Michael SchmidtWhile expressing sympathy for the arguments of raw milk drinkers and producers, an Ontario appeals judge has nonetheless reversed dairy farmer Michael Schmidt’s exoneration nearly two years ago on charges of violating the province’s dairy laws. It’s even conceivable, the judge said, that Schmidt could be jailed.
In the judge’s opinion, the legislature made a rational decision to ban the sale and distribution of raw milk, even if it might have discriminated against consumers who want raw milk. .
In his 77-page decision, Judge P.D. Tetley stated: “The balancing of the competing interests of preserving and maintaining public health on the one hand against the resultant limitations on the right to choose what we eat, on the other is… a matter for the legislature. The restrictions imposed on certain residents of Ontario, as far as the consumption, distribution and purchase of raw milk is concerned, are within the authorized ambit or scope of legislative authority. In view of the evidence presented at trial it cannot be concluded the law, as it presently stands, is overbroad from a constitutional perspective or too sweeping in its breadth. While it may effectively discriminate against non-farm dwelling raw milk consumers, that fact in itself does not necessarily render the law non-Charter compliant, particularly in relation to the Respondent who, as a dairy farmer, is not a member of the restricted group.”
He said that Judge Paul Kowarsky, who originally ruled in favor of Schmidt by acquitting him of each of 19 counts of violating Ontario dairy laws, in January 2010, made an “error of statutory interpretation (which) led to a misapprehension of the evidence presented at trial as that evidence relates to the
substance of the charges in issue.” Justice Tetley agreed to dismiss six counts for one technical reason or another, but affirmed 13 guilty counts.
One big sticking point for Justice Tetley appeared to be that the structure of Schmidt’s cowshare program didn’t provide true equity ownership in the cows. The justice stated: “Although some uncertainty exists in the trial record as to whether the price paid by the consumer was for a specific cow within the herd or access to a portion of the milk production of a particular cow, the fact there were 150 cow-share members and only 24 cows suggests the agreement permitted access to the milk itself. This conclusion is confirmed at page nine of the publication ‘The Glencolton Farm Cow-Share Members’ Handbook’ which every cow-share member received along with a milk share certificate. The price to purchase a single share was
three hundred dollars or approximately one quarter of the price of a dairy cow. No formal contract of purchase and sale was executed by either vendor or purchaser. No corporate structure was created allowing the interested consumer to receive an actual share certificate as an equity owner in the corporation that included the herd as one of its assets. It appears that legal title to the cows remained with the Respondent as the owner of Glencolton Farm. Although the trial record serves to confirm that the Respondent viewed the dairy herd as being owned by the various cow-share certificate holders, in reality, the cow-share arrangement approximates membership in a ‘big box’ store that requires a fee to be paid in order to gain access to the products located therein. There is no evidence the cow-share holders were involved in the purchase of the cows in the herd, their subsequent sale or replacement, or that they had any say in the management of the herd or the distribution of the resultant milk product. The membership handbook indicates that the cow-share members fund the services of the Respondent and his wife to tend the cows and look after the milk production. The members are directed to pick up the milk at the farm or from the blue bus with one cow-share indicated as entitling the share holder to a yearly total of approximately 750 litres of unpasteurized milk, cheese, cream or other dairy products.”
Lacking evidence of what he considered to be direct ownership of the cows, the justice repeatedly deferred to legislative authority, “The authorities direct that it is a matter for the legislature to delineate the parameters or define the scope of the regulatory scheme relating to the consumption, distribution and sale of raw milk and raw milk products, provided there is a sufficient body of scientific evidence to give rise to a “reasoned apprehension of harm to permit the legislature to act.”
At times, the judge seemed almost apologetic, even suggesting at one point that the fact that Ontario citizens have a right to consume raw milk does not allow him to overrule the legislature so as to provide Schmidt the right to distribute it.
“Even if one were to accept the testimony proffered in support of the purported health benefits Mr. Bryant and Mr. McLaren associated with the consumption of raw milk, the right of these individuals to consume raw milk is not prohibited by law. Given the expressed restriction on the sale and distribution of raw milk and raw milk products…the Respondent (Schmidt) could not acquire a right to sell or distribute raw milk simply because others establish a right to acquire it.”
