-based Homes for the Homeless, a group providing housing, training and employment to homeless people.
Read the rest of the story and find out more at Stand Up for Kids and M Brico's Fight Poverty. PICTURE CREDIT: Stitches for Britches
drug wars: Judge gags critics of Eli Lilly pharmeceuticals. On February 13, 2007, Judge Jack Weinstein issued a permanent injunction, prohibiting attorney, Jim Gottstein, and Dr David Egilman, an expert witness in litigation involving Zyprexa, from further disseminating certain Eli Lilly documents.
The documents are from Lilly's corporate offices and "The files show that the manufacturer hid vital information about the drug's safety," attorney Gottstein states, "not only from patients, but also from doctors."
US District Court Judge Jack Weinstein delivered a partial victory and a partial loss for the public right to know about Eli Lilly's documents regarding their psychiatric drug Zyprexa. In a 74 page "Final Judgment," the judge said web sites might become free to distribute the files, but some individuals are enjoined from disseminating. For more info go to Eli Lilly's secrets.
homelessness: Homeless children are one of America's dirty secrets. An estimated one million young people experience homelessness each year. Many are unaccompanied teenagers, sleeping in parks, abandoned buildings or "couch surfing" at friends’ houses. Others are younger children, often in the care of a single parent, who double-up in relatives’ homes or in crowded shelters. The even-less fortunate live in cars, tents and under freeway overpasses.Children and families are the fastest growing segments of the homeless population, according to advocates, who say this serious social problem driven by poverty and a scarcity of affordable housing is not widely recognized by the public.
"The reason why this isn’t a priority for people is because people don’t see children on the streets. It’s not visible, it’s not shown," said Dr. Ralph Nunez, president of the New York-based Homes for the Homeless, a group providing housing, training and employment to homeless people.
Read the rest of the story and find out more at Stand Up for Kids and M Brico's Fight Poverty. PICTURE CREDIT: Stitches for Britches
drug wars: Judge gags critics of Eli Lilly pharmeceuticals. On February 13, 2007, Judge Jack Weinstein issued a permanent injunction, prohibiting attorney, Jim Gottstein, and Dr David Egilman, an expert witness in litigation involving Zyprexa, from further disseminating certain Eli Lilly documents.
The documents are from Lilly's corporate offices and "The files show that the manufacturer hid vital information about the drug's safety," attorney Gottstein states, "not only from patients, but also from doctors."
US District Court Judge Jack Weinstein delivered a partial victory and a partial loss for the public right to know about Eli Lilly's documents regarding their psychiatric drug Zyprexa. In a 74 page "Final Judgment," the judge said web sites might become free to distribute the files, but some individuals are enjoined from disseminating. For more info go to Eli Lilly's secrets.
Labels: drug wars, homelessness, youth
¶ 01:18 0 comments
2007-02-08
drug dealers
What do the people pictued below have in common? And why should we need to know who they are? They are all involved in the international trafficing of potent chemical substances; the kingpins of a massive organization with close ties to officals in high places and all are part of a well know [some might say infamous] group that is currently engaged in silencing disturbing facts about some of the drugs their global cabal have been pushing.
Who are they? Why, none other than some of the members of the top management of Eli Lilly Corporation. This helps start putting a face to criminals who hide in our midst behind self-congratulatory accolades, self-serving connections to community do-gooder groups, and lengthy lists of accomplishments. Helping perpertuate suffering and death need to be aded to their resumes.
Left to right
Robert Armitage
Robert Armstrong
Alan Breier
Scott Canute
Bryce Carmine
William Chin
Dierdre Connelly
Andrew Dahlem
Frank Deane
Johanna Carmel Egan
Timothy Franson
Michael Heim
Sidney Taurel CEO
Simion Harford
Patrick C James
John Lechleiter
Elizabeth Klimes
Gino Santini
Thomas VerHoeven
Steven Paul
"If the Zyprexa documents are already so widely disseminated, then why is Eli Lilly still targeting critics? There may be something Eli Lilly fears worse than the approximately one billion dollar cash settlement Eli Lilly can afford: Mass publicity may mean public education and criminal prosecution of executive crimes."
attorney Ted Chabasinksi
I'm not saying that each and every one of these Eli Lilly executives were personally involved in the systematic supression and censorship of information or even that they might all have known that their psychiatric drug caused life-threatening metabolic problems such as severe weight gain and diabetes, and tried to keep this secret for a decade.
