New Phone Apps Aim To Thwart Drivers On Cellphones, While Oprah Asks for ‘No Phone Zone’ Pledges

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Posted on 31st March 2010 by gjohnson in Brain injury | Concussion | brain injury attorney

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Perhaps there is a way to make motorists drop their cellphones when they are driving. At least a dozen startup companies have come up with phone apps that aim to remind drivers not to get on the phone when driving, a distraction that can lead to accidents. http://www.nj.com/newsflash/index.ssf?/base/business-64/1269805869222700.xml&storylist=technology&thispage=1

But these applications, unveiled at a wireless trade show last week in Las Vegas, are not perfect solutions. They have their pitfalls. In some instances, the apps only work on certain phones and have a hard time detecting if the user is really driving.

And so far the government, auto makers, cellphone manufacturers and wireless companies have not taken any stance or made any movement supporting devices meant to thwart driving and talking on a cellphone at the same time.

So smaller companies are trying to fill the void. Those include Drive Safely Corp., which plans to put software and a GSP in cellphones that can tell if the phone is moving faster than 15 miles an hour.

Some of the other companies also creating devices to discourage motorists from using their cellphones include ZoomSafer, TxtBlocker, Key2SafeDriving, TrinityNoble, Textecution and Cell Safety, according to the Associated Press.

A number of states, including New Jersey, ban drivers from talking on handheld cellphones.

Oprah Winfrey has also taken up the cause. In the April issue of O: The Oprah Magazine there is a two-page ad that reads “Stop America’s Deadly Obsession.” The ad says that driving while using a cellphone “is equal to driving while drunk,” and that for texting, “it’s the same as being two times the legal limit.”

Then ad then encourages readers to “Take the pledge today,” by pledging to make their car a “No Phone Zone.”

The ad directs readers to a page on Winfrey’s Web site, http://www.oprah.com/packages/no-phone-zone.html, which tells readers to sign the pledge. “You could save a life – maybe even yours.”

Attorney Gordon Johnson
Chair Traumatic Brain Injury Litigation Group, American Association of Justice
g@gordonjohnson.com :: 800-992-9447 :: Attorney Gordon S. Johnson, Jr.

http://subtlebraininjury.com :: http://brainanatomyguide.com :: http://car-accident-rain.com :: http://tbilaw.com
http://waiting.com :: http://vestibulardisorder.com :: http://youtube.com/profile?user=braininjuryattorney

New NFL Rules to Prevent Concussion

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Posted on 25th March 2010 by gjohnson in Brain injury | Concussion | NFL and concussion | brain injury attorney

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During their meeting in Orlando this week, and following much embarrassing publicity last year, National Football League officials made some key changes in their safety rules. http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2010/03/25/sports/AP-FBN-NFL-Meetings.html?_r=1 Some of the rules passed Wednesday are aimed at protecting “defenseless” players, as the Associated Press described them, such as ball carriers who lose their helmets during action on the field. One of the changes is that a “defenseless” player can’t be struck in the neck or head area by a rival who uses his shoulder, helmet or forearm to make contact, according to AP. Before, such tackles were prohibited against receivers who couldn’t protect themselves, but now they apply to and protect all players. The rules changes made by the NFL also include one that mirrors college safety measures. Now in the NFL, if a player running with the football loses his helmet, the game will immediately be stopped, with the ball set at the spot where the helmet came off. Even umpires are getting more protection under the new rules. Umpires will now be placed behind the offensive backfield, not the linebackers’ area. That change was made because NFL officials had seen “a hundred” examples of umpires being runover. The National Hockey League also came closer to making more stringent safety rules, in terms of head injuries. It appears likely that hockey officials will impose punishments for blind-side checks to the head effective immediately, not at the start of next season, according to The New York Times Thursday. http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2010/03/25/sports/AP-FBN-NFL-Meetings.html?_r=1

Attorney Gordon Johnson
Chair Traumatic Brain Injury Litigation Group, American Association of Justice
g@gordonjohnson.com :: 800-992-9447 :: Attorney Gordon S. Johnson, Jr.

