IRE and NICAR offer several databases, stories and tipsheets for reporters investigating consumer-related issues. The Manufacturer and User Facility Device Experience (MAUDE) database from the Food and Drug Administration contains information about problems that occurred with medical devices. The problems include injuries, deaths or product malfunctions. The data include detailed narratives about the device failures.
Specific devices can be searched to determine how often they're reported to have failed. Patient-specific and hospital-specific information has been removed for privacy reasons. The National Practitioner Data Bank from the Department of Health and Human Services has information about malpractice payments, licensure, clinical privileges, professional society membership and adverse action reports concerning physicians, dentists and other licensed health-care professionals.
Practitioner- and hospital-specific information is excluded from the file. Despite that, the Hartford Courant used the data and a variety of public records to examine several doctors who continued to practice medicine despite being sued for malpractice. The vehicle recalls and complaints database from the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration contains information about vehicles that have been recalled by manufacturers and consumer complaints about them dating back to 1966.
About 75 percent of recalls are initiated by the manufacturers, because of problems – identified or perceived – with a vehicle. For the rest, NTSHA contacts the manufacturer after receiving complaints, although the agency itself never issues recalls on its own.