Videos & More from Past Programs
We are truly a grassroots organization...
"Improving Health Care Quality While Reducing Costs - A Paradigm Shift".
Our March 16th League meeting covered how our community is handling changes implemented by the new Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act which calls for changes in the way we deliver healthcare by creating incentives to encourage hospitals and doctors to compete on quality and find ways to provide the best care at reduced costs.
Our panel of three local experts on healthcare quality discussed how we can achieve both quality and cost control as we implement changes in our health care delivery.
- Naida Grunden, Shingo award-winning author of The Pittsburgh Way to Efficient Healthcare, and co-author of Lean-Led Hospital Design, will introduce the concept of lean as applied to healthcare, and illustrate with real case studies.
- Dr. Jeremy Blanchard, Vice-President of Quality and Medical Affairs, Peace Health St. Joseph's Hospital, will discuss quality improvement methods, including recent national accolades for reducing readmissions.
- Dr. David Lynch, Vice President for Clinical Process Improvement and Business Development for Family Health Network, will discuss the quality revolution in physician office practices across our region.
Watch Video of program here! -provided through the generous support of The Center for New Media
In addition we viewed the following PSB Newshour clip:
Rooting Out Waste in Health Care by Taking Cue From Toyota Assembly Lines is a short video from the PBS NewsHour about the use of Lean practices at Seattle's award winning Virginia Mason Hospital.
"The State of Our Cities" - featuring Whatcom County Small City Mayors.
The State of Our Cities ~ February 16, 2013 - Watch this interesting roundtable discussion featuring the Mayors of Blaine, Ferndale, Everson, Lynden, Nooksack, and Sumas. Find out what is going on in your communities - growth, transportation, environmental quality, water issues, crime prevention, education are all issues affecting cities in the county, as are state and federal funding cuts.
Videography provided through the generous support of The Center for New Media
Where's the Money? Understanding & communicating about K-12 education funding in WA
Conservation District Study Results
Whatcom County Conservation District
All Member Meeting at BelleWood Acres
At our September 15, 2012 meeting, we had consensus discussion about the work of our Conservation Districts and the method of electing their supervisors.
Sustainability - What's All the Hype?
"Why Deliberation Matters: Politics Past and Present in Our Democracy"
If you missed this wonderful meeting, it's not too late to see it! A big thank you to the Coalition for Community Television--Robert Clark and Suzanne Blais for videotaping this program!
Click here to watch it now
Two wonderful speakers entertained us with their educated musings on our political discourse and how the press reports it. They have provided their notes and additional sources for our interest and further reading.
Feb. 19 jail meeting on BTV10/website
The Feb. 19 forum hosted by the League of Women Voters of Bellingham/Whatcom County and held in City Council Chambers
City of Bellingham website - to view video "on demand"
Civil Discussions in Uncivil Times
The LWV of Bellingham/Whatcom County believes that the time has come for us to go beyond partisan discussions and begin to talk with one another in respectful and meaningful ways, so that after civil debate we all compromise and get on with the work of our community. Everyone has good ideas--let's share them.
This is why our League sponsored a Civil Discussion Training Workshop, facilitated by Mary Dumas of Dumas Associates and Moonwater, Executive Director of Whatcom County Dispute Resolution Center.
To access the worksheet from this workshop and utilize it to become better adept at civil discussions, please click here
Check out the results from the workshop please click here
Health Care in the United States
The LWV of Bellingham/Whatcom County wrote a Letter to the Editor and to our national representatives about health care reform. To read the letter,
click here
The League of Women Voters of the United States (LWVUS) Joins the National Coalition on Health Care:
The LWVUS Board has voted to join The National Coalition on Health Care (NCHC), a coalition of over 70 member organizations, including medical associations, labor unions, businesses, religious groups and health care advocates. The NCHC focuses on five principles in health care reform: health care coverage for all, cost management, improvement of health care quality and safety, equitable financing, and simplified administration. Click here for more information about NCHC.
To read the League's Position on Health Care, Click here
League of Women Voters of WA Study on Early Childhood Education
For a detailed analysis of Early Childhood Education please check out this interesting report provided by the League of Women Voters of Washington's study.
Click Here for the report
Consensus forms have been turned in and our state League is collating the responses into a position that will be publicized in January.
World Water Resources and "The Power of Community"
As a follow-up to our March 2008 meeting on Water we have some additional information provided by Dr. John Rawlins.
Here's the information people asked about at the meeting this morning:
The Community Solution group (Yellow Springs, Ohio) website
To order: The Power of Community(Cuba)
They also have other items that might be of interest to some. I've used
The End of Suburbia many times for introducing people to peak oil - the focus is on effects expected in the U.S. with its huge emphasis on suburban sprawl development.
Bullock Brothers Farm Home Page
For tour information, click here
If you have some space in any of your vehicles, you can bring back some of their nursery products - some of which are very hard to find anywhere. Next time I go to Orcas, it will be with an empty Subaru wagon. :)
If people want to read Whatcom Watch online, here's a link for that: Whatcom Watch
In my new monthly series, the most convenient way to read my column is online because of the format. The first recent monthly column began February 2008. The original 11-part essay style series went from September 2006
through August 2007.
I greatly appreciate the opportunity to pass on awareness of energy and climate problems and applaud your programmatic efforts. Thanks for doing
what you do.
John Rawlins
Clean Elections
Public Financing of our Elections removes the financial complication in politics as usual. Several states have implemented aspects of this option with great success. Is this for Washington state? To find out more, read the following article:
Clean Elections
To read about Arizona's Clean Election Law click here
To read about Clean Elections in WA State Click Here
