originally posted at Blue Commonwealth
The Democratic candidate for the 6th District in the Virginia House of Delegates is Carole Pratt. I had the pleasure of working with her in dental triage when I volunteered in Wise Virginia in July at the Remote Area Medical / Missions of Mercy health care event that draws national attention.
Here is Carole evaluating a patient in triage at Wise:
Carole has been at Wise for all 10 years of the joint event. And as I have gotten to know her better, I thought it might be worthwhile to let people know how much of a public servant she already is, even before she decided to run for the House of Delegate.
This posting is a result of a recent phone conversation.
Carole grew up in Smyth County, and is thus a native of the region which the events at Wise and at Grundy serve. Her dad made mining equipment, and she can remember traveling with him across SW Virginia, an area in which mining has played a huge role.
Carole attended public schools, then Virginia Tech, where she decided to become a dentist. She got her training in the program at Medical College of Virginia, where she also, now in her twenties, received the first dental xrays of her life. To her surprise, her teeth were full of cavities, about which she had been unaware. That experience helped shape her concern and interesting in ensuring that the people of Appalachian Virginia have access to medical care.
While in dental school, she began volunteering at health fair events in the region. Sister Bernie Kenny, who established the Health Wagons, and who later would persuade Stan Brock to bring RAM to Wise, had just arrived in the area.
Carol now lives and practices in Pulaski County. She has served as chair of the board of Pulaski Community Hospital, a 147-bed acute care facility serving the New River Valley. From that position she can see the economic importance of health care, as the hospital is the 2nd largest employer in the County.
She has a long track record of volunteering at free clinics, doing charity work, and working with Medicaid patients. Carole feels a responsibility to give back, to serve.
She has become quite knowledgeable about the various dimensions of health care policy, and of the particular problems and issues affecting rural Virginia. Carole notes that few currently in the General Assembly have any background in health care policy, less with dental policy, and no one with rural dental health policy.
I know from my own experience in Wise and Grundy how critical basic issues of dental health are in rural parts of Virginia. Grundy is in Buchanan County, the poorest County in the Commonwealth. It has only 4 dentists for its almost 27,000 people, three of whom are past retirement age. The ratio of people per dentist is several times that national average. Many people only have access to dental care at the annual RAM/MOM events. Carole is already attempting to address some of this with another hat she wears, that of Assistant Professor at the Healthy Appalachia Institute at UVa Wise. This puts her at the interface of Appalachian health and Appalachian culture.
Carole is also one of 11 fellows this year for the National Rural Health Association.
Rural issues often do not get the attention they deserve. Rural health is often ignored. Carole Pratt is uniquely qualified to help address those issues on behalf of all the rural sections of the Commonwealth. For example, Virginia does not provide emergency dental services for adults under Medicaid. Carole looks forward to being part of a rural coalition in the House of Delegates to address issues such as these.
The race she has undertaken is uphill. There is an incumbent Republican, who has refused - perhaps with good reason (aka fear) to debate Carole Pratt. But so far Carole has outraised her every reporting period.
National issues, except for health care, have not come up in Carole's campaigning. She says she has received some surprising support from unexpected quarters.
Carole Pratt is the endorsed candidate of the Farm Team. She remains hopeful that she can pull the upset.
You can certainly help by offering financial assistance: go to Carole's home page
Finally, one more picture to help explain my respect for Carole. The people in the photo are the members of the dental triage team at Wise who were still there on Sunday Morning. As you look, you can see Carole on your right, with me in the back row in the blue shirt. The two gentleman at the left are Tom Cooke and Wally Huff, both former presidents of the Virginia Dental Association. That is the quality of people with whom I was honored to work. Carole most definitely belongs in that group.
Here's the photo:
Peace.