Justice Tetley indicated that while Schmidt could potentially be jailed, the likelihood was remote. “As noted, the Respondent faces a monetary penalty on conviction for the offences alleged. The prospect of a jail term arising in this matter is exceedingly remote. The Respondent would have to default on payment of the levied fine(s) and fail to comply with any of the remedial payment arrangements that are mandated by the Provincial Offences Act on default of payment of the fine. It is only after all other alternatives have been exhausted that a period of incarceration may be contemplated.”
Michael Schmidt’s response? “”If anybody thinks that this the end of the battle, no this is the beginning, this is a call to to active resistance, this is not about me, this is about our fundamental rights. Kowarsky had the guts to recognize the need for justice, Tetley was over his head. Friends no despair we know where we have to go and what we have to do. Resist, resist, resist with love.” His legal representatives indicated that a further appeal was in order.
-Blair
Day 23 Hospital
During the past week, the girlfriend who gave Lauren the milk was in contact with the farmer. She fed the farmer war facts. She was an avid raw milk supporter and was furious that raw milk we being blamed for the kids illnesses. She is the one that told the farmer Lauren ate hamburger and sushi. One of these foods made Lauren sick. So the war facts became Lauren ate hamburger or sushi and Chris ate spinach. This is what made the kids ill. It spread out into the raw milk community like a wild fire.
This was a happy day for the farmer and his family. The quarantine on his milk and other products was going to be lifted. They were planning a party. The girlfriend traveled to the dairy to be there for the celebration.
Chris still had high blood pressure in the morning. I was quite concerned. The dialysis nurse arrived. This was about the 3rd time this particular nurse had dialyzed Chris. He shared his concern about Chris blood pressure, but went ahead and hooked him up. I was feeling anxious and went down the hall to see where the nephrologist was on his morning rounds. He was three rooms down. He would be here soon. I needed to use the restroom, so I left for a few minutes. Chris had probably been on dialysis for about half an hour. When I returned, I noticed that he was staring at the dialysis machine. I thought that was odd, because he was always watching T.V. I called his name and he did not respond. I touched his shoulder and nothingstill staring. The nurse was right there, but didnt notice. I had to tell him something was wrong with Chris.
I felt like I was in a movie. I ran out of the room calling for the nephrologist. I yelled to him that Chris was not responding. He started running towards me and be both headed back to the room. Chris was still lying there staring. The nephrologist started yelling orders to the dialysis nurse to send back his blood. In a blink of an eye, there were five people in the room. The nephrologist told me he was having a seizure. I questioned him as to why he didnt think it was as stroke. He said the tongue, hands and eyes had a slight tremor. He is still having the seizure. I cant remember if he had two or three seizures, one right after the other. I believe they were about 8 to 10 minutes long. As the doctors and nurses were brainstorming what drugs they should give him, the dialysis nurse was trying to be optimistic. He told me it was not uncommon for HUS victims to have seizures. He had witnessed it before. He was trying to assure me that Chris would be O.K. The next thing I know they started rolling his bed to take him back to the 5700 unit. They told me they had to intubate him again.
Im sure my face lost all color. Back on the ventilator, how could that be? I sat down in the chair with my hands over my face. I was frozen. I didnt know what to do. Tony needed his sleep. He had been up most of the night. Should I call him or let him sleep. The nephrologist and resident nephrologist were so wonderful. They stood there silently with me for a while. The resident nephrologist put her arm around me and the nephrologist asked me if I was praying. Oh yes. I prayed every day, but at that moment I was immobilized. I asked the resident nephrologist if I should call Tony or let him sleep. She said if it was my son I would want to know. It was a difficult call to make.
Once Tony arrived, they explained to us what they thought was going on with Chris. They thought he had a seizure due to high blood pressure. This is something that is common once the kidneys start working, but they werent 100 % sure. There was a possibility that the HUS had affected his brain. Remember the Gb3 cells that are located in the kidneys, pancreas and brain. The Shiga toxins attack these cells. His kidneys and pancreas were both damaged and now maybe the brain. We were devastated. They had to intubate him again because of the brain scans they needed to run. The first would be the CAT scan.
A few hours later we received the good news. The CAT scan revealed that the seizure was most likely caused by high blood pressure. They also did an EEG. It looked good, but be 100% sure they still wanted to do an MRI. Chris had to be completely still for this procedure so that is why he had to remain on the ventilator.
