Florida gets first LEED-certified acute care building

LUTZ, FL — St. Joseph's Hospital-North, incorporated with evidence-based and eco-friendly design features, has achieved Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED)-certification, becoming the first acute care hospital in Florida to do so, according to the World Interior Design Network.

The $225 million facility has been designed based on environmentally sustainable philosophy featuring ample landscape of open space, providing habitat for wildlife and natural views for patients, the article noted.

The environmentally-friendly building is made of materials that support energy conservation and clean air with low chemical emissions and recycled content; it is designed and developed to meet key categories to achieve green building certification, the article stated.

According to the article, some of the energy saving strategies include: Individual controls for lighting and heating to promote productivity, comfort and well-being of building occupants; high-efficiency systems to lessen energy consumption; and usage of 12 percent less energy than a standard building.

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Maintenance man escaped Metrodome collapse on forklift

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MINNEAPOLIS, MN — It was one of the most-viewed videos of the weekend: Fox Sports' exclusive footage of the collapse of the Metrodome from inside, according to City Pages.

Producers suspected the Dome was going to give-way and wisely left their cameras running overnight, which is how they captured the 5 a.m. collapse, the article noted.

According to the article, one question remained unanswered — who or what was the shadowy creature on the far sideline who just barely escaped the deluge with his life?

Some suggested it looked like a dog, a horse or a ghost, while some jokingly suggested it was Brett Favre or Zygi Wilf running away from the hole with scissors, the article stated.

"It is one of our maintenance men who was emptying large buckets," said Metropolitan Sports Facilities Commission Director Bill Lester.

The maintenance man, who wishes to remain anonymous, wasn't even supposed to be on-duty at the time of the collapse, but was helping out, the article added.

Most Americans consider showing up to work when sick

PARSIPPANY, NJ — It's going to take more than a cold or a flu to get between most Americans and their jobs this cold and flu season, according to a press release.

A national telephone survey conducted by HALLS^®, America's number one selling cough drop, found that most working Americans won't sacrifice a sick day this year for most cold and flu symptoms, including a cough, sore throat, body aches and sinus headache, the release noted.

Nearly half of Americans, 44 percent, would consider going to work with a fever, while about a third of Americans, 32 percent, said they would show up to work no matter how sick they get this season, the release stated.

According to the release, the results aren't all that surprising based on the country's current economic conditions: With an unemployment rate upwards of nine percent this October, according to the latest from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the survey revealed that one in five Americans, 19 percent, feel pressure by their boss or supervisor to head into work when they're sick.

"While HALLS doesn't condone anyone going to work when they're sick, it's clear that many Americans plan to defy the advice of most experts and try to fight through this cold and flu season at work," said Sebastian Genesio, marketing director at HALLS.

"Since we know that the economic climate has made an impact on the workplace, we conducted the survey to specifically see how Americans are affected by common cold and flu symptoms when it comes to work, and to identify any concerns they have about taking time off when they're sick," Genesio added.

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Housekeeper finds body parts

LOS ANGELES — What was a typical day for a housekeeper in a Los Angeles hotel turned into a real life nightmare, according to USA Today.

During a routine cleaning of a room at the Continental Hotel in Los Angeles, a housekeeper picked up a backpack left behind in a guest room and found body parts, the article stated.

The Los Angeles Times reported that the body of 49-year-old Herbert White was found on November 29 and was "cut up into five different parts — basically his limbs were removed," the article noted.

According to the article, a Pennsylvania couple has been charged with heinous crime and the Los Angeles district attorney issued a warrant for the couple's arrest, charging them with capital murder involving torture.

Additional body parts were found wrapped in blankets underneath the bed, and a knife was found in the hotel room, the article added.

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Superbugs hit crowded Ottawa hospital

OTTAWA — The Ottawa Hospital is blaming overcrowding for an outbreak of antibiotic-resistant "superbug" bacteria at its Civic and General campuses, according to CBC News.

Both campuses of the hospital are fighting outbreaks of vancomycin-resistant Enterococci (VRE), while the Civic campus's intensive-care unit has six patients who've been isolated with Clostridium difficile (C. diff), which causes severe vomiting and diarrhea, the article stated.

An outbreak of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) has also hit a section of the Civic campus, the article noted.

Dr. Kathy Suh, director for infectious diseases at the hospital, said hospitals often have to deal with these germs each year, but said the incidents of VRE this year are particularly high.

"We try to identify patients who have these early, admit them to private rooms where possible, and then for staff we require they wear special protective equipment before they go in to care for these patients," said Suh.

According to the article, the hospital has increased cleaning and housekeeping of patient rooms and equipment and is reminding all visitors and staff to wash hands frequently and use alcohol-based hand rubs to stop infection.

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Children's Hospital of Alabama going LEED

BIRMINGHAM, AL — The Children's Hospital of Alabama is on its way to becoming the first Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certified hospital in Alabama, thanks to an arrangement with Johnson Controls, according to Buildings.

Johnson Controls worked with the hospital to develop and maintain a central energy plant, the article noted.

The 740,000-square-foot expansion and energy plant should save the hospital 10 percent to 12 percent in projected life cycle cost, the article stated.

"We considered building the utility plant ourselves, but did not want to direct capital dollars towards an additional construction project on top of our ongoing expansion," says Mike McDevitt, executive vice president of the Children's Hospital.

"We realized that instead of becoming our own utility provider, we should look at heating and cooling service as a commodity, and purchase it from an efficient energy provider," McDevitt added.

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Shigellosis cases on the rise in child care facilities

WILMINGTON, NC — The number of Shigellosis cases in New Hanover County are on the rise, according to WECT-TV.

The health department stresses the importance of good hand washing practices to prevent the spread of the illness, the article noted.

According to the article, Shigellosis is a diarrheal illness caused by a group of bacteria called Shigella and is usually transmitted when an infected person fails to properly wash their hands after using the restroom.

Symptoms include diarrhea, fever, cramping, nausea and vomiting: Children and providers can quickly spread the infection to parents, siblings or other children, the article stated.

Daycare facilities are responsible for excluding any child from care that has diarrhea and refer them to their medical care provider for evaluation, the article added.

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Former janitor accused in $340,000 stock scam

CLEVELAND — A former custodian with stem cell developer Athersys has been accused by federal prosecutors of running a stock scam that bilked would-be investors out of $340,000 over six years, according to MedCity News.

Ronald Olear, 57, in some cases stole stock certificates to aid in his scheme, which involved selling bogus shares of stock to about 30 investors, the article stated.

The plot ran from 2003 to 2009, the year in which Olear was fired from his Athersys job, the article noted.

According to the article, Olear allegedly used the proceeds to help build a $600,000 house.

Athersys fired Olear shortly after learning of the allegations and said the ex-custodian's actions have had no impact on the company or its operations, the article added.

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Students lead the way in creating a sustainable college community

EASTON, PA — Every day is Earth Day at Lafayette College, as a growing number of students are taking an active role in making the campus a greener place to live and learn, according to a press release.

Through student-faculty research and projects and involvement in numerous campus organizations, students have been the drivers behind many efforts that helped the college climb from a grade of D- to B in the national Sustainable Endowments Institute's annual Green Report Card, the article stated.

"Students have stepped up to move the college forward with regard to working toward a sustainable community," said Arthur Kney, associate professor and head of civil and environmental engineering.

"It has been a united effort among faculty, staff and administration with the students acting as the thread that has brought us all together," Kney added.

George Xiques, assistant director of facilities planning and construction and campus sustainability manager, says it's critical that students are realistic in their environmental ideas, working with the administration to bring about change in a practical way, the article noted.

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