THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 2007
NEWS
5A
RECORDS (CONTINUED FROM 1A)
Prothe declined to comment further.
Bretz said University employees needed to be trained better to create a more unified system for handling confidential information. The University's "information management initiative" is the solution for unifying the system, Bretz said.
In July, a Kansas reporter recovered private information from Wesco Hall. The materials were taken from a portion of Wesco Hall that was under construction, The documents found included KUID numbers, course evaluations and grades.
"People have forgotten about paper," Bretz said. "It's not just digital; it's paper and how they're connected. This is a wake-up call."
Todd Davis, CEO of Life Lock, an identity theft prevention agency, said a Social Security number could allow an identity thief to find out more information about a person such as a phone number or address. With that information in addition to a Social Security number, Davis said, a thief could pose as someone else and apply for loans or credit cards.
One of the forms in the envelope received Tuesday included one person's credit card number, Social Security number, phone number and address on the same page. Davis said that was particularly dangerous.
"You could do something immediately," Davis said. "You could turn that into money within minutes."
Todd Cohen, director of University Relations, said there was no indication that this latest development was a widespread issue. He said it should not be connected to the issue in July.
"They're totally different by nature." Cohen said.
The two envelopes received by the
Kansan contained identical information and identical cover letters. The return address listed on the envelopes delivered to the Kansan was 645 New Hampshire St, the mailing address for the Lawrence Journal-World. The envelopes delivered to the Journal-World had the return address for the Kansan. The Kansas City Star was unable to comment on its envelopes' return addresses.
The Kansan made copies of all of
the documents for use in this story. The original contents were returned to Bretz and Cohen Wednesday afternoon. All of the documents remained secured from the time they were received until they were returned. The copies also remain secure. None of the information will be shared. The copies will be returned to the University once the story is completed.
Edited by Rachel Bock
>> ARMED FORCES
Doctors test troops, diagnose brain injury data
ASSOCIATED PRESS
FORT CAMPBELL, Ky. — Before leaving Iraq, thousands of troops with the 101st Airborne Division lined up at laptop computers to take a test: basic math, identifying numbers and symbols, and identifying patterns. They pressed a button quickly to measure response time.
It was all part of a fledgling Army program that records how soldiers' brains work when healthy, giving doctors baseline data to help diagnose and treat the soldiers if they suffer a traumatic brain injury — the signature injury of the Iraq war.
"This allows the Army to be much more proactive," Lt. Col. Mark McGrail, division surgeon for the 101st, said. "We don't want to wait until the soldier is getting out of the Army to say, 'But I've had these symptoms.'"
The mandatory brain-function tests were starting with the 101st at Fort Campbell and are expected to spread to other military bases in the next couple of months. Commanders at each base decide whether to adopt the program.
The tests provide a standard, objective measurement for each soldier's reaction time, their short-term memory and other cognitive skills. That data would be used when the soldiers come home to identify mild brain trauma that could often go unnoticed and untreated.
Dr. Robert Schlegel, University of Oklahoma researcher, said about 7,500 Fort Camp soldiers completed the 10-minute exams.
Brain injuries caused by explosions became some of the most common combat wounds suffered in Iraq. According to the Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center, 30 percent of soldiers taken to Walter Reed Army Medical Center since 2003 suffered traumatic brain injuries.
The brain-injury center, which has seven facilities around the country, saw 2.669 patients between 2003 and 2007. But doctors believe many less obvious brain-injury cases went undetected.
Most brain injuries were mild, and soldiers could recover with rest and time away from the battlefield. But the military estimated that one-fifth of the troops with these mild injuries would have prolonged or lifelong symptoms requiring continuing care.
So little is known about traumatic brain injuries that these baseline readings could become an important cornerstone for future study.
Sandy Schneider, director of Vanderbilt University's brain injury rehabilitation program, said that while it was too early to tell how effective the tests might be at helping diagnose and treat brain injuries, the data could be extremely helpful for researchers.
"We're finding out so much more about this injury because of this war, unfortunately," Schneider said.
The 101st was the first unit to use them on a large scale for every soldier preparing to deploy.
Staff Sgt. Miguel Miranda of the 101st Airborne Division concentrates on a cognitive skills test in preparation for deployment to Iraq in Fort Campbell, Ky., Sept. 7. The test records how soldiers' brains work when healthy, giving doctors data to help diagnose and treat them if they come back with a traumatic brain injury.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
NATION
Woman denied extended exam break to pump breast milk
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Sophie Currier holds her daughter, Lea, while sitting in their Brookline, Mass., living room Sept. 11. A judge ruled Wednesday that Currier cannot have extra break time during her nine-hour medical licensing exam to pump breast milk to feed her 4-month-old daughter.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
BOSTON — A judge rejected a Harvard student's request Wednesday for extra break time during her nine-hour medical licensing exam so she could pump breast milk for her infant daughter.
Sophie Currier, 33, sued after the National Board of Medical Examiners turned down her request to take more than the standard 45 minutes in breaks during the exam. She said that if she does not nurse
Norfolk Superior Court Judge Patrick Brady said Currier has other options, beyond asking the board to change its rules for her.
her 4-month-old daughter, Lea, or pump breast milk every two to three hours, she risks medical complications.
"The plaintiff may take the test and pass, notwithstanding what she considers to be unfavorable conditions. The plaintiff may delay the test, which is offered numerous times during the year,
Currier, of Brookline, Mass., has finished a joint M.D.-Ph.D. program at Harvard University while
until she has finished her breast-feeding and the need to express milk," he said.
having two babies in two years. She has been offered a residency in clinical pathology at Massachusetts General Hospital in November, but cannot accept it unless she passes the test.
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