I was mentally working on comprehending all of this. They were trying to assure us that this most likely was just a bump in the road in the recovery process. It felt like one a hell of a big bump!
That evening when watching the news, a clip of the farmers party was shown on T.V. They were celebrating and we were dealing with a seizure and ventilator.
As to your last post, I cannot imagine giving morphine and ativan to remove tape around a cath, especially to a narcotic naive child. Poor judgement.
rubbing alcohol works to remove the glue residue
surgical scrub Exidine will remove residue
Topical anesthetics include prescription products and OTC products; Lanacane
I have a friend who had back surgery, had chronic pain for yrs. the surgeon severed part of the spine that regulates bowel & bladder, this person no longer has back pain, but now has to cath self @ every 4 hrs and doesn't always know when a BM will slide on out…this person feels the surgeon is great because there is no pain…. I see many health issues arising from the daily caths and bowel issues. The surgeon didn't admit at first that he "slipped", he told my friend that the dura ruptured.
There is your side, the other side and the facts. We'll never know the true facts in your sons case.
"Petition the obama administration to legalize raw milk sales on a federal level"
https://wwws.whitehouse.gov/petitions/!/petition/legalize-raw-milk-sales-federal-level/hbbTdMGM
As to that petition Goatmaid, the President cannot make laws, so I don't see any value in petitioning "the Obama administration."
http://www.farmtoconsumer.org/petitions/pnum1079.php
Kevin
The FDA operates with broad authority. It can pretty much do what ever it wants to do with food. For instance, the FDA all by themselves, one afternoon, changed the definition of Raw Colostrum to fit the same definition as raw milk when it came to the application of CFR 1240.61 making the interstate movement of Raw Colostrum for human consumption illegal. No hearings, no vote of congress, no public comment. They just did this. This action stopped the sale of OPDC Superlite Colostrum in 20 stores in Las Vegas and Reno Nevada.
I disagree. Obama could overturn CFR 1240.61 by presidential decree, because he can undo things that the FDA does administratively "on a whim".
Mark
"We petition the Obama administration to:
Legalize raw milk sales on a federal level"
The petition is extremely vague, and it is not clear who is even behind this. And do we really expect Obama to repeal an FDA directive? (the petition does not even ask this – no mention of the FDA)
I agree with Kevin. Support Ron Paul's bill in the House.
Good question about whether tighter documentation of animal ownership by herdshare members would have resulted in a different decision. It's hard to know until you have a specific case before the judge. This judge compared Michael Schmidt's herdshare to a Costco (or similar) membership, but clearly they are different, if only in the fact that the herdshares are offered very privately, while Costco memberships are widely advertised and promoted. But it seems clear that the matter of ownership, whether of animals, land, buildings, or some combination is going to be an increasingly important issue for herdshares as time goes on.
David
Years ago, my dad, brother and a friend of my brother pulled their money and bought a calf and placed it on another friends pasture (for a fee) to raise before slaughter. They had no written contract. My brother collected the money, paid his friend for the land rent and basic care of the soon to be steer. When they steer was of age, it was slaughtered using the money that had been collected and the meat divided among the 3. It was a private agreement between 4 people. Per that judge, what they did was illegal.
I suppose in this day, you need to have everything written out in detail.
It has been my 12 years of experience, while visiting 35 states and four contries and speaking with regulators, doctors, dairymen, consumers, students, professors etc. that the most effective path to change is this:
The very public display of bacteria counts, safety plans and hard data from a List of Dairymen that are embracing raw milk "Common Standards". In this way, markets will be built, consumers will be educated and nourished and risks will be managed and reduced.
Markets change reality. Nourished consumers change reality. We are feeding the court of public opinion. If we feed them well, we will succeed, if we fail to feed them or feed them poorly, we will fail.
There will be no change of laws until enough consumers decide that laws will be changed. That means sustaining long periods of demonstrated perfect ( or near perfect ) safety data and building raw milk markets that are strong and undeniably safe. With this base of changed public sentiment, then laws can be changed.
I invite everyone to view our RAWMI website at: http://www.rawmilkinstitute.org/
Our grand opening will be announced at the WAP conference in Dallas in November, until then we will work hard to get up to speed and establish the office routine. Our Common Standards and RAMP food safety plans will hopefully be published at the wesbite prior to the Conference. We are thoughtfully proceeding with care to assure that all is well considered prior to announcement.
