Children's Hospital

In a lawsuit filed yesterday, MIT and Children's Hospital charge Shire Regenerative Medicine's product aimed at people with diabetic foot ulcers violates patents they hold for building skin grafts on a polyester matrix.

The two local institutions say Shire's Dermagraft, in which cells from newborn foreskins are laid on a thin membrane to grow a layer of skin that are then applied atop the ulcers that some diabetic patients develop on their feet.

They're seeking tons of money for the injuries the alleged patent infrigement has done them.

One of the patents.

The Daily Free Press reports Children's Hospital wants to replace the parking lot at 819 Beacon St., just outside Kenmore Square, with 650,000 square feet of clinical, office and retail space. And a 526-car garage.

A federal criminal complaint against Richard Keller, a pediatric endocrinologist at Children's Hospital and former medical director at Phillips Academy in Andover, details some of the DVDs he's alleged to have ordered online between 2009 and 2011. Associated Press reports neither the hospital nor the school reported any complaints about his behavior with children under his care.

Innocent, etc.

Dr. T, an anesthesiologist, reports on her son's appendectomy at Children's Hospital - where she did some of her training:

And now came the hardest part: waiting. Waiting sucks. It was six in the morning. Even though all I wanted to do was sleep, I could only doze off for about twenty minutes. I wandered aimlessly through the parents' lounge. I watched the slice of sky between buildings outside the window change from black to grey to light blue as dawn broke over the city of Boston. Over an hour later the liaison called into the operating room for an update, and the specimen still hadn't been taken out of my son's body. I found that a little worrisome. Another colleague who was working in a nearby ICU stopped by to visit me after his morning rounds. Facebook friends were sending volumes of good wishes. I felt incredibly uplifted and supported but every clock tick was like something poking me to remind me that all was not yet well. It was like waiting for a plane to land and fearing that something might still happen.

Complete with photo of the enlarged and gangrenous appendix.

Children's Hospital Boston sent out a memo yesterday informing its staff that Myra Fox has died.

Myra Fox was the inspiration for Nurse Carol in "Curious George Goes to the Hospital", the beloved book that has been a part of our childhoods for generations.

Ms. Fox was known affectionately as the "Play Lady". She was the former Director of Child Life Services and worked in several other departments during her 44 years(!) at Children's. She retired in 2008.

According to the memo and to online interviews, when she first started at the hospital, Children's didn't allow parents to stay overnight in their children's rooms and visiting hours were limited, so nurses and hospital staff were called upon to keep patients as comfortable as possible. Ms. Fox was the first at Children's to organize activities "to help children keep their minds off their illnesses."

Over the years, the Child Life Specialist program has expanded to the point that there are now 30 staff members who offer comfort and support to Children's patients.

What a sad day!

Below, an interview with the Play Lady from before she retired in 2008:

UPDATE: Globe reports that Levine is now dead.

The Herald reports on a suit by 30 former patients of Dr. Melvin Levine against him for alleged medical malpractice and sexual abuse and against Children's for allegedly failing to do anything about him.

WBUR posted a copy of the complaint.

Last year, the Massachusetts Appeals Court dismissed a similar case by a single patient against Children's, because the alleged abuse happened between 1967 and 1969, when the state still granted absolute immunity to hospitals against suits over the actions of their physicians.

The Massachusetts Appeals Court today dismissed a lawsuit against Children's Hospital by a man who claims he was abused by a psychiatrist between 1967 and 1969 because the law at the time granted charitable organizations immunity from any liability.

With in-patient stays on the rise and community hospitals beginning to close pediatric units, Children's Hospital said today it hopes to break ground this spring on an addition on Binney Street to add new beds.

Channel 25 reports on a Suffolk County Superior Court jury decision today.

A researcher in the basement of 30 Blackfan St. "had a small flash fire while working on a project" shortly after 2 p.m., Boston Fire reports.

By the time fire crews arrived, the fire was out, although light smoke filled the lower two floors of the building. Boston Police tweet traffic in the Longwood Medical Area and along Huntington Avenue was all messed up.

The worker was able to walk herself to the hospital emergency room for evaluation; fire and hospital officials continue to investigate the cause of the brief fire.

Traffic at Huntington and Longwood, taken by Robert Storlazzi, who reported shortly after 3 p.m. that Longwood was open to traffic again but that Huntington was backed up to Symphony:

Boston Police have put out an APB for Richard Edwards, 28 and Dawn Connolly, 25, of Hyannis, in connection with an incident around 10:30 p.m. on Jan. 22 at
300 Longwood Ave.:

Officers spoke with the victim who stated that her 7 year old child was threatened with a knife. Both Edwards and Connolly are wanted for this assault and have warrants out for their arrest relative to this incident.

They were last seen driving a green 1995 Oldsmobile Ciera, with Mass plates: 23N-Z75.

Innocent, etc.

Watch surgeons at Children's Hospital remove a brain tumor from a 13-year-old earlier today (requires RealPlayer). Not for the squeamish, natch.

Via Semantics Etc..