“all I wanted was death,” Thao says.
“For so many years I’d been the one
who took into my arms the mothers
whose children had been taken from
them. Now I was the one who took a
child from its mother.”
Thao got back on her feet, in part
after Denham offered her a position at
TMIT. She now speaks at health care
safety conferences, sharing her story
and emphasizing that health care pro-
viders are human and will, under a va-
riety of circumstances, make mistakes.
“We’re not here to denigrate health
care workers,” says Quaid. “They’ve
dedicated their lives to treating human
suffering—and they’re overworked.”
“We are treating sicker and sicker
patients, faster and faster, with more
complex treatments requiring more
specialization, which fragments the
care even more,” says Denham. “And
we’re cutting corners due to cost con-
tainment. We don’t have bad people.
We have bad systems.”
Quaid and Denham are now calling
on hospitals to invest in a set of 34 prac-
tices ( called the National Quality Forum
Safe Practices for Better Healthcare)—
everything from simple checklists to
computerized infection control. “Our
community-hospital boardrooms de-
cide where the money is spent and
whether it goes to patient safety,” says
Denham. Quaid and Denham also be-
lieve an oversight agency similar to the
National Transportation Safety Board
(NTSB) should be established to moni-
tor and investigate medical accidents,
and that reimbursements for care be
tied to providers’ safety records.
“There’s a reason that flying on a
commercial airliner today is safer than
walking,” Quaid explains. “It’s because
when an accident happens, the NTSB
makes a determination about what
happened. Airline executives know
they need to solve the problem quickly,
whether it’s a change in design or a new
piece of technology, or people aren’t
going to fly their airline.”
priority, as the jungle gym, the tricycles,
the toys, and the playhouse in the yard
of their home suggest. In the twins’
honor, Quaid will continue to speak out
about medical errors. “And Kimberly
is just as much a part of that,” he says.
“I go out and give speeches, and she
holds down the fort.” When T. Boone
and Z.G. are older, the couple will tell
them what they went through. “This
is their legacy,” Quaid says. “They’re
really tough, and they should be proud.
Because of what happened to them,
they already have saved lives.” ;
Solutions to Puzzles on page 79
WORD PYRAMID: a, ma, ram, mare, armed,
remade, creamed, Medicare.
TINKER-TERMS: (well-known words:) beeper,
beets, berets, beset, épées, esteem, ester,
meets, merest, meter, metes, peeper, pester,
peter (out), reset, retest, semester, steeper,
steepest, steer, teepee, temper, tempest,
tester, testes; (lesser-known words:) beseem,
emeer, rebet, stets, terete, tsetse (fly).
ROC SOLE DDE
DEFROS TED T I EA
D I SMOUN TED ASPS
I C I ES T ORY OPRY
MEN SE T I SLE
DERANGED ASA
UDDER PULLS YSL
RE I N REBUS FEEL
AL S LOU I E DADD Y
L I B DEPAR TED
GABS SHA RBL
THRU ATE EDSELS
I TRY DECOMPOSED
TEES DECREASED
ODD SMEE NOW
Photo Credits
What’s New Page 14: Suitcase: Stockbyte/Getty Images; Kelly Osbourne:
Charley Gallay/Getty Images for Vanity Fair; Kelis: Jason Merritt/Getty Im-
ages; Lilly Scott: Michael Becker/FOX/Picture Group/via AP Images; Lady
GaGa: Colin Stark/Getty Images; Kate Moss: Dominique Charriau/Getty
Images; Pink: Frazer Harrison/Getty Images; Jay Manuel: Jamie McCarthy/
Getty Images for Operation Smile; Tavi Gevinson: Astrid Stawiarz/Getty
Images; Balloons: Jeffery Coolidge/Getty Images. Page 15: Elliott Gould
and Linda Gray: Courtesy of The Gifts of Christmas; Road Signs: Think-
stock/Getty Images; Bus and Charles Kuralt: CBS/Landov; Mavis Staples:
Anthony Pidgeon/Retna Ltd.; Alfred E. Neuman: Photofest; Al Jaffe book
cover and fold-in: Mark Lund Homeroom. Big 5-0h Page 92: Hugh Grant:
Dave Hogan/Getty Images; Colin Firth: Jason LaVeriz/Getty Images; Fred
Flintstone: ABC Photo Archives/ABC via Getty Images; Damon Wayans:
Jim Spellman/Getty Images; Joan Lunden: Elevation Photos/Photoshot/
Newscom; Bill Murray: Jesse Knish/Getty Images; Raquel Welch: Neilson
Barnard/Getty Images.
AARP.org’s Gadget Giveaway
See page 6: Enter online now at aarp.org/techsweeps for a chance
to win an iPad. The prize is the 32GB, Wi-Fi version; 3G data plan sold
separately, and not provided as part of this prize. No purchase necessary
to enter or win. Open to residents of the United States and Washington,
D.C., who are over age 45. Entry period ends September 25, 2010. Void
where prohibited. Approximate retail value of the prize is $599, excluding
tax. To enter and for more details and official rules, please visit aarp.
org/techsweeps.
Mayberry Days Sweepstakes
See page 10: Enter online now at aarp.org/mayberrysweeps for a
chance to win a two-night trip plus tickets to the 21st Annual Mayberry
Days. No purchase necessary to enter or win. Open to residents of the
United States and Washington, D.C., who are over age 45. Entry period
ends September 8, 2010. The prize includes tickets on September 24 and
25, 2010, to several Mayberry Days events celebrating the 50th anniver-
sary of The Andy Griffith Show, airfare for the winner and a guest, two
nights/one-room hotel costs, and $250 to ward food and incidentals.
Travel shall occur between September 24–26, 2010. Void where prohibit-
ed. Approximate retail value of the prize is $3,000. To enter and for more
details and official rules, please visit aarp.org/mayberrysweeps.
T. BOONE AND Z.G. are nearly 3 now
and show no signs of lasting damage
from the overdose. After nearly losing
them, their parents make family time a
