To navigate this page, scroll over the photos in this slide show and click on the pop-up links to learn more about different aspects of antibiotic resistance.

The “Newspapers in crisis” widget is a super idea but I was a little disappointed with the execution. I thought that the lack of explanation was detrimental to the project. The widget is not difficult to navigate but I don’t quite understand what all the sections are exactly. A brief introductory explanation of the overall piece (intention of the project, background on the situation etc) as well as an intro to each tabbed section would be beneficial to the reader. Otherwise, it is a fascinating analysis of the failing newspaper industry through the eyes of various online sources.

In “Misty Morning Hounds”, the pictures and the sounds were very effective in telling a story. I thought the medium really showed its advantages with the narrator spoke about the dogs “giving tongue”. I never would have been able to properly picture that if the image and the explanation had not been together. The sounds of the hunt were very distinctive. Barking dogs, snorting horses, clip-clopping, and traditional bagpipe noises really helped to create the atmosphere to go along with the photographs. The images themselves were very beautiful and compelling. The mix of stills and action shots kept the pace interesting.

I thought that the “Displaced to Kabul” story would be more effective with more natural and ambient sound to go along with the story. The pictures clearly show it is an overcrowded camp touched with violence and war. Sounds of explosions, talking people, cooking noises, crying babies, fighting and howling dogs would really make the piece more full.
The script was well written and had some excellent descriptions of the sights and smells if the camp.
The photos were lovely and very artistic. I liked that were in black and white. It really helped to set the mood of the piece.

Antibiotic Resistance

See script below. 

Some of the lessons in the NewsU course were painfully obvious, like get natural sounds to illustrate the action or the mood of a story and make sure your interviewees answer in full sentences.
There was some great advice though. I never really thought about checking to see if the person you are interviewing is an interesting subject on tape. It makes perfect sense though. Nothing is more tedious than listening to someone with a flat, un-animated voice. I can definitely see the importance of pre-interviewing and considering your options.
I also liked the idea of encouraging the audience to share their strategies in the FIELD TIPS sections. I had no idea that cell phones can screw up recording devices. There were a few comments about checking your bag to make sure that you have everything which is pretty sound advice.
I liked the PACK YOUR GEAR table with visual examples of each of the types of microphones, and recorders along with a list of pros and cons. A beginner like me could print it out and use it as reference the next time they go to collect equipment for a story.
The activities were probably the most useful elements because you were able to manipulate the position of mics, the types of mics and turn off and on white noise and hear the consequences of your actions. If these lessons were just written instructions I would not have taken away very much.

HOSPITALS TO REPORT HYGIENE COMPLIANCE

Starting April 2009, Ontario hospitals will be required to publicly report hand hygiene compliance rates.
These reports will hopefully create incentive for health care professionals to improve their hygiene habits and prevent the spread of disease.
The Medical Post wrote that each year, there are approximately 8,000 deaths due to infections contracted in Canadian hospitals. As many as fifty percent of these hospital-acquired infections could have been prevented through the use of proper hand washing techniques. The American Journal of Infection Control stated in an article published in 2003 that “Current estimates are that between 30% and 50% of nosocomial infections are preventable, but to realize this level of prevention the resources must be put in place at each hospital.”

A recent audit at the McGill University Health Center showed that three out of every four doctors do not wash their hands frequently enough. To try and improve hygiene conditions in Ontario health care institutions, the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care has implemented a $428 000 campaign called “Just Clean Your Hands”. The campaign serves to educate and remind health care workers of the importance of hand cleanliness through informative posters, training sessions, visual reminders, and an ongoing audit to measure improvement. (www.justcleanyourhands.ca)

Several reasons have been cited for the low compliance of health care workers to hand washing regulations. The Just Clean Your Hands Program insists it is not always easy for workers to clean their hands in the rushed pace of a hospital environment. It is stated on their website: “In many facilities, the environmental supports, role modeling, focused education… timely feedback from validated auditing process and a hand care program have not been in place to support the health care provider to perform hand hygiene at the right moment with the correct product.”

There has been some initiative to educate health care workers in Quebec about correct hygienic procedures using internal audits and educational workshops. Quebec hospitals have been battling severe outbreaks of C.difficile in recent years. A new strain of C.difficile discovered in Quebec in 2004 has proved to be 20 times more toxic than previously studied strains. This strain has been blamed for as many as 2000 deaths. C.difficile is transmitted from person to person by hand contact. Health Canada says the simplest way to prevent the spread of C.difficile is to wash your hands. Despite this little progress toward improved conditions has been made. More regular audits are scheduled to measure hygienic improvement.

Proper medical hand washing procedure includes cleansing your hands before and after each patient encounter with soap and water or an alcohol-based liquid hand sanitizer. It is also important to wash before aseptic procedure and after exposure to bodily fluids. The Just Clean Your Hands program requires health care professionals to lather with soap and water for at least 15 seconds before patting their hands dry with a paper towel. In the case of alcohol-based hand sanitizers, you are required to rub 1-2 pumps of product onto your hands until the product is dry.

It is especially important for proper hygienic procedures to be followed because of the increasing incidence of antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria in hospitals. Health Canada has identified methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, known as MRSA, as the most commonly identified antibiotic-resistant hospital-contracted infections. MRSA is generally harmless when present on human skin but it becomes a problem when it enters the body through an open wound and causes an infection. Because it is resistant to first line antimicrobial agents, MRSA is difficult to treat. Those with MRSA infected tissue triple the length of their hospital stay. Like so many other types of bacteria, is spread by contact with infected surfaces and transfered from place to place with hand contact. There are plenty of wounds in a hospital setting and plenty of doctors that touch them.
According to a recently published article in the Canadian Medical Association Journal, it costs $14,360- $25,661 to treat a patient with an MRSA infection. In total, antibiotic-resistance adds $40 to $52 million to Canada’s annual health care costs. This elevated cost is due to the need for more expensive antibiotics, the use of private isolation rooms, extra safety equipment (gowns, masks, soaps), more testing and a prolonged hospital stay.

SOURCES:

“C. difficile (Clostridium difficile)” Health Canada. December 6 2006. Available at: http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/hl-vs/iyh-vsv/diseases-maladies/cdifficile-eng.php

Derfel, Aaron. “3 out of 4 doctors skip hand washing” Montreal Gazette, Jan 6 2009. Available at: http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/story.html?id=3df82857-7efb-46cf-815e-912524b990a6

Eggertson, Laura. “Hospitals to report C. difficile and MRSA”. Canadian Medical Association. Journal. Ottawa: May 8, 2007. Vol. 176, Iss. 10; pg. 1402.

Eggertson,Laura. “C. difficile strain 20 times more virulent”. Canadian Medical Association. Journal. Ottawa: May 10, 2005. Vol. 172, Iss. 10; pg. 1279.

Hilton,Carol. “Hospitals inadequate at infection control”,. Medical Post. Toronto: Aug 26, 2003. Vol. 39, Iss. 30; pg. 5

“Issue Identification Paper – Antimicrobial Resistance: Developing a Common Understanding.” Health Canada. 2003. Available at: http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/dhp-mps/pubs/vet/amr-ram_issue-enjeux_1-eng.php

Just Clean Your Hands program (Ministry of Health and Long Term Care) http://www.justcleanyourhands.ca/

Mulvey, M, Simor, A. “Antimicrobial resistance in hospitals: How concerned should we be?”. Canadian Medical Association. Journal. Ottawa: Feb 17, 2009. Vol. 180, Iss. 4; pg. 408.