27Jul
“The Valley of Surveillance”
Governing (07/07) Vol. 20, No. 10, P. 38 ; Perlman, Ellen
Phoenix, Ariz., has acquired a surveillance camera system that allows police to keep an eye on the city’s activities. The nearly $500,000 system allows Phoenix police to follow camera images from police headquarters, in patrol cars, or via handheld gadgets. The system allows police to rotate the cameras 360 degrees and have enough bandwidth to obtain almost real-time video. In addition, the cameras can perform “smart searching” of the video, without having to view the entire footage. While opponents contend that erecting cameras just moves violators to another location to avoid being caught on film, authorities note that it throws criminals off-balance, and that forcing them to uncharted areas places them at a disadvantage and enables police to possibly apprehend them as they are making errors. Phoenix’s cameras are moved on a regular basis and are set up in regions where criminals are predicted to attack next. The cameras employ mesh technology, which transports images and information to the online nodes erected around a region. The mesh structure manufactures coverage “umbrellas” and information moves from one umbrella to another.
(go to web site)
20Jul
“1 in 12 Workers Admits Recent Illicit Drug Use”
Seattle Times (07/16/07)
The Health and Human Services Department’s Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Administration’s recent survey of illegal drug use by workers estimates an average use rate of 8.2 percent, up from 7.6 percent in 1994. Of the workers admitting to the use of illegal drugs, most were employed full time, and the highest incidents of drug use occurred in the restaurant and construction industries. The lowest instances of drug use occurred in the teaching and social services sectors at 4 percent on average per sector. Drug use is highest among younger workers between the ages of 18 and 34, according to the survey. While testing among employers increased to 48.8 percent, the number of treatment programs available for employees with drug dependence are declining.
(go to web site)
13Jul
“Keeping Baby Safe & Sound”
The Nursing Spectrum (07/02/07) ; Wood, Debra Anscombe
The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) reports over 120 babies were stolen from healthcare facilities across the United States between 1983 and 2007, and 56 percent of those infants were abducted from their mothers’ rooms and 14 percent from the nursery. Despite electronic monitoring equipment and other protections in place, infant abductions still occur, though not in high numbers. Nurses indicate these abductions take an emotional toll on parents, as well as nurses, who believe they failed to protect their patients. Association of Women’s Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses (AWHONN) member Sandra Cesario, RNC, PhD, of Texas Woman’s University College of Nursing says, “Consumers expect a high level of security and safety.” Most facilities use radio frequency identification (RFID) tags to locate and track infants throughout the hospital, involving a strap attached to the infant’s ankle or umbilical cord that triggers an alarm in obstetrics if the tag is taken off or the infant is taken to the wrong room. However, these high-tech programs are only one part of the equation; facilities also need to develop strong policies and procedures for nurses regarding visitors and for patients handing over their infants to nurses. According to AWHONN, parents should ask their primary nurse about unscheduled tests, make sure bassinets are always used to transport the infants, keep these bassinets away from the door, and ensure they are not left unattended while the mother showers. AWHONN and NCMEC jointly created an educational program, Safeguard Their Tomorrows, for nurses and other healthcare professionals to help them recognize infant abduction risks and write abduction-prevention policies. If potential abductors are spotted in one facility asking numerous questions and visiting with more than one mother, nurses and other hospital staff should alert nearby facilities; and facilities need to educate new parents about how to protect themselves from these criminals.
(go to web site)
10Jul
“All Companies Need a Disaster Recovery Plan”
St. Louis Post-Dispatch (07/05/07) ; Sutin, Kathie
Ninety-three percent of businesses losing access to their data for up to 10 days generally file for bankruptcy within 12 months, according to the National Archives and Records Administration. For this reason, experts agree businesses should develop and implement a disaster preparedness and recovery plan before power outages and other events occur. THF Realty Inc. Risk Manager Sabrina Radney stated earlier power outages in Missouri prompted her firm to ensure an emergency preparedness plan was in place, particularly if outages severed the firm’s ties to electronic records. Companies need to devise a plan that minimizes the steps firms need to recover data or access it during a crisis, and those plans should include backup of data, alternate sites, equipment replacement, and locations to store software and data. Plans also should spell out specific steps staff members should take during an emergency, and the plans need to be tested periodically to ensure all employees know what to do. Radney noted her firm moved its servers off-site, laptops were commissioned for a temporary meeting space, and server access was provided to those laptops.
(go to web site)
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