There is no doubt that RAWMI is going to make a Spash in the Pool of Milk that feeds North America. A unifying and strengthening of the voice of RAW MILK is a next step that has been long awaited. Sueing the FDA and consumer outreach have been done well by FTCLDF and WAP and many others.
Joining farmers together that share a common goal of safety and market building is the next step. A secreted minority will never get a law passed or change America in a big or significant way. America deserves to be better and get healthy.
It is also certain that the volentary nature of RAWMI and the goal of RAWMI will not be embraced by all farmers. We expect that. We only invite those that embrace the mission to join in this mission.
My heart goes out to Mike in Canada. It was my hope that the judicial battle that he won last year would have been upheld. The fight rages on.
I stand with you. I feel your pain. This is just the beginning.
All things are possible with Love.
As you have said…."Raw Milk is Love. It is the first food of life".
Mark
can they be stopped? it's possible but i don't see it as probable. by far the masses are clueless and the masses are dependant on the empire growing bigger and more powerful. the empire, from local gov't to the white house can and will do only things that increase their grip on power and control.
they will not do anything that actually serves the people in freedom and liberty. freedom and liberty are counter to their goals at this point. what to do? from my perspective i only have one choice. protect myself and my wife and family. sadly my family / friends mostly have opted to bury
their head in the sand and do nothing. my wife and i have however learned the truth first via food research and then into the maul of croney capitalism and the coup that has taken place in our federal gov't, who's goal is to force a global government/economy/currency. as america exported it's jobs/manufacturing base off shore it hollowed out the economy to a degree that now cannot be undone. living on a credit binge the last few decades most people didn't notice how bad it has become. that is changing as free credit for all has run it's course and the entire world now suffers a credit hangover.
there is more debt today then the next 100 years of production can absorb. this debt must collapse. our debt based economy has run it's course. there is no plan b. tptb will fight for the status quo to their own death.
america has been the thorn in the side of globalists since the beginning but that is now changed. once all this debt collapses and 99% of everyones retirement accounts are worthless what will people do?
we are in a massive population overshoot (thanks to 100 years of cheap oil) but cheap oil is over too. what will happen now? i don't know…
but….
having to protect myself has outlined a few drastic decisions wife and i had to make. we carry debt in our farms mortage. we need to add more debt to rehab the farm as it's been 20 years since it's been renovated and it's time to do it again (maybe up to a million dollars of debt, but at least 500k. we have a nice nest egg in equity in the farm. but as the economy winds down we risk an almost certain loss of everything we have built as debt pulls the future forward and the future looks bleak at best.
should we take the risk? we've decided no. with money so out of whack with reality our farm is worth enough for us to cash out with enough to go out and start over somewhere else. we recently sold it and have just bought a 5th wheel RV home –
http://www.drvsuites.com/photo-gallery?gallery_id=29
– and a new truck to pull it –
http://www.classychassistrucks.com/in_stock.htm –
and are hitting the road. our plan is to travel the country seeking out small farms and good foods.
so we are hoping to meet a lot of you all in the coming months/years.
we are shrugging. we are opting out to save ourselves and our own future financial security. we will be highly mobile and able to pick and choose what state we live in on a day by day basis. if things go south in america we can avoid most of the termoil. we'll be free to choose states that resist the police state mentality we'll be free to seek opportunity when and where it presents itself.
in time we're looking for a new farm to own but for now owning one with debt attached seems like a recipe for disaster. as banks fail from colapsing debt owners of that debt will be scrambling to call that debt from anyone who has any equity or value left to seize.
in a real world, with a sound currency our farm would be worth about what is was worth in 1964. that's the last time our currency was backed by gold/silver. not that i expect a gold/silver backed currency anytime soon. i don't. it's just reality. should credit freeze will the gov't nationalize craft food and kelloggs et el? how will gov'ts respond if supply chains shutdown?
will globalization suceed? i think the end of cheap oil is the end of globalization so no it won't. but that won't stop the myopic power elite from wasting a lot of human life and a lot of our last resources trying to force it.
population overshoot always ends the same way… population undershoot. and it doesn't take decades!
i think that if one takes the time to learn the truth of our situation globally one would see our personal solution as viable, flexible and even attractive.
what do you all think? will gold and silver coins preserve some/most of your buying power as fiat currency loses value? will the ability to move anywhere anytime on no notice be a benefit to avoiding most of the coming storm?
our decision has been made, we plan on driving away on jan 1 2012 and while we'll mourn the end of an era on the farm here we'll be headed out into a great opportunity. i encourage all of you to opt out and stop supporting the system as it is today.
as i see it we may have the opportunity to buy our own farm back in 5ish years for 100-150k (what it's really worth!)
good luck to all of you!
