Re:Gimli Glider
by Symbiote on Monday December 19, 2016 @10:35AM
(#13212006)
Britain has switched entirely to metric in healthcare, removing the last "friendly" bit of communicating to patients in Imperial.
The risk of confusion was too high, and there was at least one case of a severe overdose when a weight was accidentally given in pounds rather than kilogrammes.
If an American child was hurt outside the USA, and the parent overheard the nurse saying their weight was 55kg, would they know whether that's accurate? That's why it's important that the same units are used at home and in science.
The risk of confusion was too high, and there was at least one case of a severe overdose when a weight was accidentally given in pounds rather than kilogrammes.
If an American child was hurt outside the USA, and the parent overheard the nurse saying their weight was 55kg, would they know whether that's accurate? That's why it's important that the same units are used at home and in science.