Stories

“It’s really important for people to understand that reproductive health for women is mainstream and no different than any other type of health care,” said Christie Vilsack, the former first lady of Iowa. “In many cases — and I think this is especially true in small towns — there is a perception that these services are taboo or something controversial when they aren’t at all.”

It’s almost like déjà vu. Four years ago Lori Sokolowski knocked on doors and visited with neighbors in hopes of electing a Democratic candidate to Iowa House District 53. Four years ago, however, she was campaigning on behalf of her husband, Dick.
“I was his campaign manager,” Sokolowski said. “We were both qualified, so we ran [...]

Iowa’s Department of Human Services has launched a new informational Web site that encourages young adults in the state to remain loyal to friends dealing with mental illness.

Iowa has become the 17th state to refuse Title V, Section 510 funding for abstinence-only sex education.
Courtney Greene, press secretary for Gov. Chet Culver, said the decision has been made and federal monies will continue to be refused unless changes are made to the program. Iowa currently receives roughly $319,000 in matching funds from the [...]

At a state policy briefing scheduled for Thursday morning, Iowa legislators and other state officials will be asked to end federally funded abstinence-only sex education in the state. The move would make Iowa the 17th state to reject Title V abstinence-only funding.
Rep. Mary Mascher, a Democrat from Iowa City, sponsored and floor managed a bill [...]

A newly formed state task force is poised to issue recommendations next month on how to address Iowa’s nursing shortage, but one of Iowa’s congressmen believes that isn’t soon enough.
Rep. Tom Latham has announced plans to hold a series of roundtable discussions throughout the state with nursing professionals, visiting nurses and hospitals, and the Veterans [...]

The Iowa Supreme Court vindicated a Johnson County nurse who muffled an adult patient’s screams to protect the health of another patient in an opinion announced Friday.
In May 2004, nurse Kim Wyatt was working in the neuroscience unit at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics in Iowa City. She was attending a patient who [...]

Illinois Sen. Barack Obama has been the brunt of some Iowa grumblings for his tendency to downplay events of “only 20 people,” including the one in South Carolina that provided the campaign’s trademark “Fired Up” chant. In Iowa, 20 or 30 people in a basement or living room is not only how presidential hopefuls have [...]

Presidential candidate Chris Dodd led a round-table discussion, “Our Families, Our Future: Putting Women and Families First,” at Davenport’s Family Resources, Inc. on Monday afternoon.  Joined by his sister, Martha Buonanno, Dodd listened as social services workers and agency directors asked questions and related some of their clients’ stories.  He made previous stops at Des [...]

On the eve of scheduled candlelight prayer vigils outside of her Davenport office, New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton has announced she will be releasing her plan to fight HIV/AIDS both domestically and globally.
“Sen. Clinton has stepped up to the plate, and released a plan to fight AIDS which, if enacted, will help turn the [...]