Implementation of the IOM Future Nursing Report

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Future of Nursing Campaign

Nurses play a vital role in healthcare settings. There are many barriers that prevent nurses from taking action to the evolving changes in the healthcare system. “In 2008, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Institute of Medicine (IOM), launched a two-year initiative on the future of nursing to respond to the needs, to assess, and transform the nursing profession” (National Academy of Sciences, 2015). The report included several recommendations including, nurses should practice to the full level of their education, nurses should pursue higher levels of education, nurses should collaborate with healthcare providers and other healthcare professionals to redesign healthcare in the U.S. (National Academy of Sciences, 2015).

Roles of Robert Wood Foundation and AARP

In 2010, the Robert Wood Foundation and the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP), joined forces to create “The Future of Nursing: Campaign for Action.” This campaign was developed to improve America’s health through nursing. The campaign’s action is correlated in with the IOM’s “Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health.” “Through 51 Action Coalitions in every state and Washington, D.C., the Campaign works with policymakers, health care professionals, educators, and business leaders to respond to the country’s increasing demand for safe, high-quality, and effective health care” (Campaign for Action, n.d.). This report includes recommendations in six categories: “(1) improve access to care, (2) foster interprofessional collaboration, (3) promote nursing leadership, (4) transform nurse education, (5) increase diversity in nursing, and (6) collect workforce data” (Campaign for Action, n.d.). In a 2015 IOM progress report noted that there have been several achievements in the nursing workforce, however, there continues to be some barriers that need to be worked on.

Importance of the IOM Report related to the Nursing Workforce

Diversity in nursing is a slow but steady progress in the United States. “RNs in a recent national workforce survey by the National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN) were 83% White/Caucasian; 6% Black/African American; 6% Asian; 3% Hispanic/Latino; 1% Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander; and 1% Other” (NACNEP, 2013, pg 9). With the rapid growth of racial/ethnic minority groups evolving in the United States, the demand for more diversity in the nursing workforce can lead to decreased health disparities for the minority population. There are assumptions that link diversity in healthcare to health outcomes. Health professionals who are from racial/ethnic groups will help to improve patient communication with providers, which will result in improved patient outcomes. In order to gain more diversity into the nursing workforce, the recommendations are to offer recruitment and employment opportunities as well as to “collaborate with other nursing stakeholders to develop strategies for recruiting, graduating, and employing underrepresented minorities in nursing, starting with pipeline programs in middle schools” (NACNEP, 2013, pg 18). Recruitment of minority students is a necessary step in addressing the nursing shortage.

In order to meet the demands of the ever so changing healthcare system, nurses need to seek higher levels of education and training. With the aging population, hospitals having sicker, frailer patients, and more people seeking care, nurses need to respond to their needs effectively and efficiently. There are several recommendations for improving nursing education including offering tuition reimbursement for nurses entering a baccalaureate nursing program or higher, expand loans and grants, and increase the diversity of the nursing workforce (Garner, 2011).

State-Based Action Coalitions

There are many states struggling to make changes to meet the future needs of healthcare. “Action coalitions led by nurses and business partners drive change locally by working to transform healthcare through nursing” (Campaign for Action, n.d.). Like many states, nurses in the state of California are seeking larger roles in primary care. Advanced practice nurses (NPs) have advanced training and education, but the state of California and many other states, limit their availability because they can only practice under the supervision of a licensed physician. This causes extra paperwork for the NPs and physicians and also means longer travel for some patients to get primary care because NPs are tied to the physicians. NPs could have the potential to open up their own practice in underserved areas if the state of California were to loosen these restrictions. The IOM recommends to lift these limits to give nurses a larger role in healthcare.

“Under the federal Affordable Care Act, an estimated 5.3 million Californians will be eligible to become insured, putting a strain on an already burdened primary care network. California doesn’t have enough physicians to serve its population, and fewer than a third of residents live in communities that have adequate primary care access” (AARP, 2014). Recently the state of California has been able to expand their services through technology using Telehealth. Its services enables the NP to connect with patients who don’t live nearby. Their services allow the NP to have a 2-way interaction with their patients using live video. It also stores and monitors the patient’s health and information to allow for better communication between the patient and healthcare provider. Telehealth should help decrease the workload and address the shortages of physicians now that NPs will be able to care for their patients.

Conclusion

The IOM report, Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing health, has made a lot of considerable changes in nursing. These changes are needed for nurses to keep up with all the advances in healthcare. Increasing the level of education, training, and diversity will allow nurses to work to their full educational potential. Nurses should always continue to seek the opportunity to help transform the healthcare system. Nurse leaders play a vital role in making these changes a reality.

References

American Nurses Association (2017). Workforce. Retrieved from: http://www.nursingworld.org/MainMenuCategories/ThePracticeofProfessionalNursing/workforce

Campaign for Action (n.d.) Our Story. Retrieved from:

https://campaignforaction.org/about/our-story/

Campaign for Action (n.d.) State Action Coalitions. Retrieved from: https://campaignforaction.org/our-network/state-action-coalitions/

Garner, C., (2011). IOM Advocates for Higher Levels of Nursing Education. Retrieved from: https://www.americansentinel.edu/blog/2011/01/10/iom-advocates-higher-nursing-education/

National Academy of Sciences (2015). The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health. Retrieved from: http://www.nationalacademies.org/hmd/Reports/2010/The-Future-of-Nursing-Leading-Change-Advancing-Health.aspx

National Advisory Council On Nurse Education and Practice (2013). Achieving Health Equity through Nursing Workforce Diversity. Based on the 123rd and 124th Meetings of the

NACNEP 2013.

The AARP Bulletin (2014). Nurses Seeking Larger Role in Primary Care. Retrieved from: http://states.aarp.org/ca-nurses/