Scenario
Your nurse executive wants the staff nurses to gain a better understanding of the types of nursing associations and the political advocacy they support. Each nurse manager has been asked to select a professional nursing association and political advocacy they support to research. You will need to research political advocacy from a professional nursing association of your choice and share your findings in a presentation to your staff.
Instructions
Part One – Selection of Political Advocacy
Visit a professional nursing association website to:
Locate the political advocacy statements.
Review the political advocacy statements posted,
Note the issues being discussed and whether they apply to all nurses or to a nursing specialty issue.
Select one political advocacy statement for the presentation.
Part Two – Presentation on Political Advocacy
Prepare a presentation and make a recording of your presentation that:
Identifies the professional nursing association and its constituents.
Examines the key elements of the political advocacy selected.
Summarizes concrete steps to advocate for this political advocacy as individual citizens and community partners.
Illustrates how your peers can support this political advocacy as future nursing professionals.
Provides stated ideas with professional language and attribution for credible sources with correct Help write my thesis – APA citation, spelling, and grammar in the presentation.
Resources
Library Databases
Health Policy Reference Center
Websites
Nursing Organizations
American Nurses Association
National League for Nursing
Association of Critical Care Nurses
The American Public Health Association
Guides & FAQs
PowerPoint FAQ
Video Using Screencast-O-Matic FAQ
Adding Audio to Presentation
Help write my thesis – APA Guide
Credible Sources FAQ
Nursing Guide
Rasmussen’s Answers/FAQs
NUR4327 Influence of policy finance and law Material
United States Constitution
The United States Constitution spells out the balance of power at the federal level and the rights of citizens, which are reflected in the Amendments to the Constitution.
Source: Adapted from George C. Edwards, Martin P. Wattenberg, and Robert L. Lineberry, Government in America: People, Politics, and Policy (White Plains, NY: Pearson Longman, 2011), 46.
Influential Power
The first ten amendments to the Constitution are called the Bill of Rights, which enshrine individual liberties of US citizens. These include the right to speak freely and voice your opinion, the right to practice your religion, the right to bear arms, and the right to vote.
Most important is the First Amendment: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of a religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of people to peaceably assemble, and to petition the government for redress of grievances.”
Nurses have drawn attention to their causes by speaking freely as individuals and through writing opinion columns and letters to the editor in the press. Nurses are often guests on local talk shows and radios on a variety of topics. Establishing good relationships with members of the media can be an effective way to generate attention to your cause.
Nurses have also been involved in peaceful marches and meeting on the grounds of the Nation’s Capital as well as various statehouses. These are effective in drawing the attention of the press and legislators, their staff members, and others who may also be interested in your cause. This is an excellent opportunity to remind the public and representatives that nursing professionals represent over three million potential votes.
Social Demographic Power
Nurses serve as staff to members of Congress in specific committees where bills are debated before sending them forward for a full vote. Some nurses have also served as members of Congress. Getting to know your representatives and their staff is the best way to establish relationships where you can serve as professional advisors on specific health issues and legislation. Because members of Congress must run for election every two years, they are always looking for campaign volunteers, opportunities to speak to constituents, and for campaign contributions. This opportunity brings you, as a nurse, to the attention of the candidate, which enables you access to expressing your views and advocating for your patient populations.
Join your professional nursing organization, as many nursing organizations have a policy division that monitors current legislation and sends out alerts for you to contact your representatives before a vote. They also work with other organizations to draft legislation on important issues and work hard to mobilize members to speak to their representatives. Nurses then encourage patient, families, and colleagues to vote and become part of the lobbying and voting process.
Resources
• The US Constitution
• Bill of Rights Institute
• Nurses in Congress
• Congressional Record
• Office of the Federal Register
Source(s)
Paletz, D., Owen, D., & Cook, T. (2012). 21st century American government and politics. Retrieved from https://2012books.lardbucket.org/books/21st-century-american-government-and-politics/s06-the-constitution-and-the-struc.html
Political Action
Policy Versus Politics
Understanding the difference between policy and politics is essential when looking at political action in nursing. Policies are decisions made by people with the power and authority to act on the decisions. Hospital administrators and nursing leaders make policy decisions on a micro-level about behaviors and principles of action. Political leaders who are elected and the executive branch make policy decisions on a macro-level.
The word politics’ meaning is derived from Aristotle’s book, “Citizen Affairs”, which is about government and how to govern. Politics is the art and science of the organizational process of governing. Policy influence is tied to authority, power, advocacy, and the ability to be involved in decisions, policy making, and influencing the political process and policy involvement.
Policy Influence
Policy influence moves from policy literacy that is understanding the basics of how policy is made to policy acumen. Once the basics of policy literacy are mastered, the nursing professionals can acquire policy understanding, where they use their expertise to evaluate policies and the need for policies which advocate for the well-being of individuals, families, and communities, as well as the nursing profession. Serving on policy committees in professional organizations is a way to learn better how to dissect proposed legislation and its potential impact.
Think about an experienced women’s health nurse and her ability to evaluate policies that impact the issue of post-partum in both a positive and negative way. This nurse can then influence the opinion of others who are aligned with her cause, which could include more formalized screening and care for women with post-partum depression.
