Re: Healthy survivor effect -Reply

["Sandy Perle" <sandyfl@earthlink.net>]

> Why would you think that employees are a random sample?  If they are a random
> sample in all respects, then the careful selection process that most
> organizations use in hiring is useless and they might as well hire people by
> pulling names out of a hat. 

If the population is large enough, then the size can be considered random. The 
question then is, how large a population do you need to ensure that any 
sampling is accepted as random, and, normal tendency. In the above 
statement, you are making the assumption that just because a company hires 
certain individuals, that they have in fact, hired only healthy people. As far as I 
know, when most individuals are hired today, they do have a pre-physical, but it 
is generally of the nature where any serious illness will not be detected. In 
today;s selective market, individuals are hired due to expertise, and not their 
medical history.

I contend that if one looks at a population of workers in a specific company, be 
it a utility, DOE lab, software manufacturer, and the numbers of individuals are 
large enough, that there most likely will be a statistical correlation when 
compared to that of the general community in which they live.

> What we should be pointing out is that a person's life style and personal 
> habits (part of the reason for the effect) is far more important than 
> occupational exposuret o radiation.  That is the reason for the healthy worker 
> effect

I do not disagree with this.

> When someone expresses concern about radiation
> exposure, ask them how many people they have known who have died of it, 
> and then ask how many they have known who have died of automobile 
> accidents, lung cancer or alcohol abuse.  Of course the answer is always 
> lopsided in thedirection of these common risks rather than radiation 
> exposure.  

You have touched upon PERCEIVED risk from REAL risk. The real risk is very 
low, but the public perceives the risk to be very high. The solution is educating 
the masses of elementary school children, and waiting for a new generation to 
grow up. Of course you have to get by the SKEPTICAL science teachers, and 
that doesn't happen too often.  



------------------
Sandy Perle
Technical Director
ICN Dosimetry Division
Costa Mesa, CA 92626
Office: (800) 548-5100 x2306 
Fax:    (714) 668-3111
  
sandyfl@earthlink.net
sperle@icnpharm.com

ICN Dosimetry Website:
http://www.dosimetry.com

Personal Website:
http://www.geocities.com/CapeCanaveral/1205

"The object of opening the mind, as of opening 
the mouth, is to close it again on something solid"
              - G. K. Chesterton -

The opinions expressed are solely, absolutely, positively, definitely those of the author, and NOT my employer