Advocating Through Policy As noted by Dr. Stanley and Dr. White in this weeks media presentation, professional nurses should be engaging in advocacy efforts to improve health and nursing practice through involvement in the policy process at the institutional,
Advocating Through Policy
As noted by Dr. Stanley and Dr. White in this weeks media presentation, professional nurses should be engaging in advocacy efforts to improve health and nursing practice through involvement in the policy process at the institutional, local, state, or federal levels. This array of possibilities for involvement provides opportunities for all nurses, regardless of time, or other possible constraints. Successful policy making is a collaborative effort, and one that commands mutual respect from all involved. Your involvement in policy making can lead to expanded opportunities as both a nurse leader and as a respected member of an interprofessional health care team.
Note: This Discussion provides a forum for discussing advocacy opportunities and honing your presentation skills in a small group setting.
To prepare:
Reflect on the insights offered by Dr. Stanley and Dr. White on engaging in advocacy through the policy process.
Identify a practice issue that is of interest to you and that could benefit from advocacy efforts through the policy process.
Consider the stakeholders and any special interest or professional organizations that would support your issue.
Develop a short, yet persuasive PowerPoint (up to 3 slides IN APA FORMAT) as follows:
1) Identify the practice issue that would benefit from being addressed through the policy process
2) Represent the key stakeholders (i.e. use graphical images when possible)
3) Propose one strategy for how a nurse could advocate for this issue
The PowerPoint should be succinct, visually appealing, and effective.
By Tuesday 5/8/18 6pm
Post your PowerPoint presentation.
Required Readings
Bodenheimer, T., & Grumbach, K. (2016). Understanding health policy: A clinical approach (7th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Medical.
Chapter 17, Conclusion: Tensions and Challenges
This chapter concludes with final thoughts on the challenge of providing quality health care and controlling health care costs. The solution is likely to be resolved only by a collaborative approach, involving all health care stakeholders, and by health professionals taking the lead.
Howard, J., Levy, F., Mareiniss, D. P., Craven, C. K., McCarthy, M., Epstein-Peterson, Z. D., & et al. (2010). New legal protections for reporting patient errors under the Patient Safety and Quality Improvement Act: A review of the medical literature and analysis. Journal of Patient Safety, 6(3), 147-152.
The authors studied the dissemination of information on the Patient Safety and Quality Improvement Act (PSQIA), a federal act that affords protection to those reporting medical errors. They found medical literature to be inadequate in this regard, and as a result, medical personnel were uninformed on their legal protections. This lack of information has become a barrier to policy implementation.
Jacobson, N., Butterill, D., & Goering, P. (2003). Development of a framework for knowledge translation: Understanding user context. Journal of Health Services Research & Policy, 8(2), 9499.
Lau, B., San Miguel, S., & Chow, J. (2010). Policy and clinical practice: Audit tools to measure adherence. Renal Society of Australasia Journal, 6(1), 3640.
The authors study the compliance to renal-care policies by health care professionals. They conclude with the necessity for nurses to support evidence-based protocols as well as to obtain continuing education on new protocols.
McCracken, A. (2010). Advocacy: It is time to be the change. Journal of Gerontological Nursing, 36(3), 15-17.
The author proposes that nurses, as patient advocates, need to be more involved in the making of health care policy instead of reacting to policies that are constantly changing. The article provides a guide to help organize initial policy
