If you believe the marketing hype, the model car you drive says a lot about you. Are you a shark…a jungle cat…a rugged adventurer…a road warrior…or a road princess? What made you choose your car? Does it make you feel powerful, or eco-friendly? Like a sports star, or a soccer mom?

What does your car say about you? Or, more important, how your car make you feel? According to an article on ScienceDaily,  a scientific study shows that people who view their car as an extension of themselves have stronger aggressive driving tendencies.

One third of all car accidents that result in injures and two thirds of all fatal car wrecks are caused by aggressive driving. According to the research, people who think of their car as a reflection of their self-identity—regardless of what that identity is—are more likely to behave aggressively on the road, breaking the law in the process. Similarly, people who value their possessions (cars and other things) and have a greater sense of materialism also drive more aggressively. And young people who are just beginning to drive or who have purchased their first vehicle are more likely to show off and drive aggressively.

The study findings suggest that:

“…the perception of the car as an extension of the self leads to more aggressive behavior on the road rather than increased driving cautiousness,” the authors wrote, adding that “individuals may view cars and the road space they occupy as their territory and will seek to maintain control over it and defend it as necessary.”

Unfortunately, they research just correlated attitude and driving behavior; it didn’t offer any advice. Some take-away thoughts:  Be especially watchful of flashy sports cars on the road, the kind that might make their owners feel more powerful…a teen’s first car should be purchased with safety in mind, as opposed to image…and remind yourself daily that your car is nothing more than a tool to get you from place to place. It’s okay to love your car, just not too much!

To read the full article on ScienceDaily, click here:  People Who Really Identify With Their Car

To learn more about safe driving tips, visit our website here: HensonFuerst Auto Accident page. If you have question, HensonFuerst has answers. http://www.lawmed.com/

The mission of the American Diabetes Association (ADA) is:  To prevent and cure diabetes, and to improve the lives of all people affected by diabetes.

Every year, the ADA holds a series of fundraising cycling events called the Tour de Cure. The Tour—held in 44 states nationwide—is a ride, not a race. During the two-day event, cyclists can ride 10 miles or 150 miles. The object is to ride, not to “endure.”

In 2011, more than 55,000 cyclists in 80 events raised more than $18 million to support the ADA. The HensonFuerst Cycling Team raised more than $34,000, making it the 34th top fundraising teams in the United States. The team, captained by Thomas Henson, who has had type 1 diabetes since age 9, is now preparing for the 2012 race.

The local 2012 Tour de Cure will be held on June 2-3, beginning in Cary, North Carolina. If you would like to join the HensonFuerst Cycling Team, we’re taking on new members! Currently, the HensonFuerst Cycling Team has 40 members, of all skill levels—beginners, recreational riders, and triathletes. While the Tour is our premiere cycling event, we participate in other charity rides throughout the year. To join us, or for more information, please contact Thomas Henson at ThomasHenson@lawmed.com.

If you don’t want to ride with us, you can still participate. We invite everyone to come watch the ride and cheer on the cyclists. And, of course, we welcome donations to benefit this very worthwhile cause. Our goal this year is ambitious:  $5o,000. To support the HensonFuerst Cycling Team in the Tour de Cure, visit the personal Tour page of team captain Thomas Henson here:  Donate to help stop diabetes!

Thank you!

Safe Kids Worldwide has provided a FANTASTIC brochure about how to keep kids safe when riding bikes or having fun with other wheeled sports, such as skating or riding a scooter. You know we write about this kind of health advice quite often, but this brochure has detailed safety tips demonstrated with photos. One of the best safety pieces we’ve seen in a long time.

