Nursing Agenda for Health Care Reform Since 1989, The American Nurses Association (ANA) had tasked itself to improve the delivery of the health care system in the United States. As one of the major stakeholders of the industry, the ANA had closely monitored and noted “the overwhelming problems of the health care system in the country. In all the reforms that ANA had adopted, “ANA remained committed to the principle that all persons are entitled to ready access to affordable, quality heath care services (ANA, 2008, p. 1). Consequently, in 2008, ANA published an update of the 2005 ANA Health System Reform Agenda that reaffirmed the principle that “health care is a basic human right” (ANA, 2008, p. 1). In addition, ANA also agreed with the …show more content…
Basic Components of the Agenda
The four areas of concern that were addressed by the ANA Agenda for Health Care Reform were critical issues that were found to be in need of “bold action” (ANA, 2008, p. 3) not only from the nursing profession but also from other stakeholders, e.g., “policy-makers, industry leaders, providers, and consumers” (ANA, 2008, p. 3) as well. The first issue of concern was access to health care. By access, ANA reiterated every person’s right to health care. Simply put, health care must be affordable, accessible, and acceptable. Quality care was the second issue that ANA addressed in its health care reform. Using the aims of the Institute of Medicine (IOM), the ANA elaborated quality care as one that is “safe, effective, patient-centered, timely, efficient, and equitable” (ANA, 2008, p. 6). Quality care, as further described by the IOM is based on the “relationship between nurse staffing and patient outcome” (ANA, 2008,
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With the passage of the ACA, the Federal government in collaboration with the states, reformed the “healthcare system by giving more Americans access to quality, affordable health insurance” (Obama Care Facts, Summary, n.d.). Thus, the ANA Agenda for Reform had been partly achieved. In addition, the Agenda also served as a wake-up call that brought key nursing and patients’ issues to the fore, e.g., Safe Staffing, Safe Patient Handling, and Title VIII (Nursing Workforce Development) Funding (ANA, 2016), just to mention a
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Show MoreNurses and physicians need to become partners in health care reform. We have a responsibility to provide competent care to our patients. National standards need to be put in place to decrease the inconsistencies in APN practice. Overwhelming data supports the APN over the physician in cost effectiveness, quality and access to care and many other aspects.
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) was passed in 2010 with the goal of expanding healthcare coverage to all Americans by reforming insurance policies and practices (Tillett, 2011). The ACA upsurges the demand for an increase in primary care providers in order to supply quality care to the much larger population that will have coverage and therefore acquiring healthcare. The Institute of Medicine (IOM) through its report The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health has generated a solution to the shortage of primary care providers by promoting a transformation of the nursing profession to fill the gap.
Nursing standards are the building blocks that lead to excellent patient care. The ANA (American Nursing Association) has standardized sixteen common practices for the best quality care of patients by nurses. Nurses are only able to facilitate minimal standards to patients due to time restraints derived from patient ratios and lack of support from administration. The hope to achieve the best possible outcomes in patient care are limited to the minimal standards expected of nurses from the National Council of State Boards of Nursing (ANA, 2010). Patient ratios have been seen as a huge issue across the realm of nurses and health care facilities in deliverance on patient care. Addressing the issue of nursing shortages and the effects on ...
The primary barrier to nurses being able to practice at their full potential is the states varied legislation (Fairman, Rowe, Hassmiller, & Shalala, 2011). The IOM (2011) report suggests that state scope of practice regulations should model the National Council of State Boards of Nursing Model Nursing Practice act and Administrative rules to provide legal authority to practice to the accomplished level of training. The IOM (2011) report also requested a review of states laws to identify potentially anticompetitive effects that do not protect the health and safety of the public. The new recommendations are to build a common ground with interdisciplinary groups and to include a diverse coalition for the Future of Nursing: Campaign for action (IOM,
Current literature continues to reiterate the indicators of a major shortage of registered nurses (RNs) in the United States. The total RN population has been increasing since 1980, which means that we have more RNs in this country than ever before (Nursing Shortage). Even though the RN population is increasing, it is growing at a much slower rate then when compared to the rate of growth of the U.S. population (Nursing Shortage). We are seeing less skilled nurses “at a time of an increasingly aging population with complex care needs and an increasingly complex technological care environment” (Mion). According to recent data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the Department of Health and Human Services, it is estimated that “more than a million new and replacement nurses will be needed over the next decade” (Diagnosis: Critical).
In 2009, President Obama signed the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ObamaCare) and former ANA President Rebecca M. Patton, MSN, RN, CNOR witnessed this historical moment. American nurses celebrate with satisfaction, because their hard work paid off, enacting historical health care reform legislation that benefits not only nurses but their patient as well. Despite that the health care reform is now a reality, is important to keep working in order to make sure that the reform is implemented effectively (Routson, 2010).The ANA has been in favor of a health care reform that would provide high quality medical services for all. ANA believe that with Patient Protection and the Affordable Care Act, millions of American will be protected against the lost or denied health insurance coverage and improved access to primary and preventive care. (ANA, 2011)
Nurses across the globe are saving multiple lives daily. They work hard to take care of various patients with an array of different health problems. They are accountable for not only caring for the patient’s health but also being empathetic and friendly with all visitors. Exactly how many patients is a nurse responsible for keeping safe, comfortable, and alive? It is difficult to say because the nurse to patient ratio policies varies immensely across state borders.