Day 24 Hospital
Sylvia, regardless of what you think of me or my belief that my son became ill from raw milk, it is not cool to degrade a hospital staff you have not had intimate experience with. We had fabulous care at this childrens hospital. As for morphine, Chris was on and off since September 9th, with continuous doses given when he was intubated and on the BiPap machine. E.coli 01157:H7 and HUS are painful! A doctor would not prescribe morphine and Ativan for the tape removal unless they were needed. You werent there to witness what he was like during these painful sessions. It was a source of his much of his PTSD. He truly believed his skin was being torn off with the tape.
As for all multiple people we dealt with on a daily basis for two months, mistakes are going to be made. It is a part of any persons story that has spent a considerable amount of time in a hospital. Unfortunately, doctors and nurses are not infallible. They are just like the rest of us human beings. Im sure you have made mistakes at work.
It would be an interesting count to calculate how many doctors (all categories and levels), nurses, respiratory therapists, physical therapists, and dialysis nurses, Chris had caring for him over a two month period of time in four different hospitals.
I pray for a world where doctors have complimentary training with full patient care tool boxes and doctors that do not get wet over pizza deliveries from sexy drug reps. Sickness care must change. At $7300 per person yearly in he USA it can not be sustained. Japan gets a five year-longer life span for $2300 per year.
How about a medical initiative to rebuild American children's immune systems…through nutrition. We can do it. Instead of medical insurance, participate in a medical savings account and buy raw milk as a required medical food. Wow…that is radical!!! Prevent illness and reduce the cost of insurance. The cost of your medical food is 100% deductable.
This is legal and smart.
If writing about your experience is therapy for you . . . great . . . . but . . . you will never change my mind about consuming raw milk and giving it to my children.
I have to comment on this though . . . . morphine to remove tape?!?! Ever heard of "Prep" wipes to dissolve the adhesive? I had little patches of tapes that covered my infant son's cheeks when he came home from the hospital and was on oxygen for nearly six months . . . those patches . . . . tapes . . . . held his cannula in place and had to be removed every few days for many months . . . I did this myself very, very, carefully with alcohol preps that dissolved the adhesive . . . . I never used morphine or any type of pain relief for my son . . . and he was just fine.
Your story gets a little flakey here . . . I think you had some very serious issues with your son's medical care . . .the incompetence on the part of the doctors and the nurses that I have been reading about is just unbelievable and I think they may have a huge part to play in just how sick your son was . . .
Kind regards,
Violet
Unless she really can't blame them because her memory of some of the little details have changed over the many retellings… not uncommon:
http://www.npr.org/2011/09/27/140816037/how-psychology-solved-a-wwii-shipwreck-mystery
I can skip over your posts with ease. I hope Chris has that luxury at some future point.
Hope you and your wife have a safe journey. Deciding where to live can be a huge dilemma. I have that problem now.
Goatmaid,
That's a good story. Police have problems obtaining correct facts, 5 witnesses will see the same thing and each story will vary to some degree. None are lieing, they are telling what they believe to be the truth.
In nursing school, I had an instructor talk about memory during crises and she said to encourage families and friends to keep notes of their stays, as they wouldn't recall most and that it would also allow them to be better informed and be able to ask informed questions. This was something I always encouraged.
The average Joe off the street is not medically trained and they don't know what to ask nor what to expect. Because of this lack of knowledge, they put all their faith in the medical system.
