Role of the Professional Nurse in Health Policy Nursing is the most versatile occupation in the healthcare workforce. Nursing professionals perform numerous duties related to the delivery of care to the sick. Notably, the responsibilities of nurses have changed with time. Lúanaigh (2017) noted that whereas in the past nurses only assumed supportive roles, nowadays nurses can perform duties previously reserved for physicians. The rise of technology and its integration into healthcare has greatly influenced nursing roles. However, despite the change of responsibilities, the primary role of these professionals is to treat patients and provide other supportive services. The responsibilities that constitute a nurse's role include recording the medical history of patients, administering medications, performing diagnostic tests, patient education, collaboration with interdisciplinary teams, and provision of support and advice to patients, among other duties.
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During patient care, nursing professionals collaborate with other professionals and family members to manage the health needs of the client, treat diseases and prevent complications. Nurses closely monitor their clients and record relevant health data to make accurate decisions (Beeber et al., 2019). The role of professional nurses is, however, not limited to patient care. Nurses also participate in research, health policy development, advocacy, and lobbying activities. They evaluate the healthcare system to determine its stability besides identifying areas that need rectification. The participation of nurses in these activities ensures the industry's interests, patients' and family's values are integrated into all healthcare activities. Nurses’ participation in research helps develop new knowledge that can be integrated into the treatment plan. This paper explores the role of nurses in the development of health policies. The paper also highlights an action plan to increase the involvement of nurses in policy development tasks. Nurses role in policy development Irrefutably, nurses constitute the largest group of health care professionals globally. These professionals continue to impact the healthcare system through decision-making, planning, and policy development (Hassmiller & Pulcini, 2020). Notably, the nursing profession is entrenched in the science of human health and caring. It operates on principles that holistically reverence the people’s values. Importantly, the nursing profession seeks to advance people’s health across all levels of society. Helming, Shields, Avino, and Rosa (2020) pointed out that nurses can only achieve these objectives if competent policies are implemented. Nurses have the responsibility and capacity to influence change in the current and future healthcare delivery systems. Nurses can only achieve these changes through appropriate decisions and policymaking. Healthcare leaders are encouraged to ensure that nurses at all levels are informed of their role in advocacy, policy development, analysis and implementation (Helming, Shields,
Avino & Rosa, 2020). Healthcare policies define and integrate relevant standards for care delivery and improvement of healthcare outcomes. Nurse Managers work closely with other nursing professionals to inspire and influence relevant changes to public health policy. They also participate in political decision-making on different levels including local, national and state levels. Assessment of the health system The evaluation of the health system is an important nurses’ role in policy development. Nurses undergo extensive training on how to assess the healthcare environment and identify issues that could cripple the entire system. Due to their training and responsibilities, nurses are ever on the lookout for opportunities to change or improve health policies (Masters, 2018). They assess these opportunities to determine their relevance to quality care and the healthcare system. During the assessment of the healthcare environment, nurses interact with other professionals besides conducting interviews to identify issues that need rectification through policy development. Nurses also interview clients and family members to gather information on how various practices and health policies affect community members. Once policy development opportunities are identified, nurses formulate police messages that are forwarded to Nurse Managers. Nurse Managers, on the other hand, may initiate discussion forums where other leaders are granted an opportunity to explore the practicality of the issues raised. Decisions made in these discussions are forwarded to the hospital management for implementation. Nurses furnish the hospital management with details concerning the benefits and potential challenges of the proposed policy. If a policy is implemented, nurses are given the task of educating other staff on what that policy entails. Writing Publications
Nurses write policy statements, informative correspondence, newspaper editorials, and white papers that enlighten lawmakers and the public on specific health issues. These publications provide lawmakers and other interested parties with comprehensive details about how certain issues affect public health. Importantly they also provide solutions, which, if implemented, could effectively tackle public health challenges. Collaboration with Stakeholders Nurses foster relationships with policymakers and other stakeholders to advance policy agendas. At the hospital levels, nurses foster relationships with clinicians, subordinate staff, and hospital administrators to realize policy improvements. These relationships create strong partnerships, translating more broadly in the health policy realm (Lúanaigh, 2017). Nurses have realized the need to visualize policy as something they can formulate, change and modify rather than some principles imposed on them at any level. Nurses speak the language of policy and actively participate in political processes to ensure the interest of the industry at integrated into new policies. Health policy research Nursing research is an effective tactic employed by nurses to advance and inform health policy (Ellenbecker & Edward, 2016). Nurses perform an extensive investigation on healthcare issues to increase knowledge besides generating evidence to inform health policies to improve societal health outcomes. Research helps characterize, explain, inform and test a hypothesis. Policymakers rely on evidence from health policy research to devise strategies to improve care quality, reduce the cost of care, improve accessibility, and enhance efficiency (policy (Ellenbecker & Edward, 2016). Action plan to increase nurses’ participation in policy development
Nurses are present in almost all healthcare settings. These professionals, therefore, possess a distinctive role in formulating health policy. Various organizations, including the Institute of Medicine, acknowledge the integral role of nurses in policy development (Holtz, 2020). These organizations have called upon nurses to take up leadership roles in improving the quality of care. Health care institutions promote active participation by nurses in health policy formulation (McInnes, Lee & Youde, 2019). Institutions place nurses in leadership positions to voice the grievances of colleagues and clients. Institutions can enhance nurses' participation in policy development through extensive education. Nurses need to be trained on their roles and responsibility in policy development to use critical thinking and interpersonal skills to unearth challenges in the healthcare system and formulate practical solutions for integration into health policy. Nurses also need to take up leadership roles in the healthcare system and establish working relationships with political leaders and other policy developers. This responsibility enables nurses to propagate their grievances to the policy developers without hindrances. Nurses can also obtain formal training in politics to augment their leadership roles. Nurses equipped with political skills can become involved in political committees, council meetings, and even run for local political seats (Williams, Phillips & Koyama, 2018). Once nurses assume leadership at this level, they can exercise their right to vote policies that positively impact the healthcare system. Collaborative policy work can increase nurse involvement policy development. Nurses need to work together with other healthcare professionals to identify relevant health policy issues at the local, national and federal levels (McInnes, Lee & Youde, 2019). Collaboration helps
nurses to understand how policies have solved specific issues in other regions. Nurses can then utilize this knowledge to formulate competent health policies. Joining a professional nursing organization also grants nurses an opportunity to actively participate in policy-making. Professional organizations have lobbyists who propagate nursing issues at all levels of leadership. Conclusion Nurses, who constitute an integral element of the healthcare system, perform numerous duties including care delivery, treatment, diagnosis, patient education, and advocacy. Nurses participate in policy development at different levels. Health policy ensures that the industry's interests and the stakeholders are considered while performing any healthcare task. The health policies conducted by these professionals include research, collaboration with stakeholders, patient interviews and assessment of the healthcare system. Collaboration with stakeholders is essential for establishing strong partnerships translating more broadly in the health policy realm. Health policy research provides a platform to gather evidence on how challenging health issues can be effectively resolved through policy.
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