The IRE Resource Center is a major research library containing more than 23,250 investigative stories — both print and broadcast. These stories are searchable online or by contacting the Resource Center directly (573-882-3364 or rescntr@ire.org) where a researcher can help you pinpoint what you need. Browse or search the tipsheet section of our library below. Stories are not available for download but can be easily ordered by contacting the Resource Center:
Search results for "health department" ...
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Hospital at Risk
My investigation of the Minnesota Security Hospital, a state-run facility that provides psychiatric treatment to nearly 400 adults deemed "mentally ill and dangerous," uncovered high rates of violence and injuries of employees and patients at the facility, a critical shortage of psychiatrists, and widespread confusion among employees about what to do when a patient becomes violent. I found that much of confusion was the result of the abrasive, threatening management style of head administrator David Proffitt, who was hired in 2011 to reform the facility. I began investigating Proffitt and found he was hired without a basic background check. I uncovered many troubling details from Proffitt's past, including domestic violence, a PhD from a now-defunct online degree mill, a forced resignation from his previous job as the administrator of a private psychiatric hospital in Maine, and other failings. The state ordered Proffitt to resign and the Minnesota legislative auditor began an audit of the department's hiring practices. The assistant commissioner of the Department of Human Services who led the hiring search also resigned. The governor proposed $40 million in renovations to address safety concerns. Regulators from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration visited the facility for the first time in 21 years. The facility also implemented new training for employees to reduce violence. My investigation of the facility continues.
Tags: Psychiatrists; domestic violence; injuries
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C-HIT: Toxic Laundry Emissions
Industrial laundries in New England have recently come under intense scrutiny by the EPA, ever since the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) found that volatile organic compounds (VOC’s) were being released at a facility in Waterbury, CT. According to Steve Rapp, Chief of the Air Technical Unit, EPA Region 1, the problem is widespread and significant. “The industrial laundries are grossly under-reporting their VOCs,” said Rapp. “It’s a total sleeper.” The problem stems from the process of laundering shop towels, which are often contaminated with toxic solvents. When improperly cleaned, the solvents are vaporized and emitted to the surrounding air. This article investigated this little-known source of air pollution, shedding light on the industry’s practices and its impact on air quality and public health.
Tags: Volatile organic compunds; VOC's; DEEP; air quality; public health
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Sand mining surges in Wisconsin
Exploring how mining firms in the state of Wisconsin inject sand under the Earth's surface to release oil and natural gas, and the health implications of the residual dust that is released in the air as the sand comes up.
Tags: wisconsin; sand; hydrofracturing; natural gas; oil; health; concerns; implication; Department of Natural Resources
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Champaign Pest Inspection
The Champaign-Urbana Public Health District conducts about 1,300 inspections of restaurants and other food-service facilities next year. But, unlike many other health departments in the area and across the U.S., the district does nothing to publicize the results of these inspections.
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Bad Medicine
"This series details the history of a Kansas City area neurosurgeon who has a long history of malpractice cases involving paralysis, disfigurement and deaths yet maintains a spotless Kansas medical license."
Tags: FOI; malpractice; Department of Health and Human Services
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Drugging Delinquents
The investigation found that Florida was restraining jailed children with heavy doses of potent anti-psychotic drugs, medications that can turn troublemakers into "zombies" and cause serious health problems in kids.
Tags: juvenile; prisons; jailed children; Department of Juvenile Justice
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Rising Violence in California Psychiatric Hospitals
The series of reports verified the claims by staffers at California's psychiatric hospitals that violence had been increasing in recent years. The stories traced the possible reasons for the escalating violence and followed the development of this controversy over the course of the year.
Tags: hospitals; psychiatric; Department of Mental Health; mentally ill; radio
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Flawed State Reporting Laws Leaves Consumers Vulnerable
The article explores the impact of America's fragmented outbreak response system, in which no states have the same foodborne illness reporting requirement.
Tags: foodborne illness; salmonella; health department; outbreak
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"Physicians on Pharma's Payroll: Educators or Marketers?"
This story focuses on doctors as industry speakers and their relationship with pharmaceutical companies. The pharmaceutical companies claim to choose speakers based on expertise, but further investigation shows that many of the hired physicians have "serious transgressions on their state records." They also tend to be "high prescribers" of the company's products.
Tags: pharmacy; prescriptions; Geodon; Pfizer; antipsychotic drugs; pharmaceutical companies; Department of Health; New York; Food and Drug Administration
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Joint Investigationby Oklahoman and Tulsa World
Reports from the Oklahoma Health Department found more than 830 violations at the residential group homes for the mentally ill and elderly. The reports showed residents were found covered in feces, stolen from, or sleeping on dirty mattresses.
Tags: mentally ill; mentally disabled; oversight; elderly; group home