September 2010 Archives

Miami's Jackson Memorial Hospital incorporates swimming with dolphins as part of a unique aquatic rehabilitation program for paraplegics and quadriplegics. Stephanie Godsea, a physical therapist at Jackson says "We have a whole swim program for outpatients," as reported by the Miami Herald last week. "Patients come once a week and at the end of the summer they can swim with the dolphins. This is like their graduation." Read the entire article A kiss from a dolphin brings therapy, smiles. Be sure to watch the video clip. The Miami hospital has been organizing the rehab therapy swim with the dolphin trips for seven years and even coordinates fundraising to pay for the trips.

Musculoskeletal and Connective Tissue Disorders Leading Driver of Disabilty Claims

A recent study by the Council for Disability Awareness found that companies paid more than $8 billion in ongoing disability insurance payments to individuals in 2009, including a record 627,000 individuals on long-term disability.

The study, titled 2010 CDA Long-Term Disability Claims Review, highlights some very interesting statistics. Here are a few tidbits:

• musculoskeletal/connective tissue disorders continue to rank as the leading cause of disability
• cancer is the second leading cause of new claims, but fourth leading cause in existing claims
• little to no evidence that the current economic situation has impacted claims in any significant way
• disabled worker population shows dramatic growth; e.g. the number of disabled workers receiving SSDI payments continues to dramatically outpace growth in overall covered worker population
• women and disability: 78% increase in the number of female workers getting SSDI payments over past decade vs. 46% increase in disabled male workers

Risk and Insurance online offers this related article about the study Increase in Disability Claims Driven by Musculoskeletal Disorders.

Social Networking and Workers' Comp?

Our friends at Workers' Comp Insider share some insight on how social networking intersects the world of workers' compensation and the law in their blog post titled Social networking, workers' comp & the law. A very interesting read with references and links to other resources and a video clip offering an overview of how social media is changing the way we connect.

Fred Hosier of SafetyNewsAlert.com reports that a jury in Chicago has awarded the largest individual verdict in a popcorn lung disease case. A jury awarded $30.4 million to Gerardo Solis who has worked for about 20 years in plants that processed diacetyl, a butter flavoring commonly used as a popcorn flavoring. Read the entire story Jury awards $30.4 million in worker's popcorn lung lawsuit.  

Physician Dispensing in Florida

For an interesting take on physician dispensing in Florida, read Joe Paduda's recent blog post on the topic -- MCM's Investigative Reporting -- physician dispensing in Florida. Not only does Joe give you his honest opinion on why this topic should be causing you heartburn, he provides an excellent "peek behind the curtain" in terms of some of the players in the current political race for the governor's office in Florida. Very interesting reading.

Remembering Katrina

And if you haven't yet had enough of the news networks' review of what happened five years ago when Katrina redesigned New Orleans, here is a great piece by Julie Ferguson of Workers' Comp Insider, see Remembering Katrina. She does a fantastic job of correlating the devastation Katrina caused to the health issues that still prevail in the area. Sadly, while there has been a great deal of rebuilding of the physical structures there, and much has been accomplished, the toll has been very high on the health and emotional well-being of the residents there.

And one final thought on Katrina, watch the trailer for The Big Uneasy, a film by Harry Shearer, actor/comedian and New Orleans resident. The film played on the big screen for one day, August 30, to mark the five year anniversary of Katrina. It is a documentary film that explores whether or not the devastation Katrina caused was a natural or a man-made disaster. Hoping it will be available on DVD soon...