I'm more concerned, now that this set of facts is already public information, that as corporate decision-makers, they have a personal and social obligation to expose the malefactors in their corporate-nation who have
perpetrated these woes upon unsuspecting customers, mainly mostly mentally ill people, or folks diagnosed with major psychiatric disorders.
To continue to remain silent about what has become increasingly evident that corporate executives at Eli Lilly Corporation knowingly hid information about very real dangers and long-term adverse reactions to Zyprexa, that, is in my mind an immoral act, even if not technically a criminal one. As part f the whole they are equally responsible in the cover up.
What do the people pictued below have in common? And why should we need to know who they are? They are all involved in the international trafficing of potent chemical substances; the kingpins of a massive organization with close ties to officals in high places and all are part of a well know [some might say infamous] group that is currently engaged in silencing disturbing facts about some of the drugs their global cabal have been pushing.Who are they? Why, none other than some of the members of the top management of Eli Lilly Corporation. This helps start putting a face to criminals who hide in our midst behind self-congratulatory accolades, self-serving connections to community do-gooder groups, and lengthy lists of accomplishments. Helping perpertuate suffering and death need to be aded to their resumes.
Left to rightRobert Armitage
Robert Armstrong
Alan Breier
Scott Canute
Bryce Carmine
William Chin
Dierdre Connelly
Andrew Dahlem
Frank Deane
Johanna Carmel Egan
Timothy Franson
Michael Heim
Sidney Taurel CEO
Simion Harford
Patrick C James
John Lechleiter
Elizabeth Klimes
Gino Santini
Thomas VerHoeven
Steven Paul
"If the Zyprexa documents are already so widely disseminated, then why is Eli Lilly still targeting critics? There may be something Eli Lilly fears worse than the approximately one billion dollar cash settlement Eli Lilly can afford: Mass publicity may mean public education and criminal prosecution of executive crimes."
attorney Ted Chabasinksi
I'm more concerned, now that this set of facts is already public information, that as corporate decision-makers, they have a personal and social obligation to expose the malefactors in their corporate-nation who have
perpetrated these woes upon unsuspecting customers, mainly mostly mentally ill people, or folks diagnosed with major psychiatric disorders.To continue to remain silent about what has become increasingly evident that corporate executives at Eli Lilly Corporation knowingly hid information about very real dangers and long-term adverse reactions to Zyprexa, that, is in my mind an immoral act, even if not technically a criminal one. As part f the whole they are equally responsible in the cover up.
Labels: big pharma, censorship, drug wars, zyprexa
¶ 21:47 2 comments
2006-12-05
big pharma | drug recalls
Somebody placed me on the e-mail list for a newsletter titled Defective Drugs and published by A Drug Recall. The site states it provides - "Information on the side effects of recalled drugs and access to attorneys specializing in drug side effects litigation"
The initial scan of the site suggests that there is plenty of up-to-date useful information and I don't get a sense that the site's developers have some strident axe to grind by excoriating the drug companies. Point being, until I find otheriwse, the site's authors seem more interested in fairness and getting helpful information out about risky and unwanted side effects of on the market drugs.
Given that the DrugCo reps are reluctant to do this themselves, a site such as this is needed.
The site also has a list of links to "Alternative" medical treatments but cautions"
Somebody placed me on the e-mail list for a newsletter titled Defective Drugs and published by A Drug Recall. The site states it provides - "Information on the side effects of recalled drugs and access to attorneys specializing in drug side effects litigation" The initial scan of the site suggests that there is plenty of up-to-date useful information and I don't get a sense that the site's developers have some strident axe to grind by excoriating the drug companies. Point being, until I find otheriwse, the site's authors seem more interested in fairness and getting helpful information out about risky and unwanted side effects of on the market drugs.