Since the 1990’s, the interest in nursing and the profession as a whole has decreased dramatically and is still expected to do so over the next 10-15 years according to some researchers. With this nursing shortage, many factors are affected. Organizations have to face challenges of low staffing, higher costs for resources, recruiting and reserving of registered nurses, among liability issues as well. Some of the main issues arising from this nurse shortage are the impact of quality and continuity of care, organizational costs, the effect it has on nursing staff, and etc. However, this not only affects an organization and community, but affects the nurses the same. Nurses are becoming overwhelmed and are questioning the quality of care that each patient deserves. This shortage is not an issue that is to be taken lightly. The repercussions that are faced by both nurses and the organization are critical. Therefore, state funding should be implemented to private hospitals in order to resolve the shortage of nurses. State funds will therefore, relieve the overwhelming burdens on the staff, provide a safe and stress free environment for the patient, and allow appropriate funds needed to keep the facility and organization operational.
The American Nurses Association (ANA) developed a foundation for which all nurses are expected to perform their basic duties in order to meet the needs of the society we serve. The ANA “has long been instrumental in the development of three foundational documents for professional nursing; its code of ethics, its scope and standards of practice, ands statement of social policy.” (ANA, 2010, p. 87) The ANA defined nursing as “the protection, promotion, and optimization of health and abilities, prevention of illness and injury, alleviation of suffering through the diagnosis and treatment of human response, and advocacy in the care of individuals, families, communities, and populations” and used to create the scope and standards of nursing practice. (ANA, 2010, p. 1) These “outline the steps that nurses must take to meet client healthcare needs.” () The nursing process, for example, is one of the things I use daily. Other examples include communicating and collaborating with my patient, their families, and my peers, and being a lifelong learner. I continually research new diagnoses, medications, and treatments for my patients. As a nurse of ...
The APRN is a valuable and promising health care asset when developing policies and regulations that benefit patients and meet the goals of the PPACA. According to Abood (2014), “accepting responsibility offers nurses the unique opportunity to make a difference and to have the satisfaction of being part of bringing a better health care system into reality for themselves and their patients”. Therefore, it is important for the APRN to be politically engaged, even though it requires definite skills and
The current practice of nursing is expected to evolve as the ways in which patient care is delivered continues to develop. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) has inspired new models of care that improve accessibility, continuity of care, cost efficiencies, and the accountability of health care systems. Concepts, such as Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs), Primary Care Medical Homes (PCMH), and Nurse-Managed Health Clinics (NHMC) are necessary to support the initiatives of health care reform, which includes developing methods of advancing approaches in the continuum of care to improve patient outcomes. Considering recent initiatives, it is crucial that the role of registered nurses evolves to meet the changing demands
As a woman, mother, daughter, sister and nurse I have a strong belief that it is our right as human beings to care for each other; irrelevant of social or economic station. I feel passionate that all individuals have access to the highest quality healthcare and that universal health care for every man woman and child should be accessible. The American Nurses Association (ANA) for decades has advocated policymakers to recognize the true value of nursing and is instrumental in advancing public health by supporting the Patient Protection and Affordable Car Act (2010); which created essential health benefits for millions of Americans (ANA, 2018). If you are not familiar with the ANA’s Principle for Health
As individuals and as a united voice, nurses can highlight the areas of need in health policy and regulation. This can be done at many levels: local and regional health care facilities; local, state and federal communities; local, state and federal policy development and even global networking. Khalsa suggested that “the advocacy role is to serve on behalf of self and/or others to elevate awareness to issues and to offer viable answers to the issues at hand” (Khalsa, 2016, p. 8). It is essential that nurses act to promote actions that protect human rights, promote health equity and further social justice. Nurses can use their experiences, and knowledge to share with those leaders who have influence over regulatory and legislative health. We must be comfortable with articulating what our role as professionals brings to the table in terms of quality, safety, service and outcomes. The information reported in the group article, Williams et al. (2016) “the United States spends more money for health care than other industrial counties. Yet people experience inequitable, inadequate, and inaccessible health care” (p. 1), should alone induce us into action. Nurses as collaborative leaders are partners in the creation of valuable outcomes for patients, families, and
In general nursing excellence can be thought of as a characteristics or traits that define a level of patient care that is safe, culturally-competent and is patient-centered as well as family-centered. Healthcare organizations are critical for maintaining nursing excellence, they generate the energy for the flow of ideas and proactive work needed to advocate for the needs of patients. This post will discuss two of those critical organizations and how they play a part in nursing excellence.
To briefly summarize, the report acts to identify nurses as an important faction in enabling access to high quality, affordable health care. This was supported by the development of four fundamental recommend...