To download the full brochure, click here:  http://www.safekids.org/assets/docs/for-educators/Bike-and-Wheels-Safety.pdf

Here is a sample of some of the tips illustrated in the brochure:

• A helmet should be worn for ALL wheeled sports activities, including biking, riding on an ATV, skating, riding a scooter, skateboarding, and longboarding. Skateboarding and long boarding require a different, sport-specific helmet.
• Enforce the simple rule: “No helmet, no bike” (or skateboard, skates, etc.).
• Let your children help to pick out their helmets so that they will be more likely to wear them.
• Wear a helmet yourself…you’re the role model, and your kids are watching.
• A bike should be right-sized for your child…not something he or she needs to grow into.
• Help your child learn to check to make sure that the bike reflectors are secure, brakes work well, and tires are properly inflated.
• Take the Helmet Fit Test. (See the brochure for details.)
• Children should only ride on sidewalks or paths—not roads—until age 10.

For more information about child safety, visit the Safe Kids website at http://www.safekids.org. And don’t forget to visit the page for the HensonFuerst Health Initiative: http://www.lawmed.com/health-initiative/. If you have questions, HensonFuerst has answers.

January 26, 2012

Several young people in Raleigh, North Carolina, are learning the hard way that you don’t have to be the person behind the wheel in a fatal accident to be responsible for a wrongful death. According to WRAL News, three teens and a young adult have been charged with crimes in connection to a fatal single vehicle accident that happened earlier this month.

The accident happened on the morning of January 7th on Rainwater Road in Wake County. The driver, a 16-year-old boy, and several of his friends illegally acquired alcohol for an underage drinking party. After attending the party and drinking for several hours, the driver and the 17-year-old female victim got into his Jeep to head home. Reports from the accident show that the vehicle was traveling at 75 MPH in a 30 MPH zone when the boy lost control of the vehicle and slammed into a tree. The female victim in the passenger seat died at the scene.

In the weeks following the crash, not only has the driver of the Jeep been charged in connection with the girl’s death, but also, so have the 21-year-old man who bought the alcohol for the teens, the host of the party, and the minors who contributed money to have the alcohol purchased.

The North Carolina wrongful death lawyers with HensonFuerst may be able to help you if you have lost a loved one because of the negligence of a drunk driver. Contact an experienced attorney today.

To an outside observer, traumatic brain injuries (TBI) are invisible…and medically, the injuries are not well understood. As a result, those who suffer often don’t receive adequate—or even minimal—treatment. But the truth is that TBI changes lives. Any head injury is a tragedy, but when TBI happens to children, adolescents, or young adults, the tragedy is magnified. An article on NJ.com says it best:

Imagine you are a parent whose child has sustained a brain injury through something as enjoyable as playing a sport or as horrific as abuse by a caretaker or as patriotic as serving our country as a member of the armed forces. Wouldn’t you want the best system of care possible to maximize the chances of recovery and quality of life for your child? There are many tragic stories about children and youth with brain injury; Congress has an opportunity to provide support and hope for them.

That’s the goal of H.R. 2600, a new bill introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives. Also known as the National Pediatric Acquired Brain Injury Plan Act (PABI Plan Act), this bill would help create a standardized, evidence-based system of universally available care for young people (ages 25 and younger), including those serving in the armed forces. The PABI Plan Act would ensure care at all stages of brain injury, beginning with prevention, and including emergency and acute treatment in medical facilities, reintegration into schools and communities, and transition into an adult system of independent living.

H.R. 2600 was introduced to Congress on July 20, 2011 by Republican Leonard Lance of New Jersey, and it has been referred to committee. But the bill has seemingly stalled, despite the fact that the bill has more than 100 co-sponsors in a rare bipartisan effort. Co-sponsors from North Carolina include:

• Rep. Walter Jones [R, NC-3]
• Rep Larry Kissell [D, NC-8]
• Rep. Mike McIntyre [D, NC-7]
• Rep. Bradley Miller [D, NC-13]

Funding for H.R. 2600 would come from discretionary money held by the Secretary of Health and Human Services, and would not add to the budget deficit.

This is an important bill that would help children and young adults recover as much as possible, and receive support as they age into adults.

