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An all-Iowa problem, requiring All-Iowa solutions

What makes cancer unique among the many issues, obstacles, and crises Iowans face on any given day is its impartiality. Cancer isn’t restricted by any socioeconomic or demographic factors. It doesn’t care about your education, your bank account, or your zip code. It’s not bothered by your age, who you voted for, or what you do for work. Cancer is a menace that touches us all in one way or another. By now, we all know the stats – second highest rate in the country, only growing rate. It’s an all-Iowa problem that requires an all-Iowa solution. And it will get even worse if we ...

Cancer in Iowa: Turning data into action and hope

Cancer touches nearly every family in Iowa. More than one in twenty Iowans has received a cancer diagnosis, and our state has one of the highest rates of new cancer cases in the nation. Those numbers are not abstractions. They are neighbors, coworkers, parents, and children. As chair of the Iowa Senate Health and Human Services Committee, I believe we owe Iowans not only honesty about these facts, but a clear plan to act on them. Last year, the Iowa Legislature took an important first step by passing legislation directing a comprehensive study into what is driving cancer in our state. ...

Fear of failure

Fear of failure (atychiphobia) is an intense anxiety about messing up, stemming from fear of shame, judgment, or self-devaluation, and it significantly impacts mental health by causing procrastination, perfectionism, social anxiety, and even panic attacks, often linked to low self-esteem and perfectionistic beliefs. It manifests as worrying, physical symptoms (sweating, rapid heart rate), and avoidance behaviors, but can be managed with Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), breaking down goals, practicing self-compassion, and reframing failure as learning. Fear of failure can lead to a ...

He’s not heavy, he’s my brother

We stopped at the Three Crosses on Hwy. 218 to pray as we headed for Ashland, WI to take care of my brother, Mike’s, or Michael’s (as he preferred to be called), affairs. He died Sunday morning, January 25, at the age of 84. Mike was six years older than me, so we weren’t that close. But I have some vivid memories of him. One time I stepped on a nail in the chicken house, and couldn’t walk. Mike carried me to the car so I could be taken me to the doctor. Mike’s appendix ruptured when he was a teenager. He was hauled to the hospital in Des Moines in the funeral home’s ...

The Blom Bulletin

A Workforce Focused Week The House passed bills this week to increase economic growth in Iowa and increase profitability for Iowa farmers. HSB 674: Iowa Skilled Workforce Act Introduced to the House today, the Iowa Skilled Workforce act bridges gaps between available skilled job positions and the Iowans who have the credentials to fill them. This bill intends to create a partnership between the state, Iowa schools and relevant and important trades that Iowa and the future workforce needs. This legislation intends to do so by focusing on two main areas: Investing in the ...

Barker Bulletin

Resiliency and Workforce Americans are the best in the world at responding to and rebuilding from natural disaster, but we all know that we can do more to proactively plan for and prevent disasters before they start. That is why I filed HF 2158 which creates a statewide resilience plan for natural disaster. This will leverage Iowa’s strengths such as the Iowa Flood Center to help our state leaders better protect Iowans from natural hazards such as flooding. The bill has passed subcommittee in both the House and the Senate and is on track for the first funnel deadline. As many of you ...