Disparities

Education, Across All Demographics, Is An Effective Prescription To Combat Diabetes

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Since Nydia Rodriguez met Wanda Santiago about a year ago, the New London resident has lost 20 pounds and gotten her Type 2 diabetes under control. That’s because Santiago, Lawrence + Memorial Hospital’s bilingual diabetes educator, has taught Rodriguez, a former nurse from Puerto Rico, about portion control, sugar substitutes and how to cut back on bread and pasta. Santiago, who was also a nurse in Puerto Rico, has even connected Rodriguez with food banks that offer fresh fruit and vegetables. “I talk to her almost every day,” Rodriguez, 64, said in Spanish, with her daughter Yolanda Mejias translating. “If I need anything, I’ll call her.”

Diabetes is the seventh leading cause of death in the U.S. and the main cause of kidney failure, lower-limb amputations and adult blindness.

Inspection Reports: Hospitals Cited For Testing Error That Resulted In Unnecessary Surgery, Patient Deaths, Failure To Investigate Complaint Of Patient Abuse

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A hysterectomy performed on a patient based on a faulty test result, and the death of two patients after failing to receive necessary monitoring or medication, failure to immediately investigate a complaint of patient abuse by a doctor, were among the incidents cited in the latest round of hospital inspection reports conducted by the state Department of Public Health (DPH). The 24 new reports cover state inspections that took place at hospitals last year and earlier this year. At Bridgeport Hospital, a patient underwent a total hysterectomy after her biopsy results were contaminated by another patient’s. The patient had a hysteroscopy procedure on Dec. 3, 2018, during which a biopsy was taken.