http://subtlebraininjury.com :: http://brainanatomyguide.com :: http://car-accident-rain.com :: http://tbilaw.com
http://waiting.com :: http://vestibulardisorder.com :: http://youtube.com/profile?user=braininjuryattorney

Idaho Concussion Bill Held Up Over Liability Concerns

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Posted on 20th March 2010 by gjohnson in Brain injury | Concussion | Uncategorized | brain injury attorney

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Idaho is considering legislation to set tough guidelines on student athlete concussions, but the bill has been stalled because of fears of liability issues. http://www.idahoreporter.com/2010/plan-to-get-tough-on-concussions-stalls-in-committee-over-legal-concerns/

Idaho’s proposed law, like the one pioneered by Washington state, would require that athletes get the approval of a licensed health-care provide before being allowed to return to practice or play after sustaining a concussion. http://www.idahostatesman.com/2010/03/19/1123084/proposed-law-takes-aim-at-youth.html

But the Idaho House State Affairs Committee has pushed back making a decision on the bill until Monday, after getting cold feet about the legal ramifications of the legislation.

Idaho representatives Lynn Luker, R-Boise, Raul Labrador, R-Eagle, and Brent Crane, R-Nampa, are worried about the liability language in the bill. According to published reports, they fear that if a coach doesn’t take a player out of a game if it’s believed that player has a concussion, the coach and school could be sued.

They want an opinion from the Idaho Attorney General on the matter.

This is how legislation gets corrupted by political crap. Republicans want to blame all of the world’s problems on trial lawyers, like myself. If they make a tough standard that protects people, they are worried that they aren’t protecting the incompetent who won’t follow the standard. How does an entire political party get its priorities so screwed up?

Attorney Gordon Johnson
Chair Traumatic Brain Injury Litigation Group, American Association of Justice
g@gordonjohnson.com :: 800-992-9447 :: Attorney Gordon S. Johnson, Jr.

http://subtlebraininjury.com :: http://brainanatomyguide.com :: http://car-accident-rain.com :: http://tbilaw.com
http://waiting.com :: http://vestibulardisorder.com :: http://youtube.com/profile?user=braininjuryattorney

Missouri May Pass Student Concussion Law

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Posted on 19th March 2010 by gjohnson in Brain injury | Concussion | NFL and concussion | brain injury attorney

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Missouri is the latest state to be weighing legislation that would keep young athletes off the field if they appear to have sustained a concussion.

http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/lifestyle/stories.nsf/healthfitness/story/EB4F233FBE11B772862576E9006F382D?OpenDocument

The proposed law mandates that athletes can only return to play after they are examined by a licensed medical professional and then give written permission to come back.

The concussion bill before the Missouri House is being sponsored by Rep. Don Calloway, although some of his fellow lawmakers don’t think his proposal goes far enough.

Rep. James Morris told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that he wants the final law to be stricter. He is especially concerned about the issue because Morris witnessed his own son being knocked unconscious during a football practice. Morris insisted that his son be taken to the hospital.

More than 20 states are considering legislation to set stricter rules to bench athletes when they sustain head injuries. Several of those bills, including Missouri’s, are similar to a Washington law that was passed after Zachary Lystedt, 13, sustained traumatic brain injury at a junior high school game.

Missouri’s high school athletic organization is also preparing to take steps regarding head injuries, by instituting new rules regarding concussions.

According to the Dispatch, high school athletes who have symptoms of concussions will not be allowed to return to play the same day they are hurt, even if they don’t lose consciousness.

