course material

1. Influencing health care in the legislative arena
Influencing health care in the legislative arenaInfluencing health care in the legislative
arenaIf I were to input word into a nursing word cloud describing a nurse, I would choose
the following: Dedicated, Leader, Advocate, Empathetic, Caring, Scholar, Organized,
Powerful, Smart, Decisive. My list could go on and complete this entire paper. Before this
class, I will be honest; I never thought much about politics and policies from a nursing
perspective. I have since joined the American Nurses Association (ANA). Upon reviewing
their website, I saw many statements that encouraged me to join and become an active
member. Nurses instinctively advocate for their patients, their workplaces, and their
communities. Still, legislative and political advocacy is no less critical to advancing the
profession and patient care (American Nurses Association, n.d.). As a Nurse, I have always
stated and believed I should advocate for my patients and colleagues; I just was not sure
until now how to make significant changes. Every Nurse and APRN should familiarize
themselves with a Nursing association, at least spend some time looking around the
webpages and learning what they do for patients and colleagues, spending some time
researching the changes they advocate for and the difference made. If policies were made
only by politicians, they would lack the clinical and empathetic portion. Public policy related
to financing health care not only must assure access and quality but also bend the cost curve
downward (Milstead & Short, 2019). Politicians are lovely at the cost curve portion, but how
would they have the background to understand if the access and quality of care are being
hindered? Nurses and APRNs can also choose to be involved by writing their local legislative
members. You can handwrite or e-mail; sending them information, stories, or the reason
you are advocating can go a long way. Influencing health care in the legislative arenaI think
one challenge nurses and APRN might be afraid of when they think about getting involved in
politics and the making of policies is the time consumption. As it is nurses work long hours,
only one state right now limits the number of hours a nurse can work; the rest are often
mandated numerous overtime shifts a week, and still must have time for family and life. By
becoming involved through an organization such as ANA, you are not alone. You can partake
as much as you have time. Any nurse who is interested in influencing the policy process,
even one with limited time and resources, can find a way to become a confident advocate
(Abood, 2007). A second challenge, as mentioned previously, is a lack of knowledge on how
to get involved. I think more nursing programs and APRN programs need to teach students
Health policies and politics courses. Education is critical and understanding makes items
less intimidating. The big world of politics is less scary if you are not going into it

2. alone.ORDER NOW FOR ORIGINAL, PLAGIARISM-FREE PAPERSReferenceAbood,S. (2007,
January). Influencing health care in the legislative arena. OJIN: The OnlineJournal of Issues
in Nursing.
https://ojin.nursingworld.org/MainMenuCategories/ANAMarketplace/ANAPeriodicals/OJI
N/TableofContents/Volume122007/No1Jan07/tpc32_216091.aspxAmerican Nurses
Association (ANA). (n.d.). Advocacy. Retrieved September 20, 2018,
fromhttps://www.nursingworld.org/practice-policy/advocacy/Milstead, J. A., & Short, N. M.
(2019). Health policy and politics: A nurse’s guide (6th ed.).Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett
Learning. Influencing health care in the legislative arenaostAshley Novak RE: Discussion –
Week 8COLLAPSEWeek 8 – Main PostThere are many opportunities that exist for RN’s and
APRN’s to actively participate in policy-making. The first opportunity I found was for
APRN’s to write their state or federal legislators regarding a health policy bill that they are
passionate about. Since we are on the front-lines with the patient’s we can share personal
stories that might influence the legislators. Another opportunity would be to join nursing
organizations that lobby on behalf of patients, such as the AANP. Nurses are able to join
health policy committees within some of these organizations and offer personal experiences
to support a bill (Chilton, 2015).Some of the challenges I could see would be that many
legislators don’t have any experience in healthcare and they might have a hard time
understanding where the nurse is coming from. I think this is a good opportunity for nurses
to continue to educate. “Nurses are articulate experts who can address both the rational
shaping of policy and the emotional aspects of the process (Milstead, 2016, p. 15).Some
other barriers for nurses include lack of involvement and negative image of nursing.
Strategies that can help is for nurses to gain confidence and experience in nursing policy
and legislation. The more we know, the more we can become confident to legislators. The
other strategy is to encourage more nursing to gain this knowledge and confidence (Shariff,
2014). There is always power in numbers and I have realized in this course how important
it will be to be involved in nursing policy.ReferencesChilton, L. (2015). Nurse practitioners
have an essential role in health policy.The Journal for Nurse Practitioners,11(2),
A19.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nurpra.2014.10.009Milstead, J. A. (2016).Health policy and
politics: A nurse’s guide (health policy and politics)(5th ed.). Jones & Bartlett
Learning.Shariff, N. (2014). Factors that act as facilitators and barriers to nurse leaders’
participation in health policy development.BMC
Nursing,13(1).https://doi.org/10.1186/1472-6955-13-20USE TWO SOURCES ON EACH
DISCUSSION