Comparing U.S. and other medical systems

[wombat2u2004]

Ombudsman Office is the same here, they are toothless tigers.
As they say mate, doctors mistakes are buried.

[RICHARD]

Here's a HUGE problem with the companies that make implant/med devices.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/36158151...new_york_times


The ortho surgeon mentions the DePuy and Zimmer hips.

Those hips have been failing since 2006. There was a rush of people having implants redone because of defects in the joints.

Also?

In the summer of '06 there was a rush of defibrillator surgeries because the mfg. recalled scads of them.

The hospital had to set up special rooms where the surgeons/cardiologists did nothing but replacement surgeries. The whole OR was sent into a panic and the reps from the company had to come in with replacement defibs and work all day to help change them out.

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As the population ages, the use of artificial hips and knees is growing fast, providing a lucrative market for device manufacturers. Sales of artificial hips and knees in this country reached an estimated $6.7 billion last year, and the devices have one of the highest profit margins of any medical product. An artificial joint can cost $3,000 to $15,000.

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It is impossible to know how many artificial hips and knees fail early because of design or manufacturing problems, because the United States, unlike some other countries, has no database to track such procedures. Also, implant companies and doctors say that such devices primarily fail because of issues unrelated to the product.

LOL, this has got to be the biggest lie on the planet.

Implants come with bar coded labels that are supposed to be attached to the operating room record and surgery procedure records. The are also serial numbered and the reps that sell them do keep track of lot and serial numbers.

Since most operating rooms track surgeries by computer? They just have to pull all hip and knee surgeries, then pull out the cases when a patient name is repeated.

And to top that off? Sugeries that are redone are coded as a "Revision" which means that it was done once and redone a second time.

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This is one part of the Health Care Reform that should have been addresed BEFORE anything was voted on.

But, common sense isn't running rampant anywhere near the seat of power for the U.S. gov't.

Morons.