June 2005

The latest statistics on the dangers of medical care

by Dr. David Singer

Do you ever get frustrated in practice? Are you fed up with insurance battles and staff problems? Do all the restrictions placed on you by the state, the county, the city and your landlord or neighbors or even your own family ever stick in your craw?

Honestly, if you don't get frustrated in practice, you probably don't have a pulse. I advise my clients on how to build a practice, how to attract new patients and educate and manage them once they're in the door. Advising them on how to survive the frustration is an entirely different type of activity. But here's how I do it.

The Singer Reports

Sometimes it takes seeing just how bad Western health care can be to remind a person of his or her purpose as a chiropractor. The Singer Health Reports keep this void well filled. We issue a pack of 12 reports every month specifically designed to fire up clients about the necessity of providing safe, drugless health care.

Take a look at this data, featured in a recent report.

"Medicine Found to be the Number One Cause of Death in the United States."

This report quotes a study by Dr. Gary Null and his staff titled, "Death By Medicine." This study notes: "The report showed the number of deaths and associated costs for a number of medically induced (iatrogenic) conditions. The results were as follows:

"Hospital Adverse Drug Reactions ‑‑ 106,000 deaths and costing $12 billion

"Medical Errors ‑‑ 98,000 deaths and costing $2 billion

"Bedsores ‑‑ 115,000 deaths and costing $55 billion

"Infection ‑‑ 88,000 deaths and costing $5 billion

"Malnutrition ‑‑ 108,000 deaths

"Outpatient Adverse Drug Reactions ‑‑ 199,000 deaths and costing $77 billion

"Unnecessary Procedures ‑‑ 37,136 deaths and costing $122 billion

"Surgery‑Related ‑‑ 32,000 deaths and costing $9 billion

"Using these figures, the total number of iatrogenic deaths each year in the United States hits 783,936 at a cost of $282 billion. This number of deaths exceeds the 2001 heart disease annual death rate of 699,697 and the annual cancer death rate of 553,251." This study can be found at http://www.garynull.com/Article.aspx?Article=/Library.aspx&Head=Library.

Here's some more information from other reports.

"When a person has an angiograph to determine the extent of heart disease, they have received a far greater dose of radiation than they realize. In the course of an angiographic procedure, the minimum dosage of radiation received by the patient ranges between 460 ‑ 1,580 mrem*. The minimum radiation dosage from a chest x‑ray is only 2 mrem." Now, THAT is a powerful inducement to keep oneself free of heart disease.

Here's another tidbit: "Researcher Dr. Joan Fallon studied the case histories of 200 children screened for autism and determined that once illness, trauma and genetic defects were taken out of the results, one of the most outstanding common denominators among the remaining children was that a large percentage had suffered from frequent ear infections.

"She noted that a common prescription for otitis media is the antibiotic Augmentin which is created by combining amoxicillin and fermented clavulanate potassium. The fermentation process involves large amounts of urea/ammonia. Ingested ammonia can potentially injure the intestines of small children as well as brain and nerve tissue. Even a small residue of urea/ammonia can potentially induce a substantial brain inflammation or abnormality.

"In 1999, the State of California reported a 273% increase in autism cases between 1987 and 1998. Dr. Fallon notes that the 'everyday use of (clavanic acid and amoxycillin) began around 1989.'" That's a sobering thought.

With every new patient you bring into your practice, you may be saving him or her from future drug side effects or interactions, erroneous or ineffective surgery, extended hospital stays, even from death. For many, that thought is enough to stave off ideas of very early retirement when the frustrations build.

(Dr. David Singer is president of Prescott Singer Group, a new company formed by the merger of two successful chiropractic practice management firms, David Singer Enterprises and The Prescott Group. Prescott Singer Group is still offering a series of seminars around the country to teach chiropractors how to expand their practices, and a broad array of products. To receive "The Purpose Fax Newsletter," Dr. Singer's free fax info letter containing practice‑building tips and health research, call 800‑326‑1797, ext. 227. Leave your name, address, phone number and fax number and you will be sent a form that authorizes Prescott Singer Group to fax you a copy approximately every six weeks. Note: you must have a dedicated fax line, as this fax newsletter is sent automatically via computer. You may access the website at the usual address: www.davidsingerenterprises.com.)