Re: NRC PROPOSES $6,000 FINE AGAINST ST. JOSEPH MERCY HOSPITALINMICHIGAN FOR OVEREXPOSURE TO A MEMBER OF THE PUBLIC

["Richard L. Hess" <lists@richardhess.com>]

At 10:01 PM 5/15/2003 -0600, Vincent King wrote:

>I don't disagree with this and other similar sentiments.

>

>Let me ask a devil's advocate question:  what happens when ten or fifteen

>years down the road, one out of every dozen of the  family members comes

>back with a multi-million dollar lawsuit against the hospital for causing

>the cancer THEY have now developed.  Naturally, the hospital will say "We

>informed you of the risks" and the family member will say "You didn't tell

>me EVERYTHING!" and "You violated rules that were supposed to protect me"

>(of course, by then, their own insistance that they be allowed to stay near

>their loved one will be long forgotten) and they will most likely will win

>the lawsuit or settlement.

>

>How is this addressed?



The same way the fact that a good friend's sister died of a rare and 

difficult brain tumor -- Oligodendroglioma. She and her sister were 

downwind of the Windscale Disaster in the UK in the 1950s. They were 10 or 

under at the time. They enjoyed playing outside. Both have thyroid 

problems. The younger one died.



So we can't prove anything. It's all statistics. No direct cause and effect.



Cancer is prevalent in our society. You take your chances. I just went for 

the consultation prior to an upcoming colonoscopy. Joy.



Richard





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