Attorney Gordon Johnson
Chair Traumatic Brain Injury Litigation Group, American Association of Justice
g@gordonjohnson.com :: 800-992-9447 :: Attorney Gordon S. Johnson, Jr.

http://subtlebraininjury.com :: http://brainanatomyguide.com :: http://car-accident-rain.com :: http://tbilaw.com
http://waiting.com :: http://vestibulardisorder.com :: http://youtube.com/profile?user=braininjuryattorney

Science Making Progress in Altering Negative Memories

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Posted on 18th March 2010 by gjohnson in Uncategorized

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It may sound like science fiction, but researchers are exploring ways to change people’s memories, according to a story in The Wall Street Journal Tuesday. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703447104575118021991832154.html?mod=WSJ_hpp_MIDDLENexttoWhatsNewsThird

Right now a common hypertension drug is being tested on rape victims, soldiers who have been in combat and those who have survived car accidents. The goal is to replace the horrific memories these people have with less frightening ones.

The concept of the research is to essentially strip away the fear that accompanies the bad memories, Harvard Medical School psychiatry professor Roger Pittman told The Journal.

At one time, scientists believed that memories were like photos, set in stone and unchangeable. But now the theory is that memories, each time they are recalled, can be changed.

There are various techniques being explored or actually used to change memories, according to The Journal, which explains several of them. For example, in exposure therapy, used to address phobias, a person is repeatedly exposed to the thing or situation that frightens them.

In another study that Pittman was involved in, a man was suffering from post traumatic stress disorder after being hit in the head with a gun during a bank robbery. The man was so disturbed from his trauma at the bank that he stopped bird-watching, which had been one of his hobbies. He became so anxious that he was becoming home-bound.

That man, during six treatments, would asked to go back to his memory of the bank incident after being given propranolol. That hypertension drug calms a fast heartbeat and reduces sweating. So by the last session the man was feeling a distance from his trauma at the bank, and was able to take up his normal activities, according to The Journal, which describes some of the other research in detail.

This research is important and could add something significant to our treatment of PTSD. But when we try things like this with the brain, we too often find that a little bit of change in one area, causes radical changes somewhere else. The brain is a sensitive eco-system that must be very carefully modified or you get unintended results.

Attorney Gordon Johnson
Chair Traumatic Brain Injury Litigation Group, American Association of Justice
g@gordonjohnson.com :: 800-992-9447 :: Attorney Gordon S. Johnson, Jr.

http://subtlebraininjury.com :: http://brainanatomyguide.com :: http://car-accident-rain.com :: http://tbilaw.com
http://waiting.com :: http://vestibulardisorder.com :: http://youtube.com/profile?user=braininjuryattorney

California Seeks To Mandate Helmets For Young Skiers and Snowboarders

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Posted on 15th March 2010 by gjohnson in Uncategorized

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California is looking to crack down on youthful skiers and snowboarders, by requiring minors to wear helmets when they engage in both those sports. http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5i3mSQTOwvBo-4TsKKXQ72RM0u7RQD9EEVGOG0

Democratic lawmakers from Northern California have introduced two bills mandating the helmets for minors. One of the proposed laws would also set new requirements for resorts, making them do detailed reporting on injuries, post signs and do special safety planning.

California, known for its progressiveness, isn’t the first state looking to enact laws on helmets for skiers. Legislators in New York and New Jersey also have various bills pending that require skiers to wear helmets.

In contrast, despite the tragic death of actress Natasha Richardson last year after she sustained brain trauma while skiing in Canada, Quebec considered but then never went on to pass a ski helmet law.

More and more skiers and snowboarders are already using helmets, without being told to do so by the law. About 48 percent of skiers and snowboarders used helmets during the 2007-2008 season, according to a survey by the National Ski Areas Association that was cited by the Associated Press.

But these laws sound like good ideas to us, to protect those who are too foolish to protect themselves by donning helmets.

Attorney Gordon Johnson
Chair Traumatic Brain Injury Litigation Group, American Association of Justice
g@gordonjohnson.com :: 800-992-9447 :: Attorney Gordon S. Johnson, Jr.

http://subtlebraininjury.com :: http://brainanatomyguide.com :: http://car-accident-rain.com :: http://tbilaw.com
http://waiting.com :: http://vestibulardisorder.com :: http://youtube.com/profile?user=braininjuryattorney

Military To Make Head-Injury Evaluations Mandatory

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Posted on 13th March 2010 by gjohnson in Uncategorized

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The U.S. Defense Department is making a sweeping change it its policy on head injuries, with plans to mandate evaluations of all soldiers who have sustained possible concussions, military officials said last week. http://www.defense.gov/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=58264

Currently, a soldier in combat or near an explosion or blast must decide themselves whether to seek an evaluation for a concussion or head injury.

