CNN 2010-05-11

OK, moms, you know what I'm talking about here. There you are 25 hours or more of painstaking¹ labor², the sweat, the tears and then finally your baby comes, your dream come true. Everything you ever wanted is right there crying in the delivery room.

But then, the doctor says those heart-stopping words: "There is a problem." Well, if you have been in that situation, then you know how crucial those doctors and nurses in the neonatal ICU are. You're trusting them with your baby's life. These folks have that brand spanking³ new little life right there in their hands and your peace of mind too; their eyes always watching baby's vital signs.

But hey, watchful⁴ eyes and helping⁵ hands are no good unless they look fabulous⁶, right? Get this, accusations⁷ that workers at a hospital near Los Angeles gave doctors and nurses beauty treatments when timing⁸ babies lives were hanging in the balance. Random⁹ acts of cosmetology right there in NICU.

KABC's Nirvana Laura has the outreach.

Imagine operating a beauty salon¹⁰ with all the tools and chemicals that go with it inside a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. That's the allegation now under investigation¹¹ at the Olive View-UCLA Medical Center in Sylmar. And the reason that two staff members are now on paid leave.

It's just ridiculous. They should be caring about the patients more and the health of the little kids, too. Newborns, you know, that's ridiculous.

If my kid was there and they are doing stuff like that, yes, of course, I would want them to get fired, you know. I really think so and they should know better and hopefully that this should be a lesson to be learned.

The anonymous¹³ complaints were filed with a Joint¹⁴ Commission that accredits¹⁵ the hospital. The reports include allegations that nurses and doctors got manicures and their eyebrows¹⁶ waxed with the salon tools often resting on medical devices.

Remember these are our county's most vulnerable patients. Many have respiratory issues in cases, they're vulnerable to infection. Having this type of operation in the same facility is unconscionable.  Tony Bell, spokesperson for Supervisor¹⁷ Mike Antonovich says Antonovich is pushing for full investigation and fast action. Meantime, in a statement released today the Department of Health Services says, "It is concerned by the allegations made against Olive View-UCLA Medical Center. No NICU patients at Olive View were harmed or transferred to other hospitals as a result of these allegations. We are complying fully¹² with the Joint Commission and will take appropriate personnel action if allegations are substantiated¹⁸."

Yeah, are you thinking what I'm thinking? Hey, nurse beauty queen and Dr. Unibrow, next time you need a wax, polish or foot rub, do it on your own time, not on the potentially limited time of a newborn clinging to life.

Clothes, furniture, pictures, even the kitchen sink, piles of stuff on lawns and sidewalks in flood-stricken Tennessee. Six days after record-setting rains the water has receded¹⁹ but the disaster, well, it will be around for quite some time.

President Obama has declared 10 Tennessee counties disaster areas. FEMA says more may be added. Thirty-one people died in three states. Residents cleaning up now.

And there are signs of life returning to normal in some parts. City workers are back on the job. Schools are also starting to reopen.

And be sure to tune²⁰ in this Tuesday. Tune in and turn up the sound. The legendary²¹ jam band Widespread Panic is going to be here in studio jamming for us and telling us how those heartbreaking scenes from Nashville have really hit them hard.

They've helped other folks in need and they're going to help middle Tennessee, too. They're going to give back that region -- they're going to get back to that region that they love so much.

You don't have to be a long-time spearhead to love these guys either. Don't miss the rare treat right here live on CNN this Tuesday.
 