When my mom was being treated at kaiser hospital, we kept notes, I knew we wouldn't recall a lot of what was going on. She was terminal. The notes tell a story of both exceptionally good care and of extremely poor care. I can look at those notes and tell you verbatim what was said and done and by whom. There was no middle ground for her care from either of the hospitals she was at. One of us was always with her, much to the hospitals displeasure. You have to be an advocate for yourself and family members.
http://www.ecolilawyer.com/e-coli-o157h7/complications/hemolytic-uremic-syndrome/treatment/
The above article states, Antibiotics, especially intravenous cephalosporin, have been found to greatly increase the likelihood of the development of HUS (3). Antimotility drugs such as Imodium and Lomotil, anticholinergic agents such as Detrol and Ditropan, and opioid narcotics like morphine and oxycodone have all been found to increase the risk for HUS. Although different, all these drugs have effects that include relaxing the muscles of the colon or small intestine which increases water uptake, and results in firmer stools. They can also help relieve abdominal pains common in diarrheal illnesses. But this muscle relaxation allows E. coli and associated shiga toxin to remain in the bowels for a longer period of time which increases absorption of the toxin. A study by Bell et al. found that children treated with antimotility agents had approximately a 2 times greater risk for developing HUS.
Ken Conrad
Personally & because of being in the medical field & observing what truly happens, I resort to a more holistic, naturapathic practices (which I have studied for 20 yrs). I don't resort to conventional medicine unless it involves something that could not be properly handled (such as broken bones, etc) at home. Almost 2 yrs ago, I had an almost devastating medical emergency which could have cost me my life if I had not been doing the healthy habits & practices that I had been doing all these years. The medical staff could not believe that I survived it & if I hadn't worked hard at keeping myself extremely healthy, I am positive I would have died from it. Even through out my hospital course, I had to keep fighting the medical staff from doing and/or giving me something that I knew would compromise me. It is a shame that that has to be done, but so many things are just given to the patient without any thought if that is the best course, nor any thought of consequences that could come about. Yes, it has been tried to integrate alternative therapies & practices into the main stream conventional medicine, but the reality is that it is too little available & if it is available there is interference from the conventional practitioners who eventually over-ride the holistic practitioners. Sadly, our medical community has many major problems & issues that are way too big to overcome. So what is the answer to change this…well, it is going to take each & every person within this country to wake up, get involved, get educated, & to put into practice within their daily lives the necessary means to change their health & to strongly fortify their health if they want to see their medical issues go away, as well as, keep medical issues at bay.
My children were raised on fresh foods, the slow way & not on fast foods. Meat, poultry & even fish were used very sparingly, our meals were predominantly vegetarian (fresh, not frozen, nor canned). As busy as I was in my career, I still made everything from scratch, from ingredients that I knew were safe, sound & most importantly wholesome. There never was any junk food in my house…no sodas, no candy, no chips, no white sugar, nor white flour, no processed foods, nothing of that sort at all. Luckily my grown children are doing the same with their children. And this is the key, we need to educate our children on what truly keeps us healthy & then they pass it on to their children & so forth. Another key, is to protect & support the small farmer that provides us with the more wholesome products such as raw milk, clean produce, unadulterated products. etc. To watch farmers such as this gentleman in Canada being treated as a criminal (when the real criminals get only a 'slap' on the wrist)is appalling, inexcusible & in itself is a crime! It is a shame that we have to fight for the right to healthier foods!
Now that we know that what you say is true, what do we do about it?
Action is spoken about with great fanfare but where is true action???
Rally on October 6th at the LA county court house 0800 hours. The media will be there. Free raw milk to all that show up…
Three great forces rule the world: stupidity, fear and greed. Albert Einstein
We are all subject to the above forces be it to manipulate or be manipulated. Hence conspiracies despite our aversion to such an idea are continually at play in our lives. The answer to our affliction is knowledge, courage and charity. When on earth, Christ exemplified all three of the latter qualities. Forgive them Lord for the do not know what they are doing.
I think the following statement by Michael Lerner sums up well what many of us who participate on this bog believe and aspire to.
"This focus on money and power may do wonders in the marketplace, but it creates a tremendous crisis in our society. People who have spent all day learning how to sell themselves and to manipulate others are in no position to form lasting friendships or intimate relationships… Many Americans hunger for a different kind of society — one based on principles of caring, ethical and spiritual sensitivity, and communal solidarity. Their need for meaning is just as intense as their need for economic security."
Ken Conrad
Wish you well in your search for a new life. I hope you will post updates every now and then to let everyone here know how it's going.
