ARTICLES

5/7/2015· Accident Investigation & Reconstruction

Forensic Clues: Climbing Accidents

By: John Ryan, BSME, PE

Rock and ice climbing have become increasingly popular in recent years. Climbing is now a popular form of exercise and adventure, and a great way to enjoy the outdoors. Unfortunately the greater numbers involved in the sport has led to greater number of accidents. Climbing gyms have brought climbing to areas without outdoor rock resources. These indoor gyms use artificial holds to simulate rock walls. Indoor climbing gyms typically have climbs ranging from twenty feet to fifty feet, or more. Bouldering areas are shorter in height, with adequate padding to protect climbers from falls without the need for ropes.

5/6/2015· Psychology

Developmentally Disabled Adult Wrongful Death: PICA Disorder and Choking

By: Dr. William A. Lybarger

I have been providing expert witness services for several years. My practice, for the most part, has involved personal injury and wrongful death matters in health and human service agencies. More specifically, my work frequently requires a Standard of Care opinion related to the level of care provided by a service organization to a person with a developmental disability and/or mental retardation. As a part of this practice I have worked several cases involving an eating disorder referred to as PICA.

4/28/2015· Life Expectancy - Life Care Planning

Life Care Planners Offer Unique And Supportive Expertise

By: Ronald T. Smolarski

THIS ARTICLE DESCRIBES HOW Life Care Planners can help trust officers, relationship managers, estate planners and attorneys determine the future monetary requirements, in actual dollars, of a catastrophically disabled, pediatric or geriatric client. This can be done through the creation of a Life Care Plan for that individual's lifetime. Case histories are used to demonstrate how LCPs address the complex needs of such clients. The article concludes with a discussion of the ways in which the discipline of Life Care Planning complements the expertise of the trust officer.

4/23/2015· Failure Analysis

Weld Failure Analysis: Chair Failure Due to Inadequate Weld

By: Dr. Thomas Read

Read Consulting was asked to determine why a welded chair failed and caused injury to the person sitting in it.

4/16/2015· Education & Schools

Rigor Meets Social-Emotional Learning (SEL)

By: Dr. Virginia Rhodes

Critical to a dynamic STEM school is a high level of instructional rigor. While this is true in all STEM schools, it is a particular challenge in those programs that serve populations inexperienced with high levels of rigor in their previous coursework.

4/14/2015· Accident Investigation & Reconstruction

Schoolbus Crossing: Safety and Security Part 1

By: Ned Einstein

In the last installment (STN, Jun, 2007), I stressed the importance of distinguishing between an actual bus stop and the waiting area across the street from it in terms of safety. But the selection of the stop and waiting area also involves concerns for student security. Sometimes, there are trade-offs that must be made. These trade-off are often complex and subtle. But they must be made correctly.

4/7/2015· Product Liability

Forensic Clues: Failure to Maintain

By: John Ryan, BSME, PE

While many accidents involving products are the result of a product defect that leads to injury of the product user, accidents can also be the result of a failure caused by lack of maintenance or inspection. This issue of Clues will examine the theory behind failure to maintain accidents, as well as provide examples of common accidents that are due to a lack of maintenance.

4/3/2015· Construction

Unfairly Blaming Tenants for Interior Mold?

By: Lonnie Haughton

Who likely should be blamed for the blackish mold growth found at this new three-bedroom, two-bath apartment in San Jose, California? Unfortunately, landlords often rush to accuse their tenants of generating too much "lifestyle moisture". In many cases, such assessments are both inaccurate and unfair.

3/26/2015· Life Expectancy - Life Care Planning

Life-Care Planners Can Offer Attorneys Unique Expertise

By: Ronald T. Smolarski

How funds are handled after the settlement of a case reflects the competency and knowledge of attorneys and recognizes their outstanding legal skills. This article focuses on the management of settlement proceeds and the maintenance aspect of the care of a client with a disability when that client's financial health is turned over to a trust attorney, relationship manager, financial planner, trust officer or estate planner.

3/25/2015· Medical Malpractice

How Can Causation Be Established in a Labor and Delivery Malpractice Action?

By: Dr. James Wheeler

A malpractice action requires the plaintiff to prove: (1) the defendant caregiver owed a duty of care to the plaintiff-patient, (2) the caregiver departed from that standard of care, and (3) that departure from the standard of care actually caused the injury claimed by the plaintiff. "Causation" 11; often the critical component in a malpractice action because the presence of a duty is often obvious, except perhaps in "Good Samaritan" cases, but the statutorily-required expert witnesses will argue about whether the caregiver departed from some standard of care. Because defining "causation" is difficult, there are interesting distinctions in legal versus medical, sociological, or philosophical concepts of cause-and-effect. Applying this difficult concept of "causation" to the very complex world of labor and delivery (L&D) does indeed beg the question, just how can causation be established?