1 painstaking   

adj.苦干的；艰苦的，费力的，刻苦的

参考例句：

• She is not very clever but she is painstaking.她并不很聪明，但肯下苦功夫。
• Through years of our painstaking efforts,we have at last achieved what we have today.大家经过多少年的努力，才取得今天的成绩。

2 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

3 spanking   

adj.强烈的，疾行的；n.打屁股

参考例句：

• The boat is spanking along on the river.船在小河疾驶。
• He heard a horse approaching at a spanking trot.他听到一匹马正在疾步驰近。

4 watchful   

adj.注意的，警惕的

参考例句：

• The children played under the watchful eye of their father.孩子们在父亲的小心照看下玩耍。
• It is important that health organizations remain watchful.卫生组织保持警惕是极为重要的。

5 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

6 fabulous   

adj.极好的；极为巨大的；寓言中的，传说中的

参考例句：

• We had a fabulous time at the party.我们在晚会上玩得很痛快。
• This is a fabulous sum of money.这是一笔巨款。

7 accusations   

n.指责( accusation的名词复数 )；指控；控告；（被告发、控告的）罪名

参考例句：

• There were accusations of plagiarism. 曾有过关于剽窃的指控。
• He remained unruffled by their accusations. 对于他们的指控他处之泰然。

8 timing   

n.时间安排，时间选择

参考例句：

• The timing of the meeting is not convenient.会议的时间安排不合适。
• The timing of our statement is very opportune.我们发表声明选择的时机很恰当。

9 random   

adj.随机的；任意的；n.偶然的(或随便的)行动

参考例句：

• The list is arranged in a random order.名单排列不分先后。
• On random inspection the meat was found to be bad.经抽查，发现肉变质了。

10 salon   

n.[法]沙龙；客厅；营业性的高级服务室

参考例句：

• Do you go to the hairdresser or beauty salon more than twice a week?你每周去美容院或美容沙龙多过两次吗？
• You can hear a lot of dirt at a salon.你在沙龙上会听到很多流言蜚语。

11 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

12 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

13 anonymous   

adj.无名的；匿名的；无特色的

参考例句：

• Sending anonymous letters is a cowardly act.寄匿名信是懦夫的行为。
• The author wishes to remain anonymous.作者希望姓名不公开。

14 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

15 accredits   

v.相信( accredit的第三人称单数 )；委托；委任；把…归结于

参考例句：

• NZQA also accredits industry training organisations to register workplace assessors. NZQA同时也授权行业培训组织为实习车间主管进行登记注册。 来自互联网
• Accredits the personnel wages and welfare and the enterprise gets unhooked, An Jianju direct leadership. 派驻人员工资福利与企业脱钩，受安监局直接领导。 来自互联网

16 eyebrows   

眉毛( eyebrow的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Eyebrows stop sweat from coming down into the eyes. 眉毛挡住汗水使其不能流进眼睛。
• His eyebrows project noticeably. 他的眉毛特别突出。

17 supervisor   

n.监督人，管理人，检查员，督学，主管，导师

参考例句：

• Between you and me I think that new supervisor is a twit.我们私下说，我认为新来的主管人是一个傻瓜。
• He said I was too flighty to be a good supervisor.他说我太轻浮不能成为一名好的管理员。

18 substantiated   

v.用事实支持（某主张、说法等），证明，证实( substantiate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The results of the tests substantiated his claims. 这些检验的结果证实了他的说法。
• The statement has never been substantiated. 这一陈述从未得到证实。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

19 receded   

v.逐渐远离( recede的过去式和过去分词 )；向后倾斜；自原处后退或避开别人的注视；尤指问题

参考例句：

• The floodwaters have now receded. 洪水现已消退。
• The sound of the truck receded into the distance. 卡车的声音渐渐在远处消失了。

20 tune   

n.调子；和谐，协调；v.调音，调节，调整

参考例句：

• He'd written a tune,and played it to us on the piano.他写了一段曲子，并在钢琴上弹给我们听。
• The boy beat out a tune on a tin can.那男孩在易拉罐上敲出一首曲子。

21 legendary   

adj.传奇（中）的，闻名遐迩的；n.传奇（文学）

参考例句：

• Legendary stories are passed down from parents to children.传奇故事是由父母传给孩子们的。
• Odysseus was a legendary Greek hero.奥狄修斯是传说中的希腊英雄。