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On The Show: Nurses keep up the fight for RN to patient ratios…we should all be very glad they do! We thought we’d check in with our friends in Massachusetts who are working on legislation—so Casey and Dan visit with RN and president of Massachusetts Nurses Association, Donna Kelly Williams. Donna brings us up to speed on current issues—with a central focus on staffing ratios.

Expert says compassion is key. Have you ever witnessed a parent or guardian verbally or physically abuse a child in a public setting? Did you walk away because you didn’t know what to do…or did you intervene? Find out what our expert has to say about what you should do. Cyndy Doherty, executive director of Marin Advocates for Children joins Casey and Dan to talk about what her organization is doing to help and prevent this epidemic. You won’t want to miss her advice and insights.

What about Patsy Cline, beatnik and Sputnick? Read more >

Yes! a non-profit subscriber supported magazine, with in-depth analysis, tools for citizen engagement, and stories about real people working for a better world recently published The Yes Breakthrough 15 their list of people transforming the way we live.

Dr. Deb. Richter made their list for her advocacy of single payer healthcare in Vermont. Last May, Vermont became the first state in the nation to pass a single-payer health care plan.

“I never felt like I had a choice about getting involved in this struggle … I couldn’t stop and I never will.” —Dr. Deb Richter

In her interview with Yes!, Dr. Richter explains, “A lot of my patients didn’t have insurance. I would prescribe medicines for patients but they wouldn’t be able to afford them, and then they would just get sicker. I was mortified…I knew I couldn’t continue to practice if this situation continued. I didn’t want medicine to just be for wealthy people.”

“This will be an enormous change for people without insurance,” says Richter of the Vermont bill, which will guarantee every resident an essential health benefit package from birth. “Now that we have this in Vermont, we need to make sure it happens everywhere.”

Read the whole article from YES! Magazine, Oct 31, 2011 >  http://www.yesmagazine.org/issues/the-yes-breakthrough-15/deb-richter-a-cure-for-broken-health-care

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