"There's something here that doesn't make sense.

Signal boost - please read!

Sun, 14 Jul 2013 14:08:38 GMT

While it's sad/ridiculous that something like this needs to be crowdsourced, I think it's well worthwhile:

Reducing Inequity in Forensic Exams Following Sexual Assault

"Documentation of physical injuries can be critical for victims of sexual assault. The School of Nursing’s Kathryn Laughon, RN, and collaborators are raising $19,000 to identify a new forensic dye that will help medical professionals visualize injuries more effectively on women of all skin tones.

Following sexual assault, forensic nurses and physicians use a blue dye called toluidine blue to visualize millimeters-wide tears and abrasions that are otherwise hard to see. This bright blue dye relies on contrast with the surrounding skin. It works well on women with light skin but poorly on women with darker skin. We’re working to identify a new forensic dye that will illuminate injuries effectively on all skin tones."

They have 29 days left as of today to raise $19,000. They're nearly one-third of the way to that goal. Even if you can't give money, please boost the signal.

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For anyone who needs a laugh

Fri, 22 Feb 2013 02:51:59 GMT

I bring you the most adorable badass frog in the world, and goats yelling like humans. Just because.

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Something important to know

Wed, 16 Jan 2013 03:22:21 GMT

We visited an art museum this last weekend, and while we had a fantastic time, there was an incident that highlighted a gap in my safety training that I can now remedy, and want to share because I think it can save lives.

We were in the café for lunch, and an older man sitting adjacent to us suddenly called to the server to call 911 for his mother, who was becoming unresponsive where she sat next to him. Although she was conscious and sitting upright, she wouldn't/couldn't speak, and her skin was cold - I'm no diagnostician, but her symptoms were similar to those of a person suffering a stroke. The server told an employee behind the café counter to call 911; after a few confused seconds, he turned to the phone behind him. We initially thought he was making the call as instructed, but apparently the museum (or at least the café in it) had the procedure of calling Security to have them assess the situation first. After a handful of minutes, two members from Security finally showed up, with no indication that 911 had yet been called, and the woman's condition was no better.

I finally called 911 myself. I turned to tell the Security employee near us that Emergency Responders were on their way and would need guides to our location, and she responded in the affirmative; they may have already called themselves by then, but I don't know. Emergency responders finally arrived a good number of minutes after the incident began, and they quickly scanned and transported the woman to the hospital.

The American Red Cross teaches the steps "Check, Call, Care" when one is faced with a medical emergency - you check the scene for safety as well as checking the patient's condition, call for help, and care for the person until help arrives. The woman's son actually covered the first two steps in this case, but the process broke down at the point where the museum's employees were brought into the equation.

I had any number of regretful thoughts afterward, but thanks to having coordinated several Red Cross courses at work, I was able to ask our regional training representative about my post-incident thoughts regarding could-have/should-haves.

The unfortunate fact is, many public venues like museums, hotels, restaurants, etc. have the basic safety plan of sending Management or Security personnel to assess a situation before any specific action is taken. This practice costs valuable minutes that can literally mean the difference between life or death - in the example of a heart attack, a person's chances of survival diminish by 10% for every minute that care is delayed.

It's counter-intuitive to not want to rely on venue personnel, especially when they're uniformed in some way because that immediately projects a sense of authority. The truth is, a better way to handle something like this is to go ahead and call 911 from your own phone if you have one (or tell someone else to do so), and then notify an employee so they can have Management/Security guide the Emergency Responders to your location. The best thing that venue personnel can do (unless they're trained Responders) is to act as guides once a response is already in motion.

It feels weird to call 911 - I've had to do it at least four different times that I can remember, and it's pretty surreal every time. It's even weirder to do it in public. There's that moment of wondering if you really should, if it's really necessary, and there's an immediate feeling of being under a spotlight. But it's really, really not something that should be delayed.

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IMPORTANT: DrinkSavvy

Sat, 29 Dec 2012 16:10:06 GMT

This is a campaign I recently heard about and am trying to support.

These folks are developing a plastic that reacts to the presence of date-rape drugs, changing color when specific substances are present. The founder was himself a victim of such drugs, as were a number of his friends. They want to mass-produce products like drinking straws, drink stirs, and plastic cups for both the general public and for bars & restaurants.

I think this is a brilliant idea.

Here is the link to their site, with a ton of information and links to articles:

http://www.indiegogo.com/DrinkSavvy

There are only 16 hours left in their campaign, and as of 10:06 this morning they still need $4622. They accept contributions of $1 upward. Amounts of $15 or more will receive product packages in return.

I urge you to visit their site, learn what they're about, and consider giving.

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Thu, 25 Oct 2012 23:39:20 GMT

I'm sure my circle of friends knows this, but I'd appreciate a signal boost in the US:

1. You CANNOT vote over the phone.
2. Your employer CANNOT make you vote a particular way.
3. If you are eligible to vote, your employer CANNOT keep you from voting, for any reason.
4. NO ONE can legally prevent you from entering a polling place or confront you directly when you are voting.

Resources in the event of voter obstruction:
1. The police, in the case of personal harassment.
2. 1-866-OUR VOTE - Information/reporting hotline for The Lawyers' Committee For Rights Under Law
3. http://www.lwv.org/ - The League of Women Voters
4. http://www.866ourvote.org/pages/voter-id-info - Voter ID info for all states

[This message brought to you by this article.]

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PSA: Scam Alert

Sat, 29 Sep 2012 01:14:20 GMT

So, my mom just got this phone call (didn't fall for it), and one poor woman here in town got taken for a couple of thousand dollars:

Madison woman loses $2,750 in scam

They're targeting the elderly - though I'm curious as to exactly how they're doing that - and the scam seems to have common elements of a claim that the target has won 3.5 million dollars and occasionally a new car. The scammer then says it's necessary to get the target's personal information and collect a tax/processing/etc. "fee" to access the winnings.

Spread the word and be alert, please.

"There's something here that doesn't make sense.

Signal boost - please read!

For anyone who needs a laugh

Something important to know

IMPORTANT: DrinkSavvy

PSA: Scam Alert

CUTE BOMB!