Empowering Nurses: Advocating for Better Health Care Policies and Patient Well-Being

Influencing patient health through advocacy.

Did you know that as nurses we have the power to influence allocation of government funds and the passage of government bills on health care? Through advocacy for federal policy and appropriations (funding), we can influence the health care of our patients. We have a voice that can be used to provide lawmakers with a new perspective on the reasons for supporting health care policy. Government policies and budget allotment affect the health of constituents.  Through legislative action, nurses can make changes that affect the lives of individuals, especially those with chronic diseases, minority background, and economic instability.

Not just for patients but for the community.

The ethical principle of beneficence means to do good. As nurses, we have the responsibility to not only do good towards our patients but to communities, expanding our focus from the nurse–patient relationship to a broader community health lens. Nurses can move from patient advocacy that makes changes for one patient to policy advocacy that makes changes for communities of patients. As nurses, we can discuss disparities seen in health care with legislatures to provide a new and personal perspective on support of different health care laws.

Drawing attention to sickle cell disease.

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2023-08-17T12:50:15-04:00August 17th, 2023|Nursing|0 Comments
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Why Should You Care About Malaria?

malaria parasite Colorized electron micrograph showing malaria parasite (right, blue) attaching to a human red blood cell. The inset shows a detail of the attachment point.

In June and July, eight locally acquired cases of malaria were diagnosed in the U.S.—seven in Florida and one at the southern tip of Texas. Cases in the two states appear to be unrelated, and all patients are recovering. In both geographic areas, it’s likely that malaria in people with travel-related cases was transmitted by local (U.S.) mosquitoes to the people who developed the locally acquired cases.

Malaria was endemic in this country until the early 1950s, when mosquito control programs and public health campaigns brought the disease under control. Since that time, virtually all cases in the U.S—now at almost 2000 per year—have been travel related.

Malaria transmission.

Malaria is caused by several species of the Plasmodium parasite, transmitted by the bite of a female Anopheles mosquito infected by the parasite. In less than one percent of cases, transmission occurs congenitally or via transfusion, organ transplant, or unsafe needle sharing.

Why it matters.

If you’re not […]

2023-08-14T14:09:01-04:00August 14th, 2023|climate change, infectious diseases, Public health|0 Comments
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Prioritizing Assessment of Postoperative Movement-Evoked Pain

It hurts to move.

Staja Booker, PhD, RN

It’s 10:00, 15 hours postoperative, and your patient has eaten breakfast and is resting comfortably in bed. You ask the patient, “On a scale of zero to 10, how much pain are you having right now?” The patient replies “zero, as long as I don’t move.” The nurse documents the pain score as 0/10 and continues their rounds.

Most nurses are happy when patients report no pain. What is the nurse missing? The contextual factor called movement.

Several years ago, a research participant told me, “Ain’t no sense in getting up to hurt.” A very simple yet powerful statement began my quest to shift how we understand and assess the dynamics between pain and movement.

The realities are:

  • Movement increases acute pain postoperatively, and most patients are afraid to move even when the importance of ambulation is known.
  • Most patients need some type of pain medication or non-pharmacological intervention to engage in mobility-related activities.
  • Movement and mobility enhance recovery and rehabilitation.
  • Movement-evoked pain is as a major barrier to participating in activity-based interventions.

Movement-evoked pain is an important pain characteristic that describes pain and discomfort during active or passive motion of the affected area. Yet, despite awareness among nurses of the importance of setting function-related pain goals, most of our pain assessments are performed when […]

2023-07-31T09:32:18-04:00July 31st, 2023|Nursing, patient engagement, patient experience|0 Comments
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Recommended Reading from the August Issue of AJN

The August issue of AJN is now live.

“Nursing Care for Patients After Ostomy Surgery,” a CE feature, details the basics of pre- and postoperative care and patient education for colostomy and ileostomy—two of the most common types of ostomy surgery.

This month’s Original Research article is on nurses’ self-reported QI engagement and competence. Also see “Cultivating Quality: Reducing Tubing and Device Connections” to learn about a nurse-led QI project that explored misconnection prevention strategies.

“Fostering Race-Based Conversations in Nursing,” our latest Focus on DEI column, discusses ways to address racism and promote cultural competence.

AJN Reports examines the unintended consequences of online health care portals, noting that:

Although patient portals are designed to help with the management of personal health information, their proliferation may also be creating barriers to care for some people.

See also the extensive health care news sections, the Journal Watch and Drug Watch sections, a new installment in our series on palliative nursing, and a Reflections essay on how a school nurse compassionately cared for the author when she became pregnant at age 15—and whose kindness inspired the author to eventually become a family […]

2023-07-27T10:05:09-04:00July 27th, 2023|Nursing|0 Comments
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Why I Practice Dying: A Nurse’s Perspective

author Diane SolomonI’ve been fascinated by death as long as I remember.

Just before I turned eight, my Grampa Lewis died. The event left a lasting impression on me. He had gone to the hospital, puffy and deteriorating from kidney disease, at age 56. I remember that Dad parked the station wagon with faux wood paneling in the hospital lot and we all got out and stood there in cold December sunlight. Strict visiting hours prevailed then, and no kids were allowed, period. Dad pointed up to Grampa’s window, where he waved down at us through the glaring glass as we waved back. The youngest of four children, I was too embarrassed to admit I couldn’t locate him in the anonymous grid of windows.

At the funeral, I grappled with whether or not to look into the casket. Both available options seemed horrible—be forever haunted by a vision of dead Grampa, or guilt-ridden because I hadn’t respected him enough to look.

As a parent, I know no child should feel alone with that type of decision. But this was the 60s, when feelings weren’t discussed. Although neither an open casket or an embalmed body are traditionally Jewish, Granny must have decided she wanted it this way. At the last minute, as I hesitatingly […]

2023-07-19T11:42:15-04:00July 19th, 2023|end of life, Nursing, nursing perspective, palliative care|1 Comment
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Views expressed on the blog are solely those of the authors or persons quoted. They do not necessarily reflect AJN’s views or those of Wolters Kluwer Health/Lippincott Williams and Wilkins.
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