DNP 820 Health Policy and Advocacy

Module 4 Discussion

DQ1 Choose four nursing organizations. Compare and contrast their legislative agendas. Synthesize the connections between organizational missions and legislative agendas.

DQ2 Evaluate the legislative priorities of four nursing groups. How many focus on the profession of nursing? How many focus on the health of the community? Support your discussion with two peer reviewed articles that evaluate advocacy of the nursing profession versus health patient/community. How does advocating for the nursing profession support healthy outcomes?

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The legislative agendas of nursing organizations

Introduction

The legislative agendas of nursing organizations are a great resource for anyone interested in learning more about the issues impacting nurses today. They offer an overview of what’s happening on Capitol Hill, which can help you stay informed about upcoming legislation and make sure your organization is doing its part to support those efforts.

American Nurses Association – The ANA Agenda

The ANA is a nonprofit organization that represents nurses in the United States. The ANA also works to improve patient care, advocate for public health, and establish standards of practice for nurses.

The ANA’s legislative agenda includes:

• The support of nursing education programs at all levels;

• Providing better working conditions for nurses;

• Increasing access to quality healthcare through improved reimbursement policies; and

• Ensuring that patients have access to culturally competent healthcare providers

American Organization of Nurse Executives – the AONE legislative agenda

The American Organization of Nurse Executives (AONE) is a professional association that represents the nursing industry. Through its legislative agenda, AONE advocates for policies and laws that support nurses’ work environments, provide quality patient care, advance public health and safety. In addition to its legislative priorities, AONE has also developed policy positions on various issues such as patient safety awareness training; nurse licensing/certification requirements; education reform initiatives; economic security programs for RNs working in public health settings or with underserved communities

Association for Nursing Professional Development – Legislative Priorities

The Association for Nursing Professional Development (ANA) is a membership organization that promotes professional development and excellence in nursing education and practice. The ANA has several legislative priorities—the first of which is to educate members about how their elected representatives can be effective advocates when it comes to improving the health care system. ANA has identified four key areas where they want Congress to prioritize action:

• Improving access to high-quality care through bipartisan solutions that expand coverage, reduce cost burdens on individuals and families, promote consumer choice while maximizing value through competition between insurers and providers;

• Strengthening our nation’s public health infrastructure through investments in research funding at all levels of government;

• Promoting innovation within healthcare delivery systems so that patients receive quality care while being treated with dignity according to their needs rather than restrictions imposed by insurance companies or employers;

Association of Veterans Affairs Nurse Anesthetists – Legislative Priorities

• VA NURSE ANESTHETISTS (VANNA) Legislative Priorities

• * 115th Congress: VANNA is focusing on the following bill: The Veterans’ Mental Health and Wellness Act which will improve access to mental health care, increase suicide prevention education and awareness, and improve access to PTSD treatment.

• * 114th Congress: VANNA is working with other organizations on a number of bills that would expand eligibility for VA care through private insurance plans or Medicaid expansion. These include: The Veterans Choice Accountability Act; The Consumer Protection Act; The Accessible Benefits for All Americans Act; and A Bill To Increase Oversight Over Government Contractors Who Provide Services To Our Troops Overseas Through The Department Of Defense Appropriations Bill For Fiscal Year 2020 (HR 6120).

Emergency Nurses Association – ENA’s Current Legislative Initiatives

ENA’s legislative priorities for 2019

• End the practice of mandatory overtime in hospitals, long-term care facilities and home care agencies. This would be accomplished through a ban on mandatory overtime as well as legislation that allows employers to provide unpaid leave when an employee feels they need it. It also would require that any personnel policy or practice that requires employees to work more than eight hours in one day be justified by clear evidence of benefit to the employer (for example, if the practice is based on operating budget requirements).

• Eliminate mandatory overtime for nurses at all levels of nursing care from both public and private sectors across Canada (with exceptions for some types of urgent situations). In addition, this policy would guarantee full-time employment for all RNs working in Canada; it would also ensure equal pay for men and women based on gender identity or expression; provide equal opportunities for advancement within organizations without regard to gender identity or expression; prohibit discrimination against LGBTI people at all times including during employment practices where members’ sexual orientation/gender identity was not known until discovered during an investigation into allegations made against them.”

American Association of Critical-Care Nurses – AACN’s Legislative Agenda

The American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN) is the largest organization representing the specialty of critical care nursing. As such, it has a legislative agenda that includes issues related to patient safety and quality care. In fact, AACN has been leading the way in advocating for patients’ rights since its inception over fifty years ago.

However, even though AACN’s legislative priorities are often at odds with those of other groups within healthcare today—most notably physician organizations—its efforts have managed to garner support from lawmakers on both sides of aisle as well as those outside of them entirely (such as consumer advocates). While this may seem like good news for anyone who wants more transparency in patient outcomes research or improved communication between providers and patients alike, there are still serious concerns about how these proposals can be implemented without infringing upon patient privacy rights or violating HIPAA regulations which require medical information sharing only if it’s necessary for patient care purposes

Takeaway:

The takeaway is the final section of a blog post, and it should be the most important thing to take away from the post. It should be concise and easy to understand, but also emphasize the main point or core idea. This can be done by using an abstract sentence in order to summarize what you’ve learned so far in your reading experience: “The takeaway from this article is that nursing organizations are looking for legislative agendas.”

Conclusion

This is just a sampling of the legislative agendas of some of the largest nursing organizations in the US. For a complete list, check out our Legislative Agenda page.