“The ultimate goal of the PABI Plan Act is to maximize recovery, enhance quality of life and ensure that New Jersey — and American — youth have the best chance to live productive and meaningful lives,” said Barbara Geiger-Parker, president and CEO of the Brain Injury Association of New Jersey, a nonprofit organization whose mission it is to support and advocate for individuals affected by brain injury and raise public awareness through education and prevention.

We urge concerned individuals to contact their Representative and voice support for the PABI Plan Act. To find contact information for your Representative, click here:  GovTrack.us

To read the full article on NJ.com, click here:  More support needed

from 9News.com

Dylan Hearn probably has a great future ahead of him; he is wise beyond is meager years. The 7-year-old Colorado boy has a personal crusade to made sure that everyone takes concussion seriously.

And he knows what he is talking about:  He suffered two concussions in the past six months. The first was playing football, and the second happened when he ran into the dishwasher at his home (he was chasing his brother.) The injuries put him out of commission for about a month, including his favorite activities—no TV, no video games, no reading.

According to an article on 9News.com, Dylan says:

“It hurts,” said Dylan. “A lot of sick and dizzy. Sometimes, you have blackouts.”

Now, Dylan’s concussions are changing the way people around him view head injuries. For example, his baseball coach, Jeff Pigati, says that the determination of injury used to be totally in the hands of players. If they said they were feeling well enough to play, they played. But kids and athletes being what they are, they typically jumped back into the game sooner than they probably should have.  That’s what killed another boy, 15-year-old Jake Snakenberg:

Snakenberg died in September 2004 after sustaining a serious concussion in a football game. Doctors believe it was his second concussion in a week and he died of Second Impact Syndrome. Just before the game, he told everyone he was fine.

That’s why there is now a law in place called the Jake Snakenberg Act. It requires all coaches, like Pigati, to undergo concussion training to look for signs of possible brain injury.
Dylan and Alex Hearn [Dylan's mother] applaud the new measures.

[If you would like to see the online training program for coaches, click here:  CDC HeadsUp]

Now, coach Pigati watches kids for head injury and tell-tale symptoms, and he’s happy to do so. Like most coaches, Pigati takes the health of his players very seriously. He applauds the Colorado law requiring coaches to undergo concussion training.

And Dylan? He likes the law, too. Why?

“Because it’s safe,” said Dylan.

From the mouths of babes.

To read the full story on 9News.com, click here:  7-year-old applauds new concussion rules

Alzheimer’s disease makes just about everyone’s short list of aging fears. The disorder robs individuals of their memories…their sense of self…their connection to friends and family. It’s hard on everyone who has to watch their loved one disappear before their eyes.

Now, scientific research published in The Archives of Neurology offers a small—but statistically significant—ray of hope for anyone hoping to prevent Alzheimer’s disease. The answer:  Walking!

The scientists studied 201 healthy adults (ages 45 to 88). The participants were tested for genetic predisposition to Alzheimer’s disease, and were given a brain scan to look for signs of amyloid plaques, the abnormal protein deposits that are a characteristic of the brains of Alzheimer’s patients. Fifty-six participants tested positive for the APOE-e4 gene, a marker that increases the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease by a factor of 15. None of the participants had signs of Alzheimer’s disease at the beginning of the study. Finally, everyone completed detailed questionnaires about their exercise habits.

According to an article in The New York Times:

The volunteers who reported walking or jogging often — meeting (or, in rare instances, exceeding) the American Heart Association’s exercise recommendation of 30 minutes of moderate or vigorous activity five times a week — had fewer amyloid plaques than the volunteers who reported almost never exercising….

The carriers of the gene who reported walking or jogging for at least 30 minutes five times a week had plaque accumulation similar to that of volunteers who were e4-negative. In essence, the APOE-e4 gene carriers mitigated their inherited risk for developing Alzheimer’s by working out.

So moderate exercise was protective against Alzheimer’s disease…even for people who have an extremely high genetic risk of developing the disease. The scientists have a lot more work to do to figure out why exercise is protective, but for the average person, the take-home lesson is that exercise should become a part of daily health habits for everyone—but especially for those with a family history of Alzheimer’s disease.

