NUR 4837-Policy and Politics Reflection Paper

NUR 4837-Policy and Politics Reflection Paper

NUR 4837-Policy and Politics Reflection Paper

Heath care policy shapes the very world around us and impacts everyone, great and small. Systemic change is brought about by political will and the will of those who have a vested interest in their future. Nursing is such a unique field with a great deal of diversity ranging from medical/surgical nursing, to nurse consultation and legal nursing. Nursing in general floundered in mediocrity prior to obtaining its own voice and character. The days past where nurses were expected to go along with the “medical establishment” ended when nurses chose to stand up and raise their voices to be heard. Far too often were nursing concerns being tossed to the wayside with focus being shed on doctor’s problems and medicine’s issues.

        This course demonstrated that any nurse is able to make their voice heard far and wide with a little effort, education, and passion. Nurses are obligated to aid each other in the struggle for nursing’s propulsion into the public arena and are called to a higher level of involvement in issues that concern even the tiniest of issues that affect them. Without a voice, nurses have no say and someone else will try to say it for them, often with ulterior motives in mind. One assignment this course offered was to write a member of the legislature about a particular nursing issue we thought worthy. I had contacted Florida’s democratic senator at the time in relation to a bill designed to set precise and appropriate staffing ratios with enforcement that would incentivize hospitals to follow the staffing plan outlined. Ultimately this bill was voted down, but time and time again it is brought back to the public forum for discussion and readmission into the senate debates. With enough support from well-informed nurses, this bill could potentially cause drastic and positive changes to occur in the acute care setting in Florida.

        To see just how easy communicating with a law-maker was eye opening and extremely empowering. I have since sent several letters to various Florida legislative members about nursing issues I find interest me a great deal and have become more vocal among my peers in discussing political nursing activism. This course has helped develop my sense of confidence and empowerment dramatically in approaching complex nursing issues brought before the Florida legislative body and I will always be grateful for this experience.