Deborah Peterson,
I agree, the best personal health strategy is to avoid the conventional medical system as much as possible.
BlueDog,
The drugs prescribed for chronic conditions are the pharmaceutical industry's "sweet spot." In general business terms, they are known as "annuity products". Every business, whatever its industry, craves them.
David
Searching for the Unknown but Knowable……
Deborah, thank you for your description about communication. This is exactly what happens; everywhere in all hospitals. Five years ago, our HMO was not computerized. The childrens hospital was. This makes a huge difference in the ability for all involved to know what is going on. The old fashioned way of having a paper medical file passed from facility to facility or floor to floor is not user friendly for anyone in the medical profession.
I have nothing but the greatest respect for doctors and nurses working in hospitals. It is an extremely difficult job. In certain hospitals, they appear to be over worked and understaffed. Intern and resident doctors are worked to the bone and get little sleep. Then you throw into the mix that some are more competent at their jobs than others. Five years later I am not making excuses for anyone. The hospital system is what it is. When you spend a considerable amount of time in one, you learn how to survive it. If for some reason Chris ever had to spend time in a hospital again, I would never have the expectation that all would go well. A mistake somewhere somehow will be made. Id be a fool to think differently. That is why it is so important to be an advocate for your child in the hospital. All you can do is try to stay on top of everything so mistakes arent made.
As people read my entries, maybe some forget that Lauren was still in the hospital. She wasnt given intravenous antibiotics and still developed HUS on the same day that Chris did. Lauren fared better than Chris because she received dialysis two days before he did. This is why Chris was in more critical condition. Too much fluid had accumulated in his body. It wasnt from the morphine used for tape removal.
September 30, 2006
Day 24 Hospital
An amazing thing would happen over the course of 3 days. We would have the same day nurse, night nurse attending physician and nephrologist. All were our favorites to work with. This type of medical continuity doesnt happen. It was perfect timing that it did.
They were unable to do the MRI the previous day, so it was scheduled at 9:00 a.m. The results were good. The HUS did not go to his brain. His seizure was only a bump in the road.
Chris was having a terrible time with the ventilator. He was pissed! They couldnt get him sedated even with a high dose of Morphine. The day nurse was quite intuitive. She thought that if Chris hands were untied from the bedrail, he would be fine. She didnt think he needed a high dose of drugs. She talked to Chris and made a deal with him. They would untie his hands if he was good and didnt try to pull the NG tube out of his nose. She asked him to shake his head if he agreed to this deal. He shook his head yes. His hands were untied, and he calmed down. Until he was no longer intubated, I, Tony or my mother-in-law would rotate being on Chris watch to make sure his hands didnt wonder where they shouldnt.
It is astonishing how cognitively aware Chris was even though he was sedated. At times I would need to step away from the bed to discuss something with a doctor and Chris would know that I left his side. I would here the nurse telling him that she could see his hands moving upwards under the covers. There was one incident where we had to get stern and threaten to tie his hands to the bed if he didnt cooperate. Imagine having to discipline your child while hooked to a ventilator.
Chris vital signs were all looking good and his blood pressure was under control. The nephrologist was puzzled by Chris blood pressure. He felt there was also a psychological component to the high blood pressure issue. Stress was playing a role. He prescribed Ativan. He went on to tell me that what we had experienced over the past month was severely traumatizing. He was worried about all of us as a family. He was gently making me aware that all three of us would probably suffer from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Chris had a more severe case of HUS. He rated it a 6 on a scale of 1-10.
There were also concerns about Chris central line (infection) and his dialysis catheter. The temporary central line had been in for two weeks and the temporary dialysis catheter kept clogging during runs and dialysis nurses were quite frustrated. Even though Chris was urinating often, his BUN levels were still over 100. It didnt look like Chris was going to be done with dialysis anytime soon, so they decided to give Chris a permanent catheter called a quinton catheter. This required surgery which was scheduled for tomorrow.
These felt like endless days, Chris being intubated and waiting for all the tests and surgeries to be finished so that the ventilation madness could be over. The two nurses were amazing with him. I refer to the PICU nurses as angels. They are a special breed in nursing. It is definitely a calling to work with severely ill children.
