Chicago Personal Injury Blog

There are some excellent nursing homes in Chicago, Illinois. Unfortunately, there may be others at which nursing home abuse occurs. For that reason, it is critical for those who place a relative in a nursing home to get to know its staff and to keep constant tabs on their relative to make sure that he or she is being treated well. A good rule of thumb is to verify everything and keep in constant communication with your relative and the nursing home staff. Talking to other people who have relatives there to get an understanding of their experience is also a good idea.

Nationwide, there are many cases of nursing home abuse that go unreported. According to a government audit, one in four cases of possible nursing home abuse are never reported. The audit blamed Medicare for not enforcing a federal law that requires immediate notification in cases where abuse is suspected. The audit was based on cases from 33 states and was conducted by the office of the inspector general at Health and Human Services (HHS). The investigators who conducted the audit, including an audit manager, say that Medicare must take corrective action immediately to protect nursing home residents.

Exhaustion, like alcohol and distraction, contributes to poor driving ability and increased risk of crashes. Commercial drivers who get behind the wheel while tired create danger, particularly for people in passenger vehicles. Fatigue and drowsiness are leading causes of truck accidents.

The massive size and weight of commercial trucks dwarf the size of even the biggest SUVs. The discrepancy in size between vehicles means that the smaller vehicle involved in a crash is more likely to take the majority of the damage in the collision. When commercial truck drivers are exhausted at the wheel, people in other vehicles are at increased risk of injury or death.

Expecting parents have an assumption that the medical professionals attending them are capable of managing their care and ensuring a healthy birth for the infant and mother. While this is usually true, too often this isn't the case.

Research conducted by National Public Radio and ProPublica last year showed that an increasing number of new mothers experienced dangerous and life-threatening complications, which left physical, emotional and psychological scars. In addition to rising complications, they found 700 to 900 women die due to pregnancy- or birth-related causes each year.

When most of us hear the term "distracted driving," the first image that comes to mind is of a careless person behind the wheel with a cellphone is hand. Certainly, this is the case many times and too common of a trend among drivers. However, there are more ways in which drivers can be distracted, and they all have the potential to cause an accident.

Here are the three types of distracted driving and the many behaviors that fall in each category.