Part I: Reflect on your experiences with healthcare policy and legislators then answer the following questions. How comfortable do you feel with this topic? Rate your comfort with political advocacy on the following Likert scale 1- Uncomfortable advocating in the political arena 2- Somewhat uncomfortable advocating in the political arena 3- Neutral 4- Somewhat comfortable advocating in the political arena 5- Completely comfortable advocating in the political arena How knowledgeable are you on the processes of legislation and regulation? Do you know or have you ever reached out to your personal federal or state representative? Nurses, and other Healthcare Professionals, have a responsibility to advocate for patient care, which includes acute care patients and families as well as communities.
Part II: Review the Code of Ethics for Nurses then answer the following questions. What is the role of the nurse or healthcare professional in policy? What is the responsibility of the nurse in advocacy? How can a nurse advocate for patients, communities, and the profession? You must apply this information to your practice, and to do so, you must create goals and a plan to achieve them. Part III: Making a difference requires action. You will now great SMART goals. Create two to three specific, measurable, attainable goals to improve your knowledge or comfort with political advocacy. For each goal, outline 2 – 3 actions steps, to include time to completion and relevancy to your practice and health of individuals or communities.