Initiative on the Future of Nursing
The Initiative on the Future of Nursing is the collaborative effort of the Institute of Medicine and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Launched in 2008, the Initiative for the Future of Nursing would serve to address the need for assessing and transforming the entire nursing profession. The report to be produced would call for recommendations regarding challenges facing the profession and an action-oriented blueprint for the future of the nursing profession.
Comprehensive study to assess and transform nursing profession
With a description of activities to be undertaken as part of the initiative, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Initiative on the Future of Nursing, at the Institute of Medicine, was announced. The “initial cornerstone of the program” was to produce a report that would transform the future of nursing. Continuing challenges facing the nursing profession, as well as the ability of the profession to meet demands of a “reformed health care and public health system,” would be examined.
The committee would develop recommendations regarding challenges to nursing, such as the delivery of nursing services in a shortage environment, as reported by the Institute of Medicine. The committee was also charged with defining a clear agenda and action-oriented blueprint that would include changes at local, state and national levels.
Another responsibility was to identify crucial roles for nurses in designing and implementing a more efficient and effective health care system. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation describes the recommendations made as a result of the two-year initiative as focusing on the “critical intersection between the health needs of diverse, changing patient populations across the lifespan and the actions of the nursing workforce.”
Four main messages
Over the course of two years, three national forums were held by the committee, with each one focusing on a critical segment of health care. The content covered areas such as community health, acute care and primary care. The forums and technical workshops aided in the understanding of relevant, complex issues.
The October, 2010 report highlighted eight issues, which focused on four main issues:
- Nurses should practice to the full extent of their education and training.
- Nurses should achieve higher levels of education and training through an improved educational system that promotes seamless academic progression.
- Nurses should be full partners with physicians and other health professionals in redesigning health care in the United States.
- Effective workforce planning and policy making require better data collection and information infrastructure.
Report recommendations and Campaign for Action
It is recognized that nurses play a vital and fundamental role in transforming the health care system in the U.S. However, it is also recognized that the nursing profession does not have sole power in improving some aspects of the profession. The report titled “The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health” is available for those in the nursing profession to review, as nurses work with the many other diverse agencies, organizations, businesses, the insurance industry and government to take all necessary steps leading to overall improved health care for all.
The Campaign for Action not only implements solutions for the challenges of the nursing profession but also builds upon “nurse based approaches” for improvement in the quality and transformation in the way that American citizens receive health care.
Advance for Nurses revealed that Campaign for Action recently announced the selection of 10 Regional Action Coalitions (RACs). The mission of the RACs will be centered on “fostering interprofessional collaboration, to strengthen nurse education and training and increase participation of nurses as leaders.”
