DETROIT, Oct. 2, 2008 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Representatives of presidential candidates Barack Obama and John McCain will present their health care policies at The Inaugural Convention of the National American Arab Nurses Association (NAANA) in Detroit on October 9-10, 2008.
Dianne Byrum will represent Mr. Obama. She is former Democratic leader of the Michigan House of Representatives with 24 years of legislative and county government experience, having served as a state senator, state representative and Ingham County commissioner. She is now a partner with Byrum & Fisk Advocacy Communications. She has eight years of legislative experience dealing with the state's healthcare issues and is currently working on two millage campaigns in Michigan to provide affordable healthcare coverage for the uninsured and underinsured.
Oakland County Sheriff Mike Bouchard will represent John McCain. He runs one of the nation's largest Sheriff's Offices, overseeing 1,200 employees and managing an annual budget of over $128 million. He has 21 years of law enforcement experience and 21 years as an elected official. He was the Republican candidate for 2006 Michigan U.S. Senate election, during which he discussed his own healthcare platform. He supports Mr. McCain's healthcare platform.
The convention, themed "Building Cultural Bridges in Health Care: Strength in Diversity," brings together 400 healthcare professionals, including health administrators; physicians; residents; medical students; nurses; student nurses; social workers; speech, physical, and occupational therapists; human resource professionals; hospital chaplains; educators; researchers; pharmacists; and other key healthcare professionals who have a personal and professional stake in the healthcare policies of the next U.S. president.
"The diversity of healthcare professionals attending this convention represents a cross-section of Americans, professionally and ethnically," said Rose Khalifa, president of NAANA. "They are an educated constituency that will vote in November. It is important for them to understand where our next president stands on health insurance coverage, funding for stem cell research, women's, children's and veterans' healthcare programs and a whole host of healthcare-related issues."
Open to the public, Ms. Byrum will speak to the convention on Thursday, October 9th, at 1 p.m.; Mr. Bouchard on Friday, October 10th, at 1 p.m.
Keynote speakers and concurrent session presenters will discuss such critical topics as cultural competence in the delivery of health care; the changing diversity and micro-inequities in the healthcare workplace; the healthcare beliefs and practices of Arab, Asian, Hispanic, Black, Filipino and Native Americans.
Metro Healthcare Services, Inc. is the Presenting Partner. Other sponsors include University Hospital, Dubai, Henry Ford Health System, Acute Home Health Care, B.E. Smith, Oakwood Healthcare System, Detroit Medical Center, Wayne County Health & Human Services, Beaumont Hospitals, National Arab American Medical Association and Triumph Hospitals.
Register online at www.n-aana.org or call 313-680-5049.
The National American Arab Nurses Association logo is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=1446