EP94: Why Nurses Should Be Political: Civics 101

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Nurses are often frustrated about policies and regulations governing nursing practice, mainly when they're developed by individuals who lack healthcare experience. This 3-part series provides an overview of why nurses should be involved in policy, the legislative process, and how to communicate with policymakers.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">A significant number of nurses are channeling these frustrations into positive initiatives as advocates. They are assuming new roles to influence the programs, rules, policies, and regulations that govern the nursing profession, the functioning of the broader health care system, and the communities we serve.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Drs. Melissa Batchelor and Alison Hernandez, are both nurses who agree that</span> <em><span style="font-weight: 400;">any</span></em> <span style= "font-weight: 400;">nurse  can become a policy advocate at the local, statewide, or federal level by understanding how the political system works and what approaches can affect policy. </span></p> <p><strong>Key points covered in this episode: </strong></p> <p><strong>✔️ Nurses are innately health policy experts.</strong> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Dr. Alison Hernandez is a Health and Aging Policy Fellow (2019-2020) in the U.S. House of Representatives. As a fellow passionate about health policy and helping older adults achieve the highest quality of life, Dr. Alison Hernandez stressed that nurses could be political and advocate for whatever it is that they care for</span></p> <p><strong>✔️Who you elect matters</strong><span style= "font-weight: 400;">. Who we vote to represent makes a difference to affect change and influence policymaking. Dr. Alison Hernandez pointed out that you have to put people in power that resemble your ideologies if you want to see change.</span></p> <p><strong>✔️Nurses are solution-driven—we're focused on how to fix things.</strong> <span style="font-weight: 400;">One can't undermine the role of nur