As you read this I will have assumed the NAON presidency and in so doing have become your 30th president. Let me say thank you to those who voted in the election, to those who encouraged me to run, and to those who have challenged me to be whom I am today. I am humbled to be your president, but I am only as good as your commitment to NAON.
Each year, according to publishing deadlines, the president sits to write this letter in the midst of winter. We have just been through a wonderful time for our country with the transfer of power and the call to change. We have elected a new president and many new members of state and federal legislatures who now have the task of untangling a web that is so deeply woven that no one can predict what is to come. Our government is struggling with healthcare reform, a tenuous economy, energy and environmental concerns, poverty and unemployment, issues of public safety, and national disasters just to name a few. Economically we have to do more with less; some of us will lose our jobs or at the very least will be involved in cutbacks. The time of healthcare is uncertain. But where does all of this affect us? In the midst of these tenuous times, can we be the stable voice and hand in the caring circle? We are nurses and I would ask us to see the value in ourselves.
Some time ago, I organized the "Take your Daughter to Work Day" initiative at a hospital that I was working at. As I escorted the girls to different units and introduced them to the nursing staff, one nurse looked at them and said, "So tell me who wants to be a nurse when you grow up?" Hearing no response, she said, "No one, good it's not a very good job." I was and continue to be saddened by this response. I am a nurse; I am proud to proclaim that I am a nurse, and I value my profession and my nursing colleagues.
During this tenuous economic time, nurses will be called upon to explain their roles and worth. As healthcare is being reshaped, we have the duty to bring ourselves forward and advocate for nurses and our profession.
Recently, the Nursing Organizations Alliance presented its affiliate members with talking points on the value of nurses. Let me share this information with you.
Value of Nursing Talking Points
With a new White House administration that has put healthcare near the top of the nation's agenda, registered nurses now have an incredible opportunity to help shape a safe, quality, and cost-effective healthcare system.
The public trusts nurses. In the annual Gallup Poll looking at the honesty and ethical standards within a range of professions, nurses repeatedly have ranked as the most trustworthy. National Harris polls yield similar results. And it's with good reason. The public knows that we will look after its best interests and the best interests of its loved ones. Registered nurses' professional "Code of Ethics" clearly states that our "primary commitment is to the patient." Our mission is to keep patients safe and provide them with the best care.
Nurses are there for patients. The public may not think about the solid educational background of registered nurses or the fact that we are bound by a Code of Ethics or that we develop and follow standards of care. But they know that we are the ones who respond when they are in pain or are afraid, answer their call lights 24-7, and take the time to listen and answer their questions honestly and completely. Nurses are the first responders in times of crisis-whether it is helping at the scene of a car accident or providing care during a hurricane. We are often the ones neighbors and other family members turn to for advice-about an unusual rash, a side effect of a medication, or a decision about hospice services. We are in the community, hospitals, clinics, schools, and workplaces; we are everywhere.
Nurses recognize that patients are more than a set of symptoms that need to be treated. As registered nurses, we are taught to look at a patient as a whole person-looking at the physical, spiritual, emotional, and psychosocial needs. What this ultimately means to patients is that we will listen to them, we will advocate for them, and we will give them the information they need to make informed decisions and then support them in those decisions.
Nurses help patients navigate the system and understand health needs. We serve as the interpreter of complex information-often in a time of crisis-explaining diagnostic tests, treatments, and the maze that is the healthcare system. We serve as the go-between in interactions with physicians, social workers, pharmacists, and other members of the healthcare team and sometimes even with family members. We play a key role in coordinating care when a patient is hospitalized and when discharged to home or another healthcare facility so that follow-up appointments, medication needs, and other services are appropriate and carried through. All along the way, registered nurses provide patients with the information they need to keep them safe as well as how to lead healthier lives through preventive and self-care measures.
No one spends more time at the patient's bedside than a nurse. Therefore, registered nurses have a unique perspective on the many issues that are part of the current healthcare crisis-from issues of quality and safety to the domino effect of the disintegration of the mental health care safety net and from the growing issues facing American seniors to the importance of access to primary care. Nurses are on the very front lines working to ensure quality healthcare and searching out solutions that will benefit all those in need.
Nurses are the puzzle solvers and guardians. Beyond our caring and compassion, registered nurses have the analytical thinking and decision-making skills to look at patients-their history, current symptoms, even body language-and determine what is really going on to keep them on the road to recovery and health. And the truth is, nurses are constantly monitoring a patient's condition, so we can catch a potential problem, oftentimes well before it spirals out of control. We are literally the last line of defense for patient safety. That is why it is crucial that there is adequate registered nurse staffing. Scientific evidence backs us up on this: When there are more nurses on a floor, patients fare better.
Cost-effective in tough economic times. More than ever, everyone is trying to cut costs, and the healthcare industry is no exception. We have known for a long time that having more registered nurses on staff in hospitals can prevent complications and save lives, and now a new study shows that having more nurses on staff also saves money. We also know that nurses are highly resourceful, improvising in emergency situations or tough times while keeping patients safe. We do it so well that others count on it.
Nurses in advanced practice roles-nurse practitioners, certified nurse-midwives, certified registered nurse anesthetists, and clinical nurse specialists-also have a proven track record of providing high-quality care while keeping costs down.
Nurses are leaders. There is an old adage in nursing: When nurses see a need, we do something about it. In hospitals, staff nurses not only take the lead in improving the care individual patients receive but also help shape hospital-wide policies on patient safety and quality care. Registered nurses serve as leaders in many governmental agencies and in the uniformed services, managing healthcare in times of crisis and conflict as well as implementing important public health programs, such as influenza prevention. We can be found on city councils, state advisory boards, and the halls of the U.S. Congress-using our healthcare knowledge and team-building skills to pass laws that will benefit the public good.
Nurses are role models. And as role models for the public, our peers, and other healthcare professionals, we are often held to a higher standard. Patients and their families look to us to provide unbiased, calm, competent, and ethical care. They watch us to learn how to effectively advocate for services or successfully broach difficult topics, such as end-of-life care.
Nurses have many faces. Although the public most likely thinks of registered nurses as generally working at the bedside in hospitals or in their children's schools, the reach of nurses is much, much wider-given our many areas of specialization and opportunities for advanced education. For example, nurse practitioners are sometimes the only healthcare professionals providing primary care services in remote, rural areas, or in low-income, urban neighborhoods. Clinical nurse specialists develop protocols aimed at improving care for a range of patients, such as those needing geriatric care, mental health services, or rehabilitation. And some of the most cutting-edge research on everything from preventing heart disease in women to alleviating physical symptoms during cancer treatment is being done by nurse researchers.
I ask you to look at these talking points and transpose yourself into each one of them. Use your stories to make your points. You, the nurse, have been there. You, the nurse, have made that difference. We as orthopaedic nurses know the injuries, diseases, and issues that our patients have. We stand with the orthopaedic physicians shoulder to shoulder in the office or clinic, in the operating room, and in the hospitals. We are the caregivers. We are the partners in healthcare that make that difference each and every day in our patient's/client's lives. We now need to hear the call for nursing and arm ourselves with these points so that when questioned, we can stand firm on our convictions and be bold for nursing.
As we start this 30th anniversary year, we can look to the past memories with fondness, but as healthcare reshapes let us not be observers but be part of that momentum.