While many assume the wounds of war are visible, veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are reporting an injury that is difficult to diagnose and even tougher to treat: traumatic brain injury. Though military reports claim only 150,000 soldiers have suffered a brain injury since the wars began, outside observers estimate the number is closer to 400,000. The discrepancy could be credited to the difficult of diagnosis, but many soldiers allege that our military is simply not providing them with the treatment they need and deserve, prolonging their suffering, worsening their symptoms and delaying their care.

With the Olympics coming to a close, many of us, especially our children, have been watching with admiration as skiers careen down steep hills on skis and snowboarders fly off of a halfpipe. The athletes make these sports look effortless, but before you strap skis on your feet and head to the nearest slope, keep in mind that these sports can be dangerous -- even for the Olympians themselves.

In June, the Pennsylvania legislature passed Act 1 of 2009, known as the Preventable Serious Adverse Events Act.  While Pennsylvania has passed some less effective patient safety legislation in the past, now healthcare providers will have a new incentive to prevent medical mistakes -- a financial one.

As an attorney who specializes in patient advocacy, I am concerned that malpractice filings have taken on such a negative connotation in the past few years.  The media has proliferated myths that support this negativity.  For example, many assume that malpractice suits are responsible for driving thousands of doctors out of Pennsylvania.  Or, it is often suggested that suits like these raise malpractice insurance and make it difficult for doctors to practice.