It is that time of year again when the seasons are changing and we look forward to celebrating International Orthopaedic Nurses Day on October 30th. It is a time not only for celebrating our specialty, but also a time for advocacy and action.
The National Association of Orthopaedic Nurses (NAON) was formed in 1980 with the purpose of advancing the quality of orthopaedic and musculoskeletal care. As a professional nursing specialty organization, NAON strives to promote the highest standards of nursing practice and to increase awareness of orthopaedic issues, conditions, and treatments. One of the means that NAON uses to accomplish this is by advocating for federal funding and legislation that impacts orthopaedic patient care and issues related to the nursing profession.
Over the past 27 years, NAON has been active in numerous policy and legislative issues (Nursing's Agenda for Health Care Reform, Osteoporosis legislation, reimbursement for Advance Practice Nurses and for Registered Nurse First Assistants, the Nurse Education Act, to name just a few). Today, through efforts of the executive board, the Special Interest Groups (SIGs), and the newly formed Government Relations/Advocacy Committee (GRAC), NAON continues to be active while networking with other professional organizations on several initiatives including, but not limited to: Americans for Nursing Shortage Relief (ANSR), Nurse Competency in Aging (NCA), and the U.S. Bone and Joint Decade.
Americans for Nursing Shortage Relief Alliance
The Americans for Nursing Shortage Relief (ANSR) Alliance is an advocacy coalition comprised of over 46 professional nursing organizations (including NAON), that seek to influence policy and funding decisions related to the nursing shortage situation. The current nursing shortage presents a serious challenge to healthcare access and quality patient care. The ANSR Alliance strives to ensure that the nation has an adequate infrastructure of well-qualified nurses, and has proposed recommendations to Congress to build capacity of nursing education programs and enhance nursing research, strengthen the capacity of the national nursing public health infrastructure, help retain nurses (with special emphasis on the older nurse), and expand recruitment of new nurses with an emphasis on those with diverse backgrounds.
Nurse Competence in Aging
The Nurse Competence in Aging (NCA) initiative represents a strategic alliance between the American Nurses Association (ANA), the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) and the John A. Hartford Foundation Institute for Geriatric Nursing at the New York University College of Nursing. Nurse Competence in Aging (NCA) is committed to improve the quality of healthcare older adults receive by enhancing the geriatric competence-the knowledge, skills and attitudes-of the 400,000 nurses who are members of approximately 57 specialty nursing associations. NAON is one of these specialty nursing associations that has become an ANA-SNAPGs (American Nurses Association-Specialty Nursing Association Partners in Geriatrics) by applying for and receiving grant funding in order to heighten orthopaedic nurses' awareness of the unique needs of older adults. One of the many resources available to NAON members through the NCA initiative is the GeroNurseOnline website providing current best practice information on care of older adults.
U.S. Bone and Joint Decade
The National Association of Orthopaedic Nurses has been a long-standing participating organization of the U.S. Bone and Joint Decade (USBJD). The Bone and Joint Decade is a multi-disciplinary initiative focusing on advancing the understanding and treatment of musculoskeletal conditions through research, prevention and education. NAON's collaboration with the USBJD not only furthers the Decade's goals but also helps NAON more effectively accomplish our own mission and organizational goals. Annually, during the week of October 12-20, the USBJD celebrates National Action Week (NAW) and its goal is to educate Americans about bone and joint health. I urge you to promote the Decade and NAON as widely as possible to patients, the public, and colleagues during NAW, and on International Orthopaedic Nurses Day. What a great opportunity to present "Fit to T," the osteoporosis education available through the USBJD, in your community!! The session is a prepared PowerPoint presentation including handouts and a number of other materials provided by the USBJD (http://www.fit2t.org).
Another opportunity to promote NAON and the USBJD is by offering the "Protect Your Bones and Joints (PB&J)" educational program aimed at improving the knowledge of teens and young adults about musculoskeletal disorders and to encourage them to learn about prevention activities. This program was developed in collaboration with NAON and incorporates NAON's OPTIONS program (Osteoporosis Prevention Teaching In Our Nation's Schools). The USBJD supplies the prepared PowerPoint presentation, handouts, and guidelines (http://www.pb-j.org).
Let us not forget to promote orthopaedic nursing, NAON, and USBJD to our own profession and colleagues!! Plan an event at your hospital, clinic, or local school of nursing. All 125 medical schools have declared their support for the Decade and we are now inviting all United States schools of nursing to join the U.S. Bone and Joint Decade. We ask that the deans sign a declaration of support, stating, "This School of Nursing recognizes the importance of musculoskeletal diseases and the disability caused by these conditions in our society. We support the goals and objectives of the United States Bone and Joint Decade, and declare our commitment to advance education, research and patient care for bone and joint diseases." This Declaration Form and cover letter to Schools of Nursing is available on the NAON website, http://www.orthonurse.org.
These are just a few suggestions on ways to celebrate our specialty of orthopaedic nursing. There are endless possibilities and opportunities to celebrate and promote our profession. It is important that you take time to celebrate and take an active role in speaking up for your specialty practice. The future of orthopaedic nursing is in your hands. Remember, the opportunity to celebrate our specialty, orthopaedic nursing, does not occur one day per year, but occurs every day of the year!!