Given that the DrugCo reps are reluctant to do this themselves, a site such as this is needed.
The site also has a list of links to "Alternative" medical treatments but cautions"
If you are interested in alternative therapy, it is important to do your homework. Gather as much information as possible about the procedures that interest you. If your alternative therapy is practitioner based, learn about the certification and training process required or recommended for these alternative therapy professionals. Many states supply information about practitioner requirements and host a consumer database with important practitioner information i.e. if your desired practitioner has any past actions against them.For their newsletter, just click on to Defective Drugs to get started.
Labels: big pharma, drug wars, FDA, side-effects
¶ 21:40 0 comments
2006-04-20
2006-04-15
rainbow's promise | mental health
We had a rainbow show up over the max-security building at work the other day, and perhaps this bodes well, for things have not been good of late.
It's no secret that the Department of Justice is coming to do a site visit where I work. The reasons for this are varied, but doubtless include the death of James Bell, in 2002, when, in front of nearly 30 staff, died of a heart attack yet, according to investigative reports, no one did anything except put him in restraints.
Among the residents where I work [you might call them "patients"], there is a sense that little has changed since that event, though much has.
The place still has a long way to go and even though, according to the the National Alliance on Mental Illness [NAMI] the state of Connecticut ranks a "B" [tied with Ohio for the quality of care provided to people], there is far to go before care providers can rest on their laurels.
Many staff still fail to grasp the importance of respecting another person's personal space [let alone their rights]. Grievances I receive all too frequently have
birth in someone's utter lack of consideration about others. This kind of obdurate behavior muddies what might be a person's really critical issues. The nurse who rudely dismisses a man complaining of severe lower back pain, might be ignoring a developing tumor [that actually happened ~ the man is now paralyzed from the waist down].
Then there's the preoccupation, even sloven fealty to Big Pharma; as if taking a mouthful of meds actually solves problems like some magic bullet. Let me clue you in here ~ in and of themselves, psychotropic meds are not cure-alls. Many have severe and crippling side-effects that could last for life and the taker of meds has to "choose" between living with extreme discomfort, diabetes, kidney failure, even the possibility of premature death. All this in exchange for numbing the intensity of one's psychiatric symptoms. Yet, so frequently, nursing staff's first response to expression of crisis is "So do you want a PRN?" Make's you wonder what ever happened to sitting down and actually listening to someone to hear their personal tales of woe before being inappropriately prescriptive.
Clinical professionals, as well as lay-people fail to grasp the basic reality that many individuals with perceptual and cognitive conditions that become disabling, severe and long-lasting, can and do recover from their inability to deal with those conditions. For some, "recovery" means the conditions go away completely, for others, they learn to adapt and function with the conditions, however difficult that me be for not only themselves, but for others with whom they live.
But that recovery rarely occurs in a vacuum. Those around those with the difficulties and travails that society has dubbed to be "mental illnesses" have to be available to provide, care, compassion, support, uncondtional love, understanding and forebearance. Not someting easily done, perhaps, but without it the rainbow's promise is all the more difficult to find.
RESOURCES: Advocacy Unlimited; Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law; Dr. Peter Breggin; Centre for Evidence Based Mental Health; Copeland Center for Wellness and Recovery; MindFreedom; National Alliance on Mental Illness; National Institute of Mental Health; Mental Health Matters | Cross posted at Rondacker's LiveJournal Diary
It's no secret that the Department of Justice is coming to do a site visit where I work. The reasons for this are varied, but doubtless include the death of James Bell, in 2002, when, in front of nearly 30 staff, died of a heart attack yet, according to investigative reports, no one did anything except put him in restraints.
Among the residents where I work [you might call them "patients"], there is a sense that little has changed since that event, though much has.
The place still has a long way to go and even though, according to the the National Alliance on Mental Illness [NAMI] the state of Connecticut ranks a "B" [tied with Ohio for the quality of care provided to people], there is far to go before care providers can rest on their laurels.
