Local Nurse Attends President's Virtual Town Hall

A nurse at Allegheny General Hospital was in the White House audience for President Barack Obama's virtual town hall meeting today. Cathy Stoddart says she was sitting just to the President's right, along with several other nurses with the Service Employees International Union. Stoddart says she believes the President is sticking to promises he made during the campaign to reform health care.

Stoddart has spoken out in the past in support of nurse-patient ratios, ending mandatory overtime, and other steps she says would improve the quality of care. She says health care can also be more affordable if hospitals have incentives to encourage more preventive care. She says she often sees patients only when they're really sick... and many of them could have avoided the hospital altogether if they'd just known more about how to take care of themselves.

Stoddart says she thinks the federal budget would be a down payment on many of the changes she supports. And she says she hopes health care professionals remain part of the discussion on making health care more affordable... because they know where the waste is.