Category: Uncategorized

Massachusetts passed a comprehensive bullying law this spring in response to the suicide of a teen girl who had been bullied (Slate did a nice brief piece on it if you’re interested in the details, but don’t want to slog through the legal language). Now the Boston Globe has started a periodic series on bullying, and their 1st installment was published this weekend. It’s a pretty lengthy article; I’ll be interested to see where they take the series. As the mother of a girl child (and a tween, god help me), this is certainly a topic to which I am paying attention.

The CDC has made available audio recordings from this spring’s National STD Prevention Conference. Seeing as how STDs are ALWAYS popular on this site, I thought I’d post this. There’s some interesting stuff coming down the pike, and by the looks of the lineup at the conference, several issues were covered specifically, including new surveillance data.

So here’s the craziest thing: I am home all week next week. And I am home now. And I will be home until the 22nd–of course, then we get into some ridiculous summer travel, but that’s another post. So I am enjoying the site of my desk, though I can barely see a square inch of it for all the crap that’s collected and piled everywhere. And I’m writing like a fiend: grants, articles, book chapters. Crazy! That’s my weekend plan at this point, along with some quality time with my girl-child and just a bit of World Cup (live streaming at ESPN.com). But a couple things to note, including this upcoming webinar from Peace@Work on safe terminations. It’ll take place June 17th from 2:30-3:30 ET and is free to attend.

I’m off to DC for the long weekend, but before I go, a couple things that might be of interest. The first is the final post over at the sustainability site before we go on hiatus to plan the next phase of the project. Check out our 10 tips for sustainability, and be sure to pass along to others who might find it helpful. {Note: as of this posting, the site was down. I will fix the link when the site is back up.}

I had a request from a reader for a good (and brief) overview of best practices for working with transgendered patients in general, not just in forensic settings. She wondered if I’d come across anything that would make a good handout for an in-service. As it turns out, I do have something that I think fits the bill nicely from the Transgender Law Center, and of the clinical overview documents out there, I really like this one best (PDF). It feels comprehensive and practical all at once. However, if you have something you really like in your own programs, will you let me know? I am always on the lookout for good resources.

New book giveaway happens tomorrow, and it’s a biggie! Make sure to stop back and see what’s in store for one lucky reader…

IAFN is hosting a webinar on forensic nursing process, featuring Val Sievers, Wednesday, July 14th from 2-3pm ET. The webinar is $40 for members/$50 for non-members, and will net 1 CEU upon completion.

I always enjoy the 10 Things posts I do here (and hopefully you do too), but I would really enjoy 10 Things posts from some of you. If you have a 10 Things post you’d like to do for FHO, please shoot me an email and let me know. I’m open to the focus–10 Things that are making you happy right now; 10 Things you wish you had in your practice/professional life; 10 Things that are indispensable. Name it, I’m open.

Medscape has a new CME offering, Common Problems in Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology. Physicians can earn 1.50 AMA PRA Category 1 credits (sorry nurses, no CEUs on this one). “This article focuses on two common vulvovaginal problems in the pediatric patient: vulvovaginitis and accidental genital trauma. Common infectious pathogens and treatments are reviewed along with other dermatologic and chemical causes of vulvovaginitis. The review of genital trauma focuses on various types of injury: straddle, penetrating and lacerations, and includes indications for surgical intervention.”

Many new updates to the Canada page, including a fantastic publication on the always popular topic, electronic medical records. Worth checking out for sure.

OVC has a web forum coming up next week that might be of interest to some of you: Assisting Families with Missing or Unidentified Persons. The web forum will be held on May 19th from 2-3pm, ET. At that time, questions will be answered in real time, online. However, the session will be fully archived for later review, if you can’t make the forum itself.

This is a different kind of Mother’s Day post. A tribute to all the working moms, like me, who spend more time away from their kids than we’d like. Moms who miss soccer games, and school plays and class projects because we are doing this important work, this work we love. Moms who have kids whose notion of going to work is driving to the airport. Moms who have created family rituals out of bedtime calls and webcam chats and email. And this is also a tribute to the members of our tribes that help us raise these amazing kids. The partners, extended family and excellent friends who comprise our village, and allow us to keep these crazy hours, smooth over the interrupted meals, and help explain why going to North Dakota requires an overnight stay.

I’ll be getting on a plane tonight, but not before I enjoy a leisurely brunch with 4 generations of incredible women. I hope for those of you celebrating Mother’s Day, it’s a day that feeds your soul and replenishes any empty spaces inside you. Even if your Mother’s Day only ends up being a couple hours long.

Congratulations, Bonnie Wright! You are the winner of the $50 Amazon.com gift card. You can read Bonnie’s response after the jump:

FHO will be on hiatus through Monday because I am actually going on vacation.

See you all at Jazz Fest!

There’s still time to partake in our latest $50 Amazon.com giveaway in honor of SAAM. To enter just let us know in the original post’s Comments section how you commemorated any day during SAAM, and one inspiring aspect of the day or the event you attended. You have until May 4th to be eligible.

NNEDV has a new one-page publication, Privacy Considerations When Posting Content Online. I have to tell you, I’m a big fan of having conversation with our staff members or colleagues on this topic right up front, as Facebook and other social media site usage becomes more and more the norm.

I seem to have some gremlins on my site this week. I’ve had posts disappear and reappear, so apologies if you tried to access a post you received via email or Twitter and then couldn’t access it. I’ll try and see if I can get to the bottom of it.

All kinds of good new stuff in our Canada section today. Make sure you check it out!

I had a note show up in my inbox today about using social media. Specifically, I was asked the following: “My program coordinator strongly discourages being on Facebook and believes we shouldn’t use it if we are going to practice in this field. Thoughts?” Yeah, I have a couple…

I know health literacy and written communication is not the sexiest topic in the world. But here at FHO, we’re pretty committed to making sure all of our patients receive the highest quality, targeted healthcare services. This means that when we’re discharging patients, they receive materials that allow them to best understand how to care for themselves once they leave our charge. That’s part of what separates us from forensic evidence techs, after all.