Many staff still fail to grasp the importance of respecting another person's personal space [let alone their rights]. Grievances I receive all too frequently have
birth in someone's utter lack of consideration about others. This kind of obdurate behavior muddies what might be a person's really critical issues. The nurse who rudely dismisses a man complaining of severe lower back pain, might be ignoring a developing tumor [that actually happened ~ the man is now paralyzed from the waist down]. Then there's the preoccupation, even sloven fealty to Big Pharma; as if taking a mouthful of meds actually solves problems like some magic bullet. Let me clue you in here ~ in and of themselves, psychotropic meds are not cure-alls. Many have severe and crippling side-effects that could last for life and the taker of meds has to "choose" between living with extreme discomfort, diabetes, kidney failure, even the possibility of premature death. All this in exchange for numbing the intensity of one's psychiatric symptoms. Yet, so frequently, nursing staff's first response to expression of crisis is "So do you want a PRN?" Make's you wonder what ever happened to sitting down and actually listening to someone to hear their personal tales of woe before being inappropriately prescriptive.Clinical professionals, as well as lay-people fail to grasp the basic reality that many individuals with perceptual and cognitive conditions that become disabling, severe and long-lasting, can and do recover from their inability to deal with those conditions. For some, "recovery" means the conditions go away completely, for others, they learn to adapt and function with the conditions, however difficult that me be for not only themselves, but for others with whom they live.
But that recovery rarely occurs in a vacuum. Those around those with the difficulties and travails that society has dubbed to be "mental illnesses" have to be available to provide, care, compassion, support, uncondtional love, understanding and forebearance. Not someting easily done, perhaps, but without it the rainbow's promise is all the more difficult to find.
RESOURCES: Advocacy Unlimited; Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law; Dr. Peter Breggin; Centre for Evidence Based Mental Health; Copeland Center for Wellness and Recovery; MindFreedom; National Alliance on Mental Illness; National Institute of Mental Health; Mental Health Matters | Cross posted at Rondacker's LiveJournal Diary
Labels: big pharma, drug wars, mentally ill, obituaries, prisons, Recovery
¶ 13:17 0 comments
2006-03-25
drug wars
Thought folks might appreciate this bit of news [was in the Wall Street Journal] Thursday March 23, 4:38 PM EST
WASHINGTON - (Dow Jones)- A Food and Drug Administration panel rejected a proposed drug by Cephalon Inc. (CEPH) to treat children and adolescents with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder on concerns the drug might be linked to a potentially fatal skin condition.
The outside panel of medical experts said that while it believed the drug would be effective at treating ADHD, it simply didn't have enough data on whether the drug could cause Steven Johnson's Syndrome, a severe skin rash that can be fatal.
The proposed drug, Sparlon, is already on the market and is sold at a lower dose to treat sleep disorders under the brand name Provigil.
The panel voted 12 to 1 against the drug as a treatment for ADHD in children and adolescents. The panel suggested Cephalon (CEPH), based in Frazer, Pa., conduct additional studies of the drug to see if any new cases of Steven Johnson's Syndrome or SJS occur.
WASHINGTON - (Dow Jones)- A Food and Drug Administration panel rejected a proposed drug by Cephalon Inc. (CEPH) to treat children and adolescents with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder on concerns the drug might be linked to a potentially fatal skin condition.The outside panel of medical experts said that while it believed the drug would be effective at treating ADHD, it simply didn't have enough data on whether the drug could cause Steven Johnson's Syndrome, a severe skin rash that can be fatal.
The proposed drug, Sparlon, is already on the market and is sold at a lower dose to treat sleep disorders under the brand name Provigil.
The panel voted 12 to 1 against the drug as a treatment for ADHD in children and adolescents. The panel suggested Cephalon (CEPH), based in Frazer, Pa., conduct additional studies of the drug to see if any new cases of Steven Johnson's Syndrome or SJS occur.
THANKS TO: Stefan Kruszewski |
¶ 03:15 0 comments
