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Last post Author Topic: If you had a medical implant would you rather it be closed or open source?  (Read 18731 times)

40hz

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So what happened to uncle Dave??

Well he was trying to jailbreak his pacemaker and bricked himself.

Great one!

Now that's funny! Sick. But still funny.  :Thmbsup: ;D ;D ;D

Recently seen bumper sticker:

It's only funny until somebody gets hurt. THEN IT BECOMES HYSTERICAL.

That was a fantastic illustration of exactly the kind of thing that could go wrong.

Excellent observation.

wraith808

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Back to the original post --- I firmly believe that software in medicine like that should be open source, GPL'd software.

So what happened to uncle Dave??

Well he was trying to jailbreak his pacemaker and bricked himself.

That's hilarious!  And an indication why I, against the grain, like the fact that software in critical positions is closed source.  That said, I'd like for that software to be independently reviewed.  I worked on the side for a pretty high-priced lawyer that dealt with software in escrow, and I think it could work similarly.  For those unfamiliar with what I refer to, he would represent non-IT based companies that were buying mission critical software.  They would place their source in escrow against them going out of business (or other breaches of contract).  That source would be unavailable to the big company as long as the little guy was in business, and abided by the terms of the purchase contract (i.e. support, etc).  That gave the larger company peace of mind, while giving the smaller company a chance to compete in larger areas that might be a bit leery of purchasing from a 1-10 man shop.  My part in this was to verify that the source was complete, compiled, and the result had the same functionality as what was being delivered.

That said, the last time I worked for him on something like that was in the late 90's-early 2000's, so I'm not sure how prevalent that practice still is.

Renegade

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Has anyone watched "The Third Letter" yet?

It's only about 10 minutes long. Very short. Please, do watch it. It is EXACTLY what this thread is about. It's a VERY worthwhile watch.

Slow Down Music - Where I commit thought crimes...

Freedom is the right to be wrong, not the right to do wrong. - John Diefenbaker

40hz

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Has anyone watched "The Third Letter" yet?

It's only about 10 minutes long. Very short. Please, do watch it. It is EXACTLY what this thread is about. It's a VERY worthwhile watch.



Is there anyplace where you can download or watch just The Third Letter without having to get the five the other shorts that are included in the Otherworlds #1 torrent?
 :)

Renegade

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Has anyone watched "The Third Letter" yet?

It's only about 10 minutes long. Very short. Please, do watch it. It is EXACTLY what this thread is about. It's a VERY worthwhile watch.



Is there anyplace where you can download or watch just The Third Letter without having to get the five the other shorts that are included in the Otherworlds #1 torrent?
 :)

I looked, but only saw a Youtube link...




My bad - it's 15 min. Still, pretty short and worth a watch.

Slow Down Music - Where I commit thought crimes...

Freedom is the right to be wrong, not the right to do wrong. - John Diefenbaker

Deozaan

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I watched it.

Renegade

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I watched it.

Did it not hit the nail on the head?


Slow Down Music - Where I commit thought crimes...

Freedom is the right to be wrong, not the right to do wrong. - John Diefenbaker

40hz

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I watched it.

Did it not hit the nail on the head?




Oh yeah. With a sledgehammer.

Showed it to my GF. She works for our state's social services department. She's directly involved with public medical, mental health, and elder-care programs. She said she's run into similar cases where somebody, through no fault of their own, was in danger of being allowed to "go down" for something totally beyond their best efforts to get corrected.

So far, she's always been able to get things straightened out for these people.

But she (being both sensible and kind-hearted) lives in dread of the day when some bit of bureaucratic idiocy or government red tape results in a case being sent to her - and ends with someone dying - because she was unable to help that person out.
 :(
« Last Edit: January 07, 2012, 12:45 PM by 40hz »

Stoic Joker

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I watched it.

Did it not hit the nail on the head?

Oh yeah. With a sledgehammer.

Showed it to my GF. She works for our state's social services department. She's directly involved with public medical, mental health, and elder-care programs. She said she's run into similar cases where somebody, through no fault of their own, was in danger of being allowed to "go down" for something totally beyond their best efforts to get corrected.

So far, she's always been able to get things straightened out for these people.

But she (being both sensible and kind-hearted) lives in dread of the day when some bit of bureaucratic idiocy or government red tape results in a case being sent to her - and ends with someone dying - because she was unable to help that person out.
 :(

My wife works for a doctor, and has had to go to bat for patients on many occasions because the insurance company/MediCare didn't want to shell-out for a necessary procedure.

Honestly, I think that the futuristic, techy angle only serves to soften the fact that the problem already very much exists today. If it isn't "Cost Effective" for you to live, due to perceived age, health, or "quality" concerns ... Accounting will decided if it's time for you to die.

40hz

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If it isn't "Cost Effective" for you to live, due to perceived age, health, or "quality" concerns ... Accounting will decided if it's time for you to die.

Bingo! Ask any patient over 70 how much treatment gets suggested once a doctor learns your age.

Happened to my mother at a walk-in clinic over the holiday. She felt very tired and was having a little difficulty breathing. The doctors at the walk-in didn't offer to do much at all for her until they discovered (from the billing person who walked in on my Mom's examination) that my father had sacrificed big time to make sure she would have excellent medical coverage when she got older.

Once the clinic saw she was privately insured (and covered to the nines) they pulled out all the stops: EKG, chest X-rays, blood tests, actually started listening to what she was saying...you know the drill.

Before that, they figured she was just another nice little fuzzy-headed 84-year old lady on basic Medicare and the "D" prescription plan. Since little she needed would have been covered under those, they were planning to send her home with instructions to "get plenty of rest and take some aspirin and an over-the-counter cough remedy with an expectorant" for her symptoms.

Didn't these doctors take an oath when they got their licenses?

Pretty sickening.  And a pretty common occurrence too, I've been told. >:(

Turned out my mother was in the early stages of a rather nasty pneumonia infection. If it went untreated another few days, she probably would have ended up hospitalized according to her regular doctor when she finally got in to see him the following week. As it was, it took two prescription tries before the correct antibiotic (Biaxin) was identified for the strain of infection she had.

Good thing she was covered. Many people who aren't, aren't quite so lucky.



« Last Edit: January 08, 2012, 03:24 PM by 40hz »