Essay On Lobbyist And Advocate

This assignment requires that I develop and thoroughly analyze a public policy in order to advocate for one that improves the health of the public and/or the nursing profession globally (local, state, national or international). To do this, I must reflect on several aspects of being a policy maker within the nursing profession. I was instructed to consider the following:

Nursing is defined as the promotion, protection and the prevention of illness and Injury, the treatment of a patient’s disease or diseases, the patient’s response to a disease, as well as one big thing that nurses are known for, and that is being a patient’s advocate nursing has been one of the fastest growing fields since the 1990’s (Mueller et al.,2012). Advocacy is defined as an action in which a person speaks out, argues a cause, supports and defends on the behalf of others. I believe that the role of being a patient advocate is one of the most important things a nurse can do because there are many patients that cannot speak on their behalf, I believe that it is up to the nurses to be those patients as well as all patient’s voices (Mueller et al., 2012).

The four spheres of political action in nursing as mentioned by Mason, Leavitt, and Chaffee (2011) includes the workplace or workforce, the government, the organizations, and the community. The authors further stated that although the four spheres overlap at times, the action performed in any one of these spheres can cause a reaction in any of the others. Nurses are a part of the community in which they live and can influence health and social policy within their workplace, which can have a profound impact on the organization. Furthermore, the government can pass health care policies, which in turn causes the organization to change their policy. Thus, affecting healthcare providers in the workplace and the community at large. An example of

Being the number one most trusted profession in the country allows nurses to truly take charge and make a difference in the policy arena Health Care Reform. (2017).

Nurses’ involvement in policy debates brings our professional values to bear on the process. (Warner, 2003) The Master’s prepared nurse’s goal as an advocate should be to fight to enhance the client’s wellbeing in every possible way, at every available opportunity. This can be achieved by being part of organization that advocate for patients’ right as well as for better working condition for our colleagues. Also, nurses could choose to get involved in politics or lobby on behalf of other nurses.

The organization which I have chosen to exemplify my policy change will be the Florida state board of nursing. Every aspect that pertains to the nursing, and overall healthcare is embedded into the board of nursing and that is why for these and other reasons which I will later discuss, I have chosen this organization. The Florida board of nursing plays an essential role in health care regulation as the board members and staff interact regularly with other nursing associations affiliated with state legislators, as well as the National Council of State Board of Nursing. The board of nursing works with law politicians to change or invoke new healthcare policies, which play an integrate role in patient care.

Nurses have the ability to have their voice received which can aid with change in health care by a number of ways, one of which is to become active within the community and advocate for nursing and advanced care for the public. One way this can be done is to influence legislators by becoming active in supporting health care bills.

“The purpose of public policy is to direct problems to government and secure government’s response, while politics is the use of influence to direct the responses toward goals” (Milstead, 2013, p. 12). Policies are used as guidelines to reach a common goal. In healthcare, policies can affect and have an impact on how we provide care for our patients’. For this reason, it is important for nurses to be knowledgeable and involved in important healthcare decisions. “Knowledgeable nurses in advanced practice must demonstrate their commitment to action by being a part of relevant decisions that will ensure the delivery of quality health care by appropriate providers in a cost-effective manner” (Milstead, 2013, p. 1).

Political activism is an important complement for nurses in the clinical practice. Nurses are in an exceptional position not only to provide quality bed side care to their patients but also to advocate for change within the community and political field. Common problem affecting a group of people can be a political issue. Identifying the cause of this issue and advocating to solve the root cause with the help of decision makers like politicians, hospital executives, managers or government bureaucrats, nurses can bring beneficial changes in Canadian Health care system.

Many would not think that nursing and politics would make good collaborators. However, nurses approach politics similar to developing a care plan for patients. We identify the problem, implement a plan and evaluate (PIE). The director of the legislative committee shared an analysis process used to establish policy priorities and to accomplish change. This process is discussed in Mason et al. (2014): (a) identify the problem; (b) list proposed solutions; (c) know the history or background of the previous challenges to resolve

NURSES AND OTHER STAKEHOLDERS’ INVOLVEMENT IN THE DEVELOPMENT AND IMPEMENTATION OF HEALTHCARE POLICY IN THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA: CASE SCENARIO THE AFFORDABLE CARE ACT

Many times, the people who are creating policies or legislation for health care reform are not the “first providers” of the health care system. As the journal article, “Influencing Health Care in the Legislative Arena” stated, “[nurses] are often the first providers to see clearly when and how the health care system is not effectively meeting patients needs;” hence, we need more nurses to take a stance in the legislative arena.

As nurses we strive to always practice in the best of our ability. One way that that we can further our efforts is to utilize our voice through health-care lobbying. The best approach to health-care lobbying is to first understand the legislative process. Consequently the purpose of this paper is to distinguish the legislative process as well as convey the benefits of health-care lobbying to not only the workers but the patients.

Advocacy is risky, in that other peers may disagree with the decision when addressing the good of individuals or the nurse may potentially lose their position. But being able to find a balance between the foreseeable risks and benefits involved when advocating for better conditions is what leads to a more effective patient care plan (Edelman, Mandle, & Kudzma, 2014, p. 111). In the novel “A Nurse’s Story” by Tilda Shalof (2015), a positive example of advocacy is demonstrated between a patient named Sylvie and a nurse named Tracy. Sylvie is on the top of the organ transplant list for a new lung, but needs oxygen at the moment because she is struggling to breathe. The nurses are put in a situation where she either gets a sedation and intubation but gets taken off the transplant list, or gets the sedation and intubation to help her breathe at the moment. Despite the repercussions of possibly jeopardizing Sylvie’s chance for a lung transplant and going against the doctor in charge’s disapproval, she still gave her a dose of morphine to ease her breathing. Tracy in this situation is a perfect example of an advocate nurse. There were so many risks involved, but she was able to put a whole picture together and add in her instinct to come up with a plan of action. The interpersonal interaction between Tracy and her patient previously enabled her to spend more time to connect with the patient to understand what she needs and how to solve this situation. Not only did the nurse-patient relationship help the patient and her family feel as though they are being cared for, but also helped them feel more motivated to open up to the nurse to achieve better satisfaction. As said in the novel, “it was a small thing, but it was a big thing to Sylvie and her mother” (Shalof, 2015, p.

Nurse leaders are aware that today’s health care system has many issues complicating the goal of quality patient care and outcomes for all. Nurse leaders must stay informed and become involved as an advocate influencing changes in policy, laws, and/or regulations that govern the health care system they practice in. At times the advocacy requires a nurse leader to become more involved beyond their immediate level of practice and into the world of politics and policy.