Respond?to two of your colleagues posts by suggesting additional opportunities or recommendations for overcoming the challenges described by your colleagues.PEERRESPONSESTHEROLEOF
Respond to two of your colleagues posts by suggesting additional opportunities or recommendations for overcoming the challenges described by your colleagues.
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Peer 1
Betty Hyunjung Kim
The role of the RN/APRN in policy-making
Registered Nurses and Advanced Practice Registered Nurses can actively influence and participate in policy-making through involvement in health policy committees and leadership roles within their healthcare organizations. Firstly, RNs and APRNs can join or form committees within their healthcare organizations or professional nursing associations that are dedicated to policy advocacy. These committees analyze current policies, propose changes, and work to influence legislators and other policymakers. The challenge here is navigating the often complex political process and finding time amidst busy clinical roles. RNs and APRNs can overcome this by obtaining specialized training in policy-making and advocacy and by collaborating with experienced colleagues who can mentor them through the process.
Secondly, RNs and APRNs can take on leadership roles such as Chief Nursing Officer or Nurse Manager, where they have a platform to initiate policy changes within their organizations that can improve patient care and advocate for the nursing profession. The challenge in leadership roles is balancing administrative responsibilities with clinical practice and the necessity to continuously update policies to keep up with the rapid changes in healthcare. To address these challenges, RNs and APRNs might pursue further education in healthcare administration and engage in lifelong learning to remain current on best practices in healthcare policy and management. By actively engaging in these opportunities, RNs and APRNs leverage their expertise to contribute to policy-making that impacts their practice and the wellbeing of their patients.
To better advocate for RNs and APRNs' involvement in policy-making, the first strategy would be to enhance networking and professional development through continuous education and conferences. For instance, creating a regular series of webinars that focus on the role of nurses in policy-making could be an effective way to educate and motivate nurses about these opportunities. These webinars could be promoted through nursing associations and social media platforms, ensuring a broad reach. Additionally, offering Continuing Education credits for participating in such webinars could further incentivize RNs and APRNs to attend.
The second strategy would be to establish mentorship programs that pair less experienced nurses with seasoned veterans who have successfully navigated the policy-making arena. For example, a "Policy Mentorship Match-up" program could be introduced at annual nursing conferences or within large healthcare institutions. Experienced policy-making nurses would take on mentees, guiding them through the steps of getting involved in policy panels or governmental committees, and sharing their insight into effective advocacy. Nurses in these mentorship programs would gain firsthand knowledge and could share success stories within their professional networks to inspire others.
In conclusion, nurses and APRNs have a unique opportunity to contribute to policy-making that impacts their practice and the healthcare system as a whole (Hofler, 2006). By actively pursuing further education, engaging in lifelong learning, and participating in networking and mentorship programs, nurses and APRNs can become influential advocates for policy change and make a meaningful difference in the healthcare landscape (Abood, 2007).
References
Abood, S. (2007). Influencing health care in the legislative arena. OJIN: The Online Journal of Issues in Nursing, 12(1). https://doi.org/10.3912/ojin.vol12no01man02
Hofler, L. D. (2006). Learning from the best: The benefits of a structured health policy fellowship in developing nursing health policy leaders. Policy, Politics, & Nursing Practice, 7(2), 110–113. https://doi.org/10.1177/1527154406290910
Peer 2 Sandy L Sullivan
Opportunities
Opportunities that exist for registered nurses and advanced practice registered nurses with legislation and policymaking
are extensive, even on a smaller scale.
Professional organizations actively lobby for new policies affecting nursing roles and patient safety by giving
real-time perspective on staffing ratios and the healthcare system itself as it affects patient outcomes. Becoming
active in professional organizations such as ANA gives nursing the chance to influence lawmakers in educating those
who aren’t experienced in healthcare about what it looks like from the inside.
Run for office. This was a surprising thing noted in nursing journals. The thought of running for office on an official level
probably scares most of us. Active involvement, starting at the local level can even affect change in public health policy
and hospital administration. (Morris, 2023) Many laws are being supported and passed without any healthcare
professional involvement, and as nurses, we play an essential role in showing how the changes made on the government
level within healthcare need input from those on the frontline.
Nurses do not fully realize their potential when engaging in health policy, advocacy, and leadership. (Turale &
Kunaviktikul, 2019) This article is very informative concerning how nurses influence politics within healthcare because we
are the frontline advocates for patient safety, health outcomes, and delivery of care. It is also important to lobby for safer
staffing to relieve job burnout, stress, and unsafe work practices as those same frontline workers to advocate for
themselves within the job market.
Challenges
Existing challenges faced by nurses to be involved in policymaking can be many. Involvement in professional
organizations would be an easy one at first. Pay your dues, use the resources available, and become part of the voice. The
larger challenge with this opportunity would be having the time to learn the process of making change. Lobbying for
change is a large part of what these organizations do. Knowing the procedures for policymaking, learning the ins and outs
of lawmaking, and researching each topic thoroughly to understand the intricacies of that policy before advocating the
changes takes time and diligence.
Running for office would be a large challenge. Knowledge background in the ways of policy change, having the
experience to back up those proposed changes and understanding how even the smallest transformation in a policy can
make a huge impact on the lives of the patients we care for.
Conclusion
In conclusion, there are several ways to become involved in policymaking as a registered nurse or APRN. Finding an
avenue available such as local involvement, professional organization involvement, and even running for office are only a
small part of what is available.
References
Morris, G., November 10, 2023. 10 Ways Nurses Can Get Involved in Policy. NurseJournal.
Morris, G., October 10, 2023. Why Policy Engagement Is the Next Big Nursing Trend. NurseJournal.
Turale, S., & Kunaviktikul, W. (2019). The contribution of nurses to health policy and advocacy requires leaders to provide training and mentorship. International Nursing Review, 66(3), 302-304. https://doi.org/10.1111/inr.12550
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