Policy influence culminates in an individual nurse, a collective group, or a coalition to give strategic consultation to policy-makers about issues. They can then have essential roles in the development, implementation, and evaluation of government policies about healthcare. Take the issue of expanding Medicaid coverage in individual states. Nurses must be knowledgeable about the impact of not acting versus acting on the health status of citizens. They then need to align with other professionals and influence groups to communicate the importance of this issue in the broader context of cost versus benefit to the overall economic and political well-being of the state and its elected officials.
Strategic consultation requires having recognized expertise in a specific area. These are individuals who have risen in elected leadership positions within associations, those with executive-level positions, researchers with specific published findings and expertise, and others who are recognized as leaders in their communities. These individuals are put forth as experts to advise legislators, staff, and the media about issues and potential policies.
Having a real impact on health policy requires political power. Unfortunately, nurses acting on their own rarely have the power to influence how social and political capital is spent by politicians. Nurses are not known for voting in blocks, contributing substantial financial support, or even for having a unified voice. Although there are over four million registered nurses in the US, fewer than 20% belong to the American Nurses Association or a state affiliate. One of the issues that have risen is the overwhelming alignment of ANA positions and endorsements with the Democratic Party. This overwhelming alignment has led to some Republican members seeing ANA as not being politically partisan and representing all the 4 million nurses. This view is a barrier to power and reduces the ability of the ANA to influence.
One of the key differences between the ANA and the American Hospital Association is that the AHA gives contributions to both parties and has power with both the Republican and Democratic parties. This ability to work “both sides of the aisle” is crucial in advancing issues that nurses are finding themselves supporting. There will always be conflicting opinions on issues. Being seen as politically neutral gives more weight to the profession, as advocates for the profession and their patients, families, and communities.
Resources
• Taking Action – A toolkit for becoming politically involved
Source(s)
Maryville University. (n.d). Famous nurse: Clara Barton. Retrieved from https://online.maryville.edu/online-doctorate-degrees/doctor-nursing-practice/clara-barton/
Postpartum Depression. [Photograph]. Retrieved from Encyclopedia Britannica Image Quest. https://quest.eb.com/search/142_2336486/1/142_2336486/cite
Political Nursing Organization
Policy Literacy: Call to Action
One of the ways professional nursing organizations influence political action is by immediate communication to members asking them to contact their legislators on critical issues, usually up for a vote in the immediate future. This “call to action” is done by email or listserv with the information on the policy/law up for a vote, nursing’s position on the vote, and rationale for voting a specific way. The call to action generally specifies a timeline for action. Nurses who are politically literate understand that their representative will pay more attention to voting members of his/her district than a general association position paper when it comes down to a vote on an issue.
Policy Acumen: Position Statements and Testimony
One of the benefits of having multiple nursing specialty organizations is their ability to focus on a single disease or population. Having missions that are similar allow specialty organizations to work through coalitions in providing expert advice and in negotiating through the tumultuous legislative process.
For instance, nurses who belong to the Association of Nurses in AIDs Care will have a focus in aligning with the community and patient groups, public health officials, and other professionals and researchers working in HIV/AIDs. In addition, the powerful pharmaceutical industry’s interests may also align to seek better therapies for the prevention and treatment of HIV/AIDs. Their viewpoints may result in stronger inter-professional recommendations and the collective wisdom of legislative politics.
Strategic Consultation: The National Institute of Nursing Research
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is a federal agency which supports health research in the United States. In 1955, a famous heart surgeon and inventor Dr. Michael DeBakey articulated the need for a national nursing research institute. A Division of Nursing was established as part of the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), whose purpose is to provide training for nurse investigators, funding for research projects, and post-doctoral fellowship programs. In 1985, the outstanding research by nurse scientists resulted in the Health Research Extension Act of 1985 (P.L. 99-158), which created the National Center for Nursing Research (NCNR), later the National Institute for Nursing Research (NINR) at the National Institutes of Health.
Power and Influence: The Tri-Council for Nursing
Recognizing the need for individual nursing groups to work together on policy uses, the Tri-Council for Nursing is an alliance among the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, the American Nurses Association, the American Organization of Nurse Executives, and the National League for Nursing. While each organization has its primary mission and membership constituency, they are united in the shared values and ethics of the nursing profession. They focus on dialogue, consensus building, and stewardship of the nursing profession. Policy and position statements cover a wide variety of issues from practice, leadership, research, and education. Joint statements have covered topics such as the need to increase access to care through Advanced Practice Nursing, the interstate recognition of nursing licensure, the need for nursing civility, and an offer to serve as an expert resource for federal administration.
Political involvement is not a question of choice; it is instead to what degree nursing professionals wish to participate in the political process of creating, establishing, and evaluating health policies. Working through professional organizations is one way of being involved in whatever is aligned with your interests, time commitments, or inclination. From voting to political power, nurses must provide a voice to support our profession and to advocate for our populations.
Resources
• National Institute of Nursing Research Strategic Plan
Policy & Politics in Nursing and Health Care (7th ed.), Chapters 1 (pp 1-21), 2 (pp 22-29), 7 (pp 61-72), 73 (pp 588
