Nurses and Health Policy and Politics: Get Involved--Make an Impact!

Nurses and Health Policy and Politics: Get Involved--Make an Impact!

1. 1. Levels of Public Health Policy

   • Local: Health care services offered to cities or counties; extensive or limited; some partnerships with state goverment
   • State: Governs health care profession's scope of practice via professional practice acts; partners with federal government insurance programs like Medicaid and Chip; source of funds for public health services
   • Federal: Leadership in passing The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act; significantly funds health care services; legislation impacts nursing practice greatly in many realms

2. 4. Using the Nursing Process in Health Policy

   • Nurses must be able to recognize healthcare issues that need addressed or policies that are ammendable. Each step of the nursing process can be used to help health care issue recognition.
     • ASSESSMENT: process of collecting information
     • ANALYSIS AND DIAGNOSIS: Information analyzed to determinte the fundamental issue
     • PLANNING: development of option or options for action
     • IMPLEMENTATION: actions taken to put the plan in place
     • EVALUATION: evidence that determines the success or failure and the why? or why not? of the plan implemented

3. 5. How to get Involved

   • Register to vote in all elections and do your research of candidates--Be informed!
   • Join professional nursing organizations active in monitoring public health policy and informing their members of new or updated health policy
   • Work in political candidates' campaigns by educating candidates on health care issues.
   • Face-to-face meetings with policymakers and their staff members to provide health care issues
   • Participate in town hall meetings where communities can meet the candidates
   • Communicate with Policymakers and be brief, specific, personal, persistent, and provide contact information.

4. 3. Policy Development and Regulation

   • Health care policy development is an extremely complex process that involves all 3 branches of government: Executive, Legislative, Judicial
   • It takes a policymaker who is willing to take the dedicated steps necessary through the complex legislative, regulatory, or funding processes to turn a health problem into a public policy.
   • Only a slim percentage of the proposed legislation actually become law.
   • Once a policy is made, the jurisdiction of a department under the executive branch will develop regulations for implementation
   • It is imperative that supporters of new health policies ensure that the regulations are true to the implementation plan

5. 2. Why do nurses need to get involved in Health Policy and Politics?

   • Increased state and federal government involvement in health care
   • Practice of Nursing is directly impacted by health policy development
   • Major health care issues have the attention of the media and governmental policymakers
   • Spotlight is on nursing as the profession expands and evolves.