But under the policy change likely to be implemented, any soldier exposed to a blast or explosion would be required to get an evaluation. Such service members would also have to rest and couldn’t return to their units’ mission cycle for at least 24 hours, an official at the Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI).

Essentially, the military is saying that once a soldier has been involved in a situation that could cause brain injury, that soldier must get a check-up, whether they are showing symptoms of brain trauma or a concussion.

The new policy is meant to overcome the military “culture of the mission” that makes troops reluctant to leave their comrades to seek treatment, even when they are showing symptoms of brain trauma.

The so-called military acute concussion evaluation can be conducted out in the field, even while “bullets are flying,” as one defense department TBI official said.

Medics can complete the evaluation in 10 to 15 minutes, and soldiers don’t have to go to a field hospital. According to research, soldiers get better faster if they are near their unit.

During the evaluation, soldiers are asked questions so medics can gauge the seriousness of their head injury or concussion. Then the soldier must rest for 24 hours, and then have a follow-up evaluation. If any symptoms remain, additional tests will be done. If the soldier appears fine, he or she will return to the field.

In essence, the military is following the Sport and Concussion model. Now if we could get civilian hospitals to do the same, reevaluate everyone suspected of a concussion at 24 hours, that would be real progress.

Attorney Gordon Johnson
Chair Traumatic Brain Injury Litigation Group, American Association of Justice
g@gordonjohnson.com :: 800-992-9447 :: Attorney Gordon S. Johnson, Jr.

http://subtlebraininjury.com :: http://brainanatomyguide.com :: http://car-accident-rain.com :: http://tbilaw.com
http://waiting.com :: http://vestibulardisorder.com :: http://youtube.com/profile?user=braininjuryattorney

The Danger of Emergency Responders Being Distracted When They’re Responding

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Posted on 12th March 2010 by gjohnson in Uncategorized

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Here’s a terrible twist: Emergency vehicles today have so much sophisticated gear in them that it’s distracting the responders who drive them, leading to accidents.

The New York Times Thursday had a Page One story on the problem that was headlined “Lights, Sirens And A Dash Wired With Dangerous Distractions.” http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/11/technology/11distracted.html?hpw

The problem is that police cars and ambulances today are loaded with technology – from GPS systems to computers – that can distract their drivers and lead to accidents, just like cellphones are blamed for causing crashes.

Since these emergency vehicles are usually traveling at high speeds to get to the ill or injured, any slight distraction can quickly lead to a tragedy.

The Times notes in its story that in 2008, an emergency medical technician looking at a GPS device hit a flatbed truck in West Nyack, N.Y. Half of the ambulance was sheared off and the man’s passenger and partner was paralyzed.

A year earlier, a sheriff’s officer in Illinois was putting an address in his GPS system, and went on to crash into a stopped vehicle. The driver of that car was seriously injured.

One possible answer to the problem is voice-activated systems. The University of New Hampshire is working to come up with hands-free technology, doing the research with a $34 million federal grant, The Times says.

EMT’s are at the critical juncture of the tragedy that impacts our clients. While they must have the best technological devices, what they do is so inherently dangerous, their safety must be the highest priority. It does the injured person no good to get in another crash on the way to treatment.