“There are so many benefits to exercise,” [Denise Head, an associate professor of psychology at Washington University who led the study] says, “and one may be that it helps the brain” to defend itself against the slow leaking away of memory.

Now that’s science we can get behind!

January 19, 2012

A Fayetteville, North Carolina, hospital is at risk of losing it’s funding from Medicaid and Medicare tonight in response to the death of a mentally ill patient. Reports from ABC 13 News say that the 27-year-old patient died after being put in a chokehold by a security guard at the Cape Fear Valley Medical Center in October of last year.

Video from a surveillance camera at the hospital shows the patient being tackled to the ground by security and choked. When the patient stops resisting and is released, he lies on the ground, unconscious for nearly three minutes before any effort is made to resuscitate the man. He was later declared dead, but a criminal investigation did not begin until a coroner ruled the death a homicide.

The hospital could potentially lose as much as $23 million a month if its funding is cut.

This is not the first time the hospital has faced scrutiny. The Fayetteville Observer reports that the State Department of Health and Human Services began investigating the facility in December of last year after a cancer patient died less than an hour after being involuntarily discharged from the facility. The hospital also has numerous complaints for extremely long wait times and mistreatment of patients.

The North Carolina Medical Malpractice Attorneys with HensonFuerst would advise anyone who believes they’ve been harmed by a doctor or staff member  to immediately contact a lawyer to discuss the claim.

Charlene Harrington, RN, PhD, FAAN

Results of a new study suggest that the nation’s largest for-profit nursing homes deliver significantly lower quality of care, compared with smaller and not-for-profit nursing homes. Why? Fewer staff nurses (despite profits).

The study looked at quality in the 10 largest for-profit chains, which control about 13% of all nursing home beds in the country. They were choses because of their influence and expansiveness. The researchers from University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) found that when nursing homes put profits ahead of people, they cut costs by reducing the number of staff… especially trained and experienced (but more expensive) staff.

“Poor quality of care is endemic in many nursing homes, but we found that the most serious problems occur in the largest for-profit chains,” said first author Charlene Harrington, RN, PhD, professor emeritus of sociology and nursing at the UCSF School of Nursing. Harrington also is director of the UCSF National Center for Personal Assistance Services.

“The top 10 chains have a strategy of keeping labor costs low to increase profits,” Harrington said. “They are not making quality a priority.”

The correlation is so strong that many experts believe that the best predictor of nursing home care is the number of nurses working at the facility.

Something to remember if you should find yourself looking for a good nursing home.

January 12, 2012

A powerful storm system that blew through western North Carolina Wednesday evening is being blamed for injuring at least 15 people and destroying more than a dozen buildings in two counties. According to WRAL News, the storm possibly spawned tornadoes that are believed to have touched down in Rutherford and eastern Burke Counties.

Spokesman for the Rutherford county sheriffs department, Sergeant Dwayne Wright, told reporters that the town of Ellenboro was hit the hardest. By Thursday morning, ten people had been treated for injuries, of which, two victims suffered serious harm. Wright added that at least 10 buildings had been leveled within a three-square-mile area.

The storm then moved northeast, where within minutes, the town of Icard was being pummeled with high winds and rain. Witnesses stated that they could “hear it rumbling, and knew there would be real bad damage.” Dozens were injured and nearly 75 homes suffered damage to varying degrees.

The storm skipped east before dying off in the town of Hildebrand, where reports of uprooted trees and roofs torn off buildings were piling up by Thursday morning.

Hundreds are still without power according to Burke County Fire Marshal, Mark Pitts.

While no one can be blamed for injuries that occur because of a natural disaster, insurance companies often play this to their advantage in order to pay you less for your injuries and losses. The North Carolina personal injury lawyers with HensonFuerst would advise a victim to never take a settlement from an insurance company without first consulting an attorney.