I absolutely agree that we should do something about it, especially in every aspect of our lives. If I lived in CA, I would gladly participate in rallies, marches etc on raw milk. I would also buy your products too. As I reside on the east coast, I will be attending the Right2Know March, which demands GMO labeling. I have changed my own spending habits to reflect my beliefs. Pharmaceutical companies and Big Ag no longer receive my hard-earned money. Also, I do buy raw milk regularly.
Ken,
I agree its time for us to return to our local communities when it comes to food production, there's nothing wrong with making money, but the producer (and consumer) needs to have a sense of community spirit, and I think many farmers do have this.
That said, I can't follow your example of Jesus — I am a Jew, and I see it very different than you. I am angry about this situation in America. I am angry about the way they harmed me. NO ONE can forgive them for what they did to me except for me. Right now, I don't intend to do so. I believe their actions were deliberate, and the history proves that to be true. I am one of those people who almost got sucked into "buying for a lifetime, can't live without my big pharma pills." I wish that I could sue them for every penny they have. But even that can't bring back what I lost. Years of depression, and not having enough energy to do anything. So yah, I'm ANGRY! My bright spot is using holistic therapies, and I have regained a lot. But even Big Pharma is trying to attack my holistic therapies.
When women who took estrogen replacement therapy and ended up with breast cancer, they sued Wyeth. I watched an interview with one of the jurors on that case. He believed the plaintiffs were just angry about their fate and was looking for someone to blame –someone with deep pockets. Through the course of the trial, the juror did a 180 on his beliefs. It was proven that Wyeth KNEW about the harm caused to women, and they down-played it and dismissed it. I suspect in the near future we will see the same about bone drugs, statins and a whole host of regularly consumed Big Pharma products.
As for myself, I only use nutritional supplements. I will not walk into a doctors office when I see Big Pharma ads everywhere. I will not see a doctor who treats me like a child and dismisses my symptoms. I am thinking about chelation therapy. I'd be interested to know anyone's thoughts about it.
Here's some more "conspiracy theories" for y'all:
1) Did you noticed how quickly Michelle Bachmann fell after bringing up this woman who claimed the Gardasil vaccine made her child retarded? (note: this is not an endorsement of M. Bachmann — just an observation).
2) There is a supposed drug shortage right now. How can that be? They can charge the government anything they want for Medicare –even $1500 a pill if they so desired. If their having money problems where do they get money to do so many TV ads? The drug shortage is deliberate.
3) Our young girls are developing way earlier than they used to. Girls are starting their periods at ages of 10 years old. It is well known that the longer a girl is exposed to estrogen cycles the higher risk she has for breast cancer. It must be from those hormones in diary and meat products they consume, and the toxins in the environment. And why can you buy your 6 year old a thong at Abercombie and Fitch? Are these issues related? hmmm……
4) I read in CA there is a proposition for girls as young as 12 to get a Gardasil vaccine without parental consent. Why else would a 12 year old want a vaccine to prevent an STD? Does this fit into #3 somehow? Why is the world trying to sexualize girls? It's utterly disgusting.
5) Why is the pharmaceutical companies staging a take over of nutritional supplements? Is it because genetic sciences have proven chemicals don't cure the body of anything? If the supplement industry were smart about this, they'd launch an all-out attack on big pharma and expose every single bit of fraud there is. Big Pharma has shown a crack in its chemical veneer. They can't come up with new drugs. Time to go on the offensive!
Thanks y'all
You stated that, As for morphine, Chris was on and off since September 9th, with continuous doses given when he was intubated and on the BiPap machine.
The law firm I referenced suggested that, Although different, all these drugs including morphine, have effects that include relaxing the muscles of the colon or small intestine which increases water uptake, and results in firmer stools. How can you be sure that the water uptake from his bowel to the rest of his body as a result of the morphine did not contribute to his water retention issue?
As far as Laren developing Hus was she administered any of the antimotility agents mentioned by the above law firm who suggests, A study by Bell et al. found that children treated with antimotility agents had approximately a 2 times greater risk for developing HUS.
BlueDog
So was Jesus a Jew and I believe that what he professed parallels Michael Lerners belief and statement who was also a Jew. The fact of the matter is we are all human beings, equal in the eyes of God.
Ken Conrad
Sorry for the misprint at the top of the page. I use key points from letters that I have written before saving them on the computer.
Ken