Attorney Gordon Johnson
Chair Traumatic Brain Injury Litigation Group, American Association of Justice
g@gordonjohnson.com :: 800-992-9447 :: Attorney Gordon S. Johnson, Jr.

http://subtlebraininjury.com :: http://brainanatomyguide.com :: http://car-accident-rain.com :: http://tbilaw.com
http://waiting.com :: http://vestibulardisorder.com :: http://youtube.com/profile?user=braininjuryattorney

Insightful Profile On Brain Collector Chris Nowinski

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Posted on 11th March 2010 by gjohnson in Uncategorized

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Business Week/Bloomberg has done a fascinating story on a man with a quest: Chris Nowinski, a researcher who is creating what he calls the first U.S. brain bank dedicated to the study of head trauma. http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-03-10/nfl-brain-collector-shows-violence-in-slices-of-gray-matter.html

Nowinski, co-founder of the Boston University School of Medicine Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy, is collecting the brains of athletes. He is gathering physical proof for his belief that permanent brain damage is pervasive among athletes who suffer concussions.

So Nowinksi has taken on what some might consider the unenviable task of calling up the survivors of athletes who have died within 48 hours of their deaths to request their brains. He also solicits athletes who are now alive, getting them to agreed to donate their brains to his research. So far 270 have signed up.

Nowinski himself is a colorful character, with a personal stake in his research. Harvard-educated, Nowinski also wrestled for World Wrestling Entertainment. He’s an athlete who sustained two concussions while playing college football and four concussions as a pro wrestler, and he fears their permanent impact on his brain.

His brain bank now has the brains of 23 athletes. Why would a relative give up their loved one’s brain for Nowinski’s research? The decision was easy for Caroline Creekmur, the widow of NFL Hall of Famer Lou Creekmur. During his career his sustained 16 concussions, and after he retired he would break into rages and lose his memory.

Caroline tells Business Week/Bloomberg, “My husband died a hard death, and I did not know what was wrong. I wanted to know why this happened.”

This is really important stuff. It is from autopsy that we have learned the overwhelming majority of what we know about neuropathology. What is needed is to broaden this bank to include far more of those who have suffered concussions, particularly in accidents. While they never get the publicity that athlete’s concussions get, they affect far more people, far more profoundly. Through the study of the 40 year old accident victims brain, that we might unravel the deep mystery of why some people have such devastating results from TBI.

Attorney Gordon Johnson
Chair Traumatic Brain Injury Litigation Group, American Association of Justice
g@gordonjohnson.com :: 800-992-9447 :: Attorney Gordon S. Johnson, Jr.

http://subtlebraininjury.com :: http://brainanatomyguide.com :: http://car-accident-rain.com :: http://tbilaw.com
http://waiting.com :: http://vestibulardisorder.com :: http://youtube.com/profile?user=braininjuryattorney

N.J. Introduces New Regulations To Protect All Student Athletes From Concussions

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Posted on 9th March 2010 by gjohnson in Uncategorized

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The New Jersey entity that regulates high school athletics in state Monday introduced a set of rules that mandate that athletes who sustain head injuries must undergo a series of tests before being able to return to the field to play.

The story got significant play in the state’s primary newspaper, The Star-Ledger of Newark, which ran it on Page One. http://blog.nj.com/hssportsextra/2010/03/njsiaa_sets_guidelines_for_dea.html

If the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA) approves the new measures, there would be a standard set of regulations to treat concussions for athletes in every single sport, according to The Ledger.

One of the new regulations is that players who sustain a concussion or head injury must show no symptoms or problems for a week before they can play again.

They must also do a six-step regimen where they gradually do aerobic exercise and get the OK of a medical professional to play again.

Trainers, student athletes and coaches will receive annual training on concussions, including their symptoms.

Those are some, but not all, of the requirements under the new NJSIAA guidelines. That body oversees athletic programs at 434 high schools in the Garden State.

Attorney Gordon Johnson
Chair Traumatic Brain Injury Litigation Group, American Association of Justice
g@gordonjohnson.com :: 800-992-9447 :: Attorney Gordon S. Johnson, Jr.

http://subtlebraininjury.com :: http://brainanatomyguide.com :: http://car-accident-rain.com :: http://tbilaw.com
http://waiting.com :: http://vestibulardisorder.com :: http://youtube.com/profile?user=braininjuryattorney

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