It’s been almost 2 years since the Institute of Medicine (IOM) and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) released Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health and this landmark report is still being discussed and written about. This thrills me! People are hearing and learning about nursing. Other disciplines in healthcare have responded to the report. Nurses are making changes based on the report and sharing their plans and outcomes. Good things are happening!

We have a collection of articles and editorials all about the Future of Nursing Report and in the past few months several good reads have been published. Take a look:

Learn how the nursing staff at one New Jersey health system embraced the report and made changes to improve patient outcomes and satisfaction by reading Responding to Health Care Reform by Addressing the Institute of Medicine Report on the Future of Nursing (Nursing Administration Quarterly, September 2012).

In Nursing's future: What's the message? (Nursing Management, July 2012), the authors share the response of the Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Division of Nursing, including “…creating opportunities within our hospital and our professional networks for honest conversation about the report and its implications, and then using strategic planning to design our action strategies.”

Read Wellness Promotion and the Institute of Medicine's Future of Nursing Report: Are Nurses Ready? (Holistic Nursing Practice, June 2012) and discover how the role of disease prevention and health promotion, or wellness, is a critical component for nurses in implementing the changes recommended in the IOM report. 

In the NACNS Position Paper: The National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists Response to the Institute of Medicine’s The Future of Nursing Report (Clinical Nurse Specialist: The Journal for Advanced Nursing Practice, August 2012), the NACNS addresses several of the IOM recommendations with strategies and recommendations specific to clinical nurse specialists. 

The American Association of Neuroscience Nurses has also developed specific recommendations based on the report which were published in the Journal of Neuroscience Nursing (June 2012) – Integrating the Institute of Medicine Future of Nursing Report Into the American Association of Neuroscience Nurses Strategic Plan. 

There are over 35 editorials and articles that have been published in our journals since the release of the IOM report. All can be read online FREE --- be sure to check out Focus On: The Future of Nursing.  

What changes have you implemented in your practice or career plans? Have there been initiatives at your workplace since the release of the IOM report?