Computer Times
Health
How Good Is Your Doctor
These sites are resources for finding out if a doctor's medical license is current, when and where it was issued, and when it expires. There are also links to state databases where cases of malpractice or disciplinary proceedings against doctors are publicized. Minnesota's site, for instance, only displays malpractice cases that have occurred since the last medical board meeting, not prior cases. Other states are more coy, providing you with info on how to view the records in government offices. California and Florida offer the most information, including the name of the medical school a doctor attended and the year of graduation; current status of the license; and pending disciplinary charges and completed disciplinary actions. World Wide Web: http://www.healthcarechoices.org
MayoClinic.com's Breath Of Fresh Air
MayoClinic.com has put up an online resource for asthma and allergy sufferers, the Allergy and Asthma Condition Center. The online reference connects people with information and personalized tools to help people manage their conditions. According to Mayo Clinic information, some 40 to 50 million American suffer from allergies to pollen, insect stings, food, what have you, though pinpointing the exact problem can sometimes be tricky, and the site suggests taking an allergy skin test to discover the cause of allergy symptoms. The site also has an adult-onset Asthma Self-Manager with tips for sufferers on getting a decent night's sleep and getting enough exercise. World Wide Web: http://www.mayoclinic.com
Group's Ambition Is Medicine For Everyone
While we're lucky with our health plans or national healthcare schemes, millions of poor people die every year from infectious diseases because the medicines that could cure them are too expensive. International group Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) is one of the main organizations campaigning for change to ensure that disadvantaged populations get the medicines they need. Find out about their progress and calls for support on this site. World Wide Web: http://www.accessmed-msf.org .
Light? Mild? What Does Big Tobacco Mean?
Nine internal tobacco industry documents related specifically to the use of the terms "light" and "mild" on tobacco products have been put out on the Web. Health Canada officials retrieved these last fall from the Guildford Depository in England, which holds more than 6 million pages of information related to British American Tobacco Co. The site says the documents prove the marketing of "light" cigarettes is simply a strategy to keep people smoking. Health Minister Allan Rock has called on the tobacco industry to remove the words from product packaging. "Many Canadian smokers have switched to 'light' brands believing that they are less harmful to their health," Rock writes in a challenge to the industry, published on the site. "That's why we've asked the tobacco industry to remove all confusing descriptors such as 'light,' 'mild,' 'special,' 'medium' from the brand names and packages of their cigarettes." World Wide Web: http://www.healthcanada.ca/wntd2001
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