Pittsburgh’s Freedom House Ambulance Service: The Origins of Emergency Medical Services and the Politics of Race and Health

This manuscript explores the history of the Freedom House Enterprises Ambulance Service, a social and medical experiment that trained “unemployable” black citizens during the late 1960s and early 1970s to provide then state of the art prehospital care. Through archives, newspapers, personal correspondence, university memoranda, and the medical literature, this paper explores the comparable, yet different roles of the program’s two leaders, Drs. Peter Safar and Nancy Caroline. Despite its success in demonstrating national standards for paramedic training and equipment, the program ended abruptly in 1975. And though Pittsburgh’s city administration cited economic constraints for its fledgling support of Freedom House, black and majority newspapers and citizens alike understood the city’s diminishing support of the program in racial terms. The paper discusses Safar and Caroline’s well-intentioned efforts in developing this novel program, while confronting the racial, social, and structural constraints on the program and the limits of racial liberalism.

Experts & Confidentiality – Pettus v. Cole – Cal Ct. Appeal 1996

In California Psychiatric Experts Are Under the Same Privilege/Confidentiality Obligations  as are Treating Psychiatrists California Appellate Decision Regarding Privilege/Confidentiality Duties of Non-Treating, Psychiatric Experts: see PETTUS V. COLE, 57 Cal.Rptr.2d 46 (1996) Court of Appeal, First District, Division 2, California from the Headnotes: “Two psychiatrists violated the Confidentiality of Medical Information Act(Civ. Code, S 56 […]

Sexual Relationships with Patients

Maxwell J. Mehlman, J.D. Sexual relationships with patients are problematic, not only because they may be unethical and may compromise patient care, but because they may lead to civil actions for damages, criminal actions, and disciplinary proceedings by state medical boards.(1) While concern focused originally on relationships between patients and psychiatrists, it is now generally […]

Sexual Relationships with Patients

Maxwell J. Mehlman, J.D. Sexual relationships with patients are problematic, not only because they may be unethical and may compromise patient care, but because they may lead to civil actions for damages, criminal actions, and disciplinary proceedings by state medical boards.(1) While concern focused originally on relationships between patients and psychiatrists, it is now generally […]

A Paradox About Duty to Refer

from Cyberounds: Health Law and Bioethics Maxwell J. Mehlman, J.D. Educational Objectives Upon completion of this Cyberounds(R), the participant should be able to: * Discuss the paradox of the duty to refer * Discuss how this paradox can confuse judges in malpractice cases * Describe the correct rule of liability in failure-to-refer cases. Given all […]