Information Channel

August 04, 2018

Safe Childcare

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A recent survey showed that a majority of parents struggle to find childcare facilities with high standards for health and safety. We’ll hear from a researcher about the most critical things to look for. Then, medical care mistakes can be deadly. A physician has potentially life saving advice for you to help prevent medical errors.

Episode Segments

Safety Standards of Childcare Facilities

Sarah J. Clark, M.P.H., Associate Research Scientist, Department of Pediatrics at the University of Michigan\'s C.S. Mott Children\'s Hospital co-authored a poll that found that 62 percent of parents report difficulties finding childcare facilities that meet their health and safety standards. The poll also found that only half of parents considered themselves “very confident” at discerning which childcare options were truly safe and healthy. She outlined the most important questions that parents should ask when evaluating childcare providers. She said 82% of parents would be in favor of a national standard for health and safety for childcare centers and in-home childcare providers

Emergency Room Errors

Medical errors cause roughly 250,000 deaths per year in the U.S. Benjamin H. Schnapp, MD, Assistant Professor, Assistant Emergency Medicine Residency Program Director in the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health co-authored a study that examined errors in Emergency Rooms. He found that, even in chaotic ERs, doctors typically have the right medical information but might not act on it in the best way. He talked about the patterns he found in patients who are most vulnerable to errors. He offered suggestions for patients who want to prevent errors when they visit an ER.

At Risk Youth

Jill Gonzalez, contributing editor at Popular Mechanics magazine, author of Big Ideas: 100 Modern Inventions That Transformed Our World discussed her report that examined today’s at-risk youth. She said about one in nine young Americans today is neither working nor in school, exposing them to greater risk of poverty, violence, drug abuse and homelessness. She explained how these risk factors follow young people into adulthood. She discussed the importance of education and social services.

Guest(s) Appearing on this Episode

Sarah J. Clark

Sarah J. Clark, MPH, is Associate Research Scientist in the Department of Pediatrics. She also serves as Co-Director of the C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital National Poll on Children’s Health.



Ms. Clark joined the faculty at the University of Michigan in 1998. Her current work focuses on immunization policies at the state and federal level; physician knowledge, attitudes, and practices related to child health; parental perspectives on child health; and evaluation of Medicaid policy and programs.

Benjamin Schnapp

Dr. Schnapp graduated from The Mount Sinai Hospital Emergency Medicine residency program in New York City, where he completed a specialty track in medical education and served as chief resident. He completed his medical education fellowship at Northwestern University in Chicago and is currently completing his Masters in Education with a focus on the Health Professions at the University of Cincinnati. Dr. Schnapp’s interests include clinical teaching skills, the resident as teacher, resident wellness and decision making. He currently serves on the SAEM Graduate Medical Education and Fellowship Approval committees.



In his free time, he enjoys grilling in his backyard, sampling the delicious restaurants of Madison, traveling back to his home state of Maine, and spending time with his wife and son.

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