Nursing is one of the largest medical profession globally, and there are over 4 million nurses in the United States alone. Nurses, therefore, can influence policy formation through politics at the state level, national and even internationally. The profession deals with the science of human health and caring for people over all levels of society. The political policies of any country should always strive to make the lives of its citizens better and to improve healthcare is one way of doing it. A lot of social determinants of health are influenced by political choices (Jacobs & Skocpol, 2015). When nurses speak up and advocate for specific reforms in the healthcare system, they do so not for their good but the good of the general public. Furthermore, nurses have the moral and professional obligation to influence political decisions that affect their patients. It is, however, unfortunate that nurses have had minimal participation in policy formation concerning the profession. Even though there are some limitations preventing nurses from having a say in politics, there are many resources that nurses can utilize.
There are several roles that nurses play in politics and policy formation at any level of government. First, nurses can advocate for enactment of legislation that helps to reduce exposure of people to injuries and diseases. When nurses influence the government to criminalize an act such as texting and driving, accidents are likely to reduce and hence the work to be done by nurses will reduce. Many illnesses can be prevented better when legislation is enacted. Nurses can also lobby for increments in the resources supplied to health care facilities by the government so that patients can be attended to effectively. Nurses can also affect political decisions to suit their interests. Examples of the benefits that can be impacted by politics include salaries and allowances, being awarded working contracts and better working conditions. Even if most of the interests seem beneficial to the nurse alone, it has an indirect effect on patients and the general public at large. A nurse that is paid well feels satisfied, and he/she is more likely to offer better services. Many patients have issues affecting them that they would like the government to address but lack the means. The nurses have a better chance of informing the government of such matters on behalf of the patients.
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A nurse has many resources to use to be able to have a political say. At the state level, a nurse can be politically active by assuming leadership opportunity in the healthcare system. It is unfortunate for nurses to leave a person from a different field to run their affairs. Nurses should also try to ensure that one of their own gets such a position. One of the simplest ways of providing that is just voting. Nurses can take advantage of their large numbers to dictate the leader of not only a healthcare system but also on other senior political positions. For the high jobs in the state or federal government, the nurses can unanimously agree to offer training opportunities to some of their colleagues to equip them with necessary political skills. Nursing leaders in one nation can also collaborate with the leaders in other countries to ensure that policies affecting the world are enacted. Through such means, a nurse can have a say both locally and internationally.
Nurses can also have a say on an individual basis without joining an organization. It is easier for a single person to do something than a large organization. Even if a large organization has the advantages of high financial power and better negotiation skills, coming up with a decision takes typically too long. An individual can see an opportunity and act on it without consultation. A single nurse can vie for a political position in the state or federal government and advocate the nursing issues once in office. There are already nurses serving in the legislature of states such as Oregon, Pennsylvania, Hawaii, California, Georgia, Maryland, Arizona and Minnesota. One of the other means is through writing. A nurse can air out some of the pressing issues through writing in journals, newspapers or blogs. The writings will push government officials to address the issue or even give them an extra knowledge so that they can incorporate into their decision making. Direct writing to people in high political positions is also another way of influencing the political reforms affecting healthcare.
Education is another resource that nurses can use well to advocate for more influence in the political decisions of the nation. Students should be taught right from the nursing colleges of their role to play in politics to spark some level of activism in them. Healthcare policy education curriculum can be introduced to induce students into politics. Nurses can also join a professional nursing organization. These organizations usually present their grievances to the government and have a better say than an individual. When many nurses enter the organization, it makes it stronger and also helps it have better bargaining power. Organizations such as the American Association of Colleges of Nursing play a role in advocating for the formation of policies that support the nursing career. Cooperation with other occupations is also another resource that can be used to influence political decisions. Other fields such as public health and medicine are closely related to nursing. A collaboration of the three areas in the effort to see the government enact favorable policies has a high chance of success.
The legislature makes laws which many of them affect the daily operation of a nurse (Martin, 2015). Because the lawmakers are not thinking with a nurse perspective, many of the passed laws adversely affect the nursing career. Such laws make nurses frustrated which may lead to negativity in the workplace and hence low productivity. Low productivity in the nursing career can mean a loss of life. When there is no nurse intervention in the creation of policies, nurses might be forced to comply with a hard rule in their practice. It is so because there are laws passed that stipulate the regulations to be followed by nurses when dealing with patients. No one understands the issues faced by patients more than a nurse. Enacting guidelines that affect patients without the participation of nurse can negatively impact the practice. Issues such as insurance policies and financial assistance cannot be well dealt with without the aid of nurses who deal with patients directly. The working conditions of healthcare facilities can be deplorable if nurses’ voices fell in deaf ears, and the effects are felt most by patients.
References
Jacobs, L., & Skocpol, T. (2015). Health care reform and American politics: What everyone needs to know. Oxford University Press.
Martin, C. J. (2015). The effects of nurse staffing on quality of care. MedSurg Nursing, 24(2), S4-S4.
