Posts Tagged: professionals

News

Dangerous mix: Law enforcement and mentally ill suspects

A suspect in custody, handcuffed by police. (Photo: Boyfare, via Shutterstock)

Police response to mental-health calls often ends – again and again – in chaotic, noisy hospital emergency rooms, where staff is stretched thin, and a heart attack is likely to take precedence over someone in the throes of a mental-health crisis. “Traditionally, people would be dropped off at the ER, and the only option was to transfer them to a psychiatric facility,” says Dr. Scott Zeller, a nationally known emergency psychiatrist and former president of the American Association for Emergency Psychiatry.

News

Does public banking loom in California?

A branch of Bank of America in Beverly Hills. (Photo: 4kclips, via Shutterstock)

By law, currently California cities and counties typically have one place to deposit the funds they collect from taxes, fees and fines: private commercial banks. Billions of dollars of public money are handled by commercial banks — for a fee. Despite having billions of dollars banked, municipalities have no say in how their money is used by commercial banks. Bank management, owners and stockholders set policy.

News

Former California water lobbyist, Trump’s Interior Secretary, under investigation

David Bernardt testifies at a Senate hearing on March 28. (Photo: Roll Call, via Associated Press)

The inspector general of the U.S. Interior Department has opened an investigation into Interior Secretary David Bernhardt’s past work on behalf of California’s huge Westlands Water District and other organizations. Nancy DiPaolo, spokeswoman for the Office of the Inspector General in the Department of the Interior, told Capitol Weekly her office had received 12 letters asking for an investigation of Bernhardt’s role in some California fish and game issues, including protection of the delta smelt.

Opinion

In medicine, experience and training are key

Health care delivery in California is moving toward an integrated model that brings together physicians, nurses and other health professionals, each playing a specialized role as a member of a team. As professionals that have served in multiple roles on that team, and done the training for each, we believe we are in a unique position to comment on Senate Bills 323 and 622, which would alter the roles of nurse practitioners and optometrists, respectively.

Opinion

Fracking’s health impacts must be addressed

An oil derrick at work in Kern County, 2013. (Photo: Christopher Halloran)

OPINION: Faced with the decision of whether or not hydraulic fracturing (fracking) should be approved in New York, the state’s Commissioner of Health Dr. Howard Zucker publicly asked, “Would I let my family live in a community with fracking? The answer is no. I therefore cannot recommend anyone else’s family to live in such a community either.” In California, some 5.4 million people (14 percent of the state’s population) live within a mile of at least one of the state’s total of 84,000 oil and gas wells, according to the NRDC.

News

Lawyers, docs, insurers battle over MICRA — again

Medical personnel attend to a patient prior to surgery at USC Medical Center.

It’s not even on the ballot yet, but rival forces are gathering – again — over a plan to lift the decades-old cap on pain and suffering damages in medical malpractice cases. The proposal, aimed at the November ballot, also cracks down on drug- and alcohol-impaired physicians and seeks to curb over-prescribing of medications. (Above: USC Medical Center. US Navy photo)

News

Census: Migration flows highest in Southern California

About 16.8 million people moved into a different county within a year in the U.S., between 2007 and 2011, with the most common county-to-county moves being from Los Angeles to San Bernardino (41,764 people) and Los Angeles to Orange (an estimated 40,764), according to U. S. Census Bureau data released today.

Opinion

Hospitals: Crucial players in health care reform

OPINION The importance of health care access to underserved populations is clear. Today, those local health needs are identified and prioritized in collaboration with local governments, nonprofit hospitals and community members. These “community benefit plans” provide the framework for local hospitals to direct available resources to target local health care needs in the community.

Opinion

Worthy goal: Attracting young professionals

OPINION: Today’s young professionals think about the quality of the home they will make, the social interactions the region can offer, how family fits into that picture, in addition to looking for career satisfaction.

Support for Capitol Weekly is Provided by: