Extract:
Lifewings
What do pilots, astronauts, physicians, and risk managers have in common? In this case, they are all part of an organization based in Memphis, Tennessee, called Lifewings Partners. This unusual group focuses on finding ways to eliminate mistakes and accidents in medical settings within the United States. Lifewings Partners emphasizes the need for a watchdog in various medical settings.
According to the Institute of Health, approximately 98,000 patients die each year in U.S. health care settings due to nothing more than medical error. Examples of medical errors include the man who had the wrong testicle removed in a Los Angeles hospital, a young boy who went in for a typical hernia surgery and ended up with brain damage from the anesthesia, and a hospital in Rhode Island that performed brain surgery on the wrong side of the brain, three times on three different patients in less than a year.
In addition to making internal changes in medical settings by changing procedures and establishing checklists, Lifewings Partners also works to educate patients on safety before they even enter the hospital. The company suggests that all consumers do the following: go online to obtain public information on a hospital’s safety, talk to their doctors to see what safety standards are in place already, and ask professionals about which facilities tend to have the best safety records. Founder Steve Harden says, “Just because a hospital has a great reputation for cutting-edge medicine doesn’t necessarily mean the hospital is the safest place to go for routine procedures.” After all, some mistakes are too big and too irrevocable to risk.
Which statement about Lifewings Partners is a fact?
-
A
Everyone should have access to Lifewings.
-
B
The people in Lifewings are modern heroes.
-
C
Steve Harden was clever to found Lifewings.
-
D
Lifewings is based in Memphis, Tennessee.
The factual statement about Lifewings Partners is that it is based in Memphis, Tennessee, verifiable location information without subjective judgment.
A) Everyone should have access to Lifewings.
Expresses opinion through prescriptive "should" language advocating universal access, beyond factual reporting.
B) The people in Lifewings are modern heroes.
Expresses opinion through value judgment "heroes", subjective assessment not objectively verifiable.
C) Steve Harden was clever to found Lifewings.
Expresses opinion through value judgment "clever", subjective assessment of founder's intelligence beyond factual reporting.
D) Lifewings is based in Memphis, Tennessee.
Verifiable fact explicitly stated: "an organization based in Memphis, Tennessee, called Lifewings Partners."
Conclusion
Facts can be confirmed through observation or textual evidence; opinions contain subjective judgments or prescriptive language. Only option D presents objectively verifiable location information without evaluative language.