6,899 votes
Complete the job on metrication that Ronald Reagan defunded
The government has failed to take the lead on completing the task of moving the country completely to the SI metric system. George H.W. Bush tried to do something about it, but gave the bureaucrats an easy out. Failure to follow the same measurement standards as the rest of the world is costing US industry something like $1 trillion per year.
Bruce M. Herbertson III
Has anyone heard of anything new that the government is doing toward finalising our metrication? I am hoping that there will be some sort talk at least by the end of the year. I keep checking my regular websites in hopes of seeing something new. Does anyone have any websites that could possible have any updates?
2 months ago
budaiendreistvan
As a pedagogue myself, I strongly believe that changing the USA to the metric system should begin with educating the educators. There are too many misconceptions floating around of the spelling, the pronunciation and the use of SI. I am willing to help training the trainers, but need to know where to start. [email protected]
6 months ago
dwbrgs
The metric system is the language of scientific measurement. If we are compete in scientific and technologic development, we must join the rest of the world by changing to the metric system and learn to think in metric terms.
7 months ago
usma
In his Inaugural Address, President Obama stated, "For the world is changing, and we must change with it." Perhaps this statement of his basic orientation for American action will apply to the metric system. It certainly has been an argument of many that the U.S. join the rest of the world by changing over to metric. However,the decision to metric is ours.
7 months ago
Metric-Matters
SI units must be used; this includes kilojoules (kJ) and megajoules (MJ) for nutrition and food labeling – energy units. Calories/calories/kilocalories should be phased out as quickly as possible.
SI Metric-Matters
8 months ago
Totakeke
You do have to register by email to vote, but it's a quick and easy process.
Make sure to tell your friends, family members, and anyone else who supports metrication to vote, because only the top 10 ideas go to Obama. Luckily, all of the votes reset to zero tomorrow so the second round is fair for everyone.
This could finally be our chance.
8 months ago
Totakeke
For those of you who don't know, the website change.org is doing something similar to this. People vote on ideas and the top ones go to Obama himself on inauguration day. There are 2 rounds of voting, and we made it through the first one (we made the top 3 in our entire category!) There is another round, beginning January 5th, and only the top 10 ideas go to Obama. (continued above)
8 months ago
usma
There should be ONE system of measurement--the metric system, in healthcare. But the only way we are going to have metric-only healthcare is to have a metric-only society in the U.S. Australia did it; so can we!
8 months ago
usma
Ultimately, it falls to pharmacists to make sure the body mass in kilograms, not the weight in pounds, is used in the calculation, and U.S. healthcare workers are aware of the need to use kilograms only. But, the problems continues in the U.S. because the DUALITY OF MEASUREMENT SYSTEMS continues. An error of this type is very unlikely, but I am certainly with you: it should never happen.
8 months ago
Bruce M. Herbertson III
USMA, that is scary just thinking about that. Which makes it all the more important for us to insist that our health care workers use metric only measures and make it understood that is what you want. Metric conversion at this point is not only a matter of improving our economy it is a matter of life and death.
8 months ago
usma
In medical records, the units used are always labeled. Even when the kilogram measurements are used alone, they are always labeled with the kilogram symbol. In my experience as a pharmacist, the danger comes when our non-metric CULTURE spills into the medical environment, i.e., someone fills in a space labeled "kg" with a value in pounds. The number "150" misunderstood results in an overdose.
8 months ago
Ametrica
I read an article a few years ago that the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota went fully metric because there were too many conversion errors. I wonder how it is working for them and how it affects record transfers and communications with other hospitals not fully metric. Somewhere this has to cause errors too. All medical data must be metric only. This would reduce lawsuits from errors too.
8 months ago
usma
A number of powerful drugs are dosed in milligrams per kilogram of patient body weight, or even according to meters of body surface area, called BSA (BSA is calculated using patient height and weight in metric units). If kilograms get mixed up with pounds, the patient may get a serious or even fatal overdose. The solution is simple: measure in metric only and SPEAK in metric only, in healthcare.
8 months ago
usma
I totally agree with these posts on using metric units only for patient height and weight! This is where the U.S.' non-metric society must be kept out of healthcare. Already, the Joint Commission has issued a guideline that all PEDIATRIC patients should be weighed in kilograms only; I wrote JC to urge that this move be extended to patients of all ages, and also include measuring height in meters.
8 months ago
Bruce M. Herbertson III
I agree Ametrica. But it is going to take people like us to invoke the kinds of changes that are needed. We start by requiring our doctors and nurses to use metric only on us. Then we should contact the administrators of the hospitals and get them on board. Johnson City Medical Centre where I live uses metric on the patients. I had to go to the ER and was pleasantly surprised that they did.
8 months ago
Ametrica
What you are doing is not an answer and could create as many problems as it solves. Doctors must be forced to use metric on all patients. When it comes to matters of life and death there can be no choices or dual units. Metric units fully and only. Those patients who still want old units should be told why metric only is required and if they need old units, then convert them themselves.
8 months ago
Bruce M. Herbertson III
Ametrica
That is why I require the nurses and doctors at my doctors office to use metric measures on me at all times. They know to set the scale on kilograms before I get on it. It is in very bold print on the front of my chart METRIC MEASURES ONLY. They all know that I am well versed in everyday metric and can understand when my weight is 96 kg. It took me a long time to find this office.
8 months ago
Ametrica
The medical industry is still not fully metric. Patient weights are still being done in pounds. This results in tens of thousands of patients being murdered annually due to dosing errors. Pounds must be converted to kilograms in order for the proper dose to be given, but if it isn't done at all nor done correctly then a huge dosing error and death result. This alone should motivate change.
8 months ago
metricfun
I have been lecturing in less developed Africa when a change smoothly took place in business, streets and shops. The problem shifted to mathematical manipulation of the power of ten notation, SI prefixes, SI units, inter-conversion within the SI system, accuracy, precision and the uncertainties of measurement or calculated quantities. Then, there was no book for students on experimental science...
8 months ago
DianeV
I can honestly say that I regret resisting metrication. When my son showed me that it was so much easier, I ask myself why we didn't convert sooner. I find now that when I go grocery shopping and the such I tend to look more at the metric measures to compare package sizes. My son has been a USMA member for almost 3 years now and is always leaving his USMA newsletters around for me to peruse.
8 months ago