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Yindra Isaac Amador
Health Care Policy
A current Florida health education initiative is discussed by the American Association of Nurse Practitioners and that is the equalization of APRN’s to practice to their fullest knowledge and skill. Currently, the majority of states still limit the scope of the APRN’s practice. In Florida, there is still a limit to what the APRN’s can do. Prescriptive authority is currently under the jurisdiction of the state level. In my home state of Florida, NPs are not permitted to prescribe schedule I or II drugs, or refills for longer than 12 months except in the case of contraceptives or hormones (Florida Secretary of State, 2017). In the past ten years, not much has changed, for example, all prescriptions must abide by the nurse protocol agreement between the nurse practitioner and physician which must be worked out in advance (Florida Secretary of State, 2017). This obstruction to the practitioner’s ability to prescribe puts limitations on independent practice and limits patient care. NPs should be allowed to write the same prescriptions as physicians and practice to their greatest capabilities.
The utilization of mass media campaign is a vital tool due to its high proportion reach and regular usage alters health attitudes by invoking a cognitive reaction, imparts knowledge to influence decision making on health. Awareness encompasses dissemination of pamphlets, newspaper articles, and diversification of topics targeting different audiences on broadcast television. Public health education modifies the climate of opinion associated with a health topic by opening it up as an agenda for public debate (Mason, 2016, pp. 120- 135).
The media can mobilize intersectional partners with direct access to target masses for the optimal adoption of a behavioral change to minimize risk. Florida Department of health has a Tobacco Free Florida (TFF) program that has an annual week dedicated to sensitizing their population out of which 2.5 million are cigarette smokers (Levy et. al., 2015, pp. 61-75).
References
American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP). (2017). Retrieved from https://www.aanp.org/legislation-regulation/state-policy-toolkit#state-policy-issue-briefs
Levy, D. T., Lindblom, E. N., Fleischer, N. L., Thrasher, J., Mohlman, M. K., Zhang, Y., … & Nagelhout, G. E. (2015). Public health effects of restricting retail tobacco product displays and ads. Tobacco regulatory science, 1(1), 61-75.
Mason, D. J. (2016). Using the Power of Media to Influence Health Policy and Politics. In Policy & politics in nursing and health care (7th ed., pp. 120-135). St. Louis, MI: Elsevier, 2016.
Montavolo, W., and Goodwin-Veenema, T. (2015). Mentorship in developing transformational leaders to advance health policy: Creating a culture of health. Nurse Leader. DOI: 10.1016/j.mnl.2014.05.020
The Department of Health and Human Services. (2016) Retrieved from https://myclasses.southuniversity.edu/content/enforced/24422-2363850/media/transcripts/ChronicCareManagement.pdf?_&d2lSessionVal=hAOVfF9YWSKwNf2bMD016QSrM&ou=2442
Mercedes Yumar
Nursing Theory
A policy priority of interest to me is mandated nurse to patient ratios to improve patient safety and outcomes. Nurse patient ratios have been a great concern in my entire nursing career. Healthcare organizations are expected to provide safe, quality care and I simply do not think this is a realistic expectation in many cases due to ridiculously understaffed units (Matthews, 2012). I do realize that reimbursements for care have been reduced and the cost of nursing is always scrutinized; however, I must wonder how long it will take healthcare organizations to realize that many monetary penalties for readmission, hospital-acquired infections, falls etc. are, in many cases, the direct result of poor staffing.
Social media can be a great tool to reach out to legislators and catch the attention of those who have the power to change parameters and increase the nursing force. Much research has been conducted over the years involving RN staffing and patient outcomes and most recently, social media has been used to recruit and hire nurses (Olson, 2016). These efforts have shown that increases in the number of RNs providing direct care results in fewer complications, lower morbidity, fewer medication errors and lower costs (Hall, 2017). When nurses work understaffed, it is difficult for standards of care and practice to be met (Matthews, 2012). As social media has evolved, APNs have established a way to tap into more in the community to get their message across. Nurses have created Facebook pages and networking sites to educate the community on various topics. Media-sharing sites, such as YouTube, offer a large selection of social media tools that are optimized for viewing, sharing, and embedding digital media content on the Web to attract attention. They also provide features that are typically found on other types of social media sites, such as profiles, connections, comments, and private messaging.
References
Hall, J. (2017). Nurses are tapping into social outlets. McKnight’s Long-Term Care News, 38(6), 10-10. Retrieved http://www.mcknights.com/news/nurses-are-so-called-unsung-health-heroes/article/665937/
Matthews, J. H. (2012). Role of professional organizations in advocating for the nursing profession. Online Journal of Issues in Nursing, 17(1), 1-1. doi:10.3912/OJIN.Vol17No01Man03
Olson, K. (2016). Influence through policy: Four steps you can take. Reflections on Nursing Leadership, 42(2), 1-3. Retrieved http://www.reflectionsonnursingleadership.org/commentary/more-commentary/Vol42_2_influence-through-policy-four-steps-you-can-take
