By Nancy Casazza

Master's and Bachelor of Science Degrees in Nursing, former Air Force Reserves Flight Nurse and officer in charge of medical training and mobilization for an Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron. Presently a Director of the California Nurses Association and a staff nurse at Kaiser, Walnut Creek. Seventeen year resident of West County.

Essential health-care services are slipping away from our communities. There are fourteen fewer emergency departments in the East Bay today than in 1980, despite a half million increase in population. Tenet recently closed the emergency department at Doctor's Pinole and transferred acute services to Doctor's San Pablo. Tenet now refuses to commit to keeping open Doctor's San Pablo.

As your Health Care Director I will work diligently with fellow board and community members to develop an alternative plan for maintaining health-care services in the event that Tenet decides to leave.

As a nurse for thirty years I've seen the detrimental effects of health-care downsizing. As a former officer in the Air Force Reserves I know the importance of contingency planning and maintaining a state of medical readiness in case of a catastrophe. I want to make certain that we will have easy access to health-care now and in the future.

I have always been a healthcare advocate. I support a universal healthcare system. I worked on the 186 and 216 proposition campaigns. I hope I can count on you for support in the November 7th election. Please vote for me so that together we can continue to work to maintain healthcare services in our communities.