The IRE Resource Center is a major research library containing more than 23,250 investigative stories — both print and broadcast. These stories are searchable online or by contacting the Resource Center directly (573-882-3364 or rescntr@ire.org) where a researcher can help you pinpoint what you need. Browse or search the tipsheet section of our library below. Stories are not available for download but can be easily ordered by contacting the Resource Center:
Search results for "FDA" ...
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Danger on Your Dinner Plate
The food industry has quietly taken over most of the role of the FDA in inspecting what Americans eat, as inspection firms paid by food makers have certified as safe meat and vegetables that have sickened millions and killed thousands of people. After the story, the FDA passed strict food safety rules and for the first time required certification of private inspectors.
Tags: Food industry; FDA; food safety; meat; vegetables; private inspection firms
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A rampant prescription, a hidden peril
The series investigated nursing homes’ use of antipsychotic medications on the elderly, a practice the US Food and Drug and Administration has long warned against because of potentially fatal side effects in people with dementia. The Boston Globe analyzed data from 15,600 nursing homes nationwide and found that about 185,000 residents received antipsychotics in 2010 alone, despite not having a medical condition that warranted such use. The series also revealed that Massachusetts nursing homes commonly use antipsychotics to control agitation and combative behavior in elderly residents who should not be receiving the powerful sedatives, yet state regulators seldom use their authority to reprimand or penalize facilities for this practice.
Tags: Antipsychotics; FDA; nursing homes; Alzheimer's disease
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Perry's Private Deals
An investigation into Texas Governor Rick Perry's political campaign. The investigation uncovered Perry's relationship with his doctor and his back-room pressure to make the stem cell injection practice- which isn't FDA approved- big business in Texas. The Texas Governor also quietly retired and started cashing out his pension and salary concurrently.
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Side Effects
"This series began in 2009 after learning that doctors at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine had been receiving payments from drug and medical device companies. It has grown into a much broader and deeper look at the pervasive influence of money in medicine."
Tags: FDA; Medtronic; medical research
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The Mysterious Case of Kevin Ku
The story reports on Kevin Xu -- a Chinese national who was cuaght trying to sell fake drugs to undercover immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and FDA agents in 2007.
Tags: Intellgectual Property Rights Coordination Center; IPRCC; Kevin Xu; FDA; ICE; Immigration and Customs Enforcement
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"Electronic Health Records: Will They Be Safer and Save Money?"
In this yearlong, multimedia project, reporters Schulte and Schwartz investigated the shift of paper medical records to electronic records. The report drew attention to the "challenges officials are facing in computerizing" the records. Some of the challenges include concerns of privacy and patient well-being.
Tags: records; MAUDE; FDA; Center for Devices and Radiological Health; database
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Food and Supplement Safety
"Consumer Reports used its extensive testing and investigative resources to shine the light of foods, drugs and supplements consumed by tens of millions of Americans that account for significant safety risks, yet which consumers and government officials knew little about."
Tags: consumer safety; supplements; poultry; drugs; salmonella; campylobacter; FDA; Food and Drug Administration; protien drinks; Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database
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The Radiation Boom
The reporter provides insight into the medical community's inadequate safety protections. Within these hospitals, the reporter documents the number of patients burned by the radiation of new machines, little government oversight,poorly trained personnel, and outdated equipment.
Tags: radiation; hospital; technology; FDA; overdoses
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Doctor Lost Priviliges -- But Kept Clean Record
What started as an investigation of one doctor's questionable practices, led to a larger expose on St. Louis hospital violations and the state's lack of punishment for the doctors that are reported. The reporters found that most information about Missouri's problem doctors and unsafe hospital condition is swept under the rug.
Tags: hospital; FDA; doctors; hospital inspection; medical license
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Medicating the Military
The stories looked at the nature and scope of the use of prescription drugs in the military community, with a focus on psychiatric medications and painkillers. The reporting found that use of psychiatric medications has risen dramatically in the past several years and some doctors suggest it may be a factor in the military's suicide epidemic of recent years. Reporters found that many psychiatric drugs - including powerful anti-convulsants and anti-psychotic medications - were being used "off label", or in ways not formally approved by the FDA. Reporters found that many troops were taking up to 10 medications at a time in so-called drug cocktails that experts say are untested and unproven in these combinations. Reporters also found that deaths caused by accidental drug overdoses had tripled during the past several years and that the Army's specialty care units were quietly conducting internal investigations and making significant changes to hospital protocols to reduce risk of accidental deaths. Finally, they found that psychiatric drug usage was also up significantly among military children.
Tags: Military; Army; Veteran; Health; Wellness; Medicine; Drugs; Pain killers; Psychiatric Medication; Mental Health; Suicide; Depression; Military Children; Hospital; Prescription