Assess The Role Of Public Policy-Making In Nursing
According to Mason, Leavitt, and Chaffee (2002), public policy “encompasses the choices that a society, segment of society, or organization makes regarding its goals and priorities and the ways it will allocate its resources” (pp. 8). Thereby, health policy consists of the laws, regulations, and practices that affect the allocation of healthcare resources for the intended population and can encompass such arenas as economics, housing, and environmental concerns (Lundy & Janes, 2016). It is important for professionals working within the healthcare field to recognize the impact of public policy on the health of their patients and therefore be able to accurately assess and interject their expertise into the policy-making process. For this reason, we will identify the ways in which public
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While my nurse is not actively working on a specific policy change at the moment, she does make sure that she stays informed of the policy environment and the public agenda. For instance, she is a member of several professional nursing associations and receives their published newsletters in order to educate herself on current topics in the field of public health. She also follows local political events and makes sure to vote in her own community for the politicians and laws that will best serve her community’s health. My nurse informed me that the last policy change with which she was directly involved was the recent vaccination law that did away with the personal belief exemption for school-aged children. She stated that she attended several public hearings and educational sessions to inform the public about the importance of being vaccinated. Therefore, while her specific job description does not directly involve her in policy change, she still is an active participant in advocating for public health through the process of policy
While my nurse is not actively working on a specific policy change at the moment, she does make sure that she stays informed of the policy environment and the public agenda. For instance, she is a member of several professional nursing associations and receives their published newsletters in order to educate herself on current topics in the field of public health. She also follows local political events and makes sure to vote in her own community for the politicians and laws that will best serve her community’s health. My nurse informed me that the last policy change with which she was directly involved was the recent vaccination law that did away with the personal belief exemption for school-aged children. She stated that she attended several public hearings and educational sessions to inform the public about the importance of being vaccinated. Therefore, while her specific job description does not directly involve her in policy change, she still is an active participant in advocating for public health through the process of policy