Posted: September 26th, 2023

The Future of Nursing 2020-2030

Topic: The Future of Nursing 2020-2030

Order Instructions:
Review the National Academy of Medicine’s 2021 report, “The Future of Nursing 2020-2030: Charting a Path to Achieve Health Equity,” located in the topic Resources.
Write a 550-750 word paper discussing the influence of the report on nursing practice. Include the following:
Review the recommendations of The National Academy of Medicine 2021 report and explain why health equity is significant in this report.
Define social determinants of health. Discuss one of the determinants and how this impacts health equity.
Describe the role nurses have in improving health equity and impacting social needs.
Discuss the significance of self-care to decrease nursing burnout. What self-care and evidence-based strategies are available for nurses to maintain personal and spiritual health?
You are required to cite a minimum of three sources to complete this assignment. Sources must be appropriate for the assignment and relevant to nursing practice.

“The Future of Nursing 2020-2030: Charting a Path to Achieve Health Equity.”
The report emphasizes that achieving health equity is paramount for the nursing profession. Health equity refers to ensuring everyone has a fair and just opportunity to be healthy, regardless of race, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, social class, geography or other factors that affect health. The report recommends nurses play an active role in addressing social determinants of health to improve equity.
Social determinants of health are the conditions in which people are born, grow, live, work and age. They include factors like socioeconomic status, education, neighborhood and physical environment, employment, social support networks, access to health care, and discrimination. One key determinant is socioeconomic status. Lower income levels are linked to poorer health outcomes and shorter lifespans. Nurses can help patients access community resources and public benefits to meet basic needs like housing, nutrition, transportation and income support.
The nursing profession is well-positioned to advance health equity given its focus on holistic, patient-centered care. Nurses spend more time with patients than any other health professional and are present in both clinical and community settings. They can screen for social needs, make referrals to social services, advocate for policy changes, and educate patients. For example, through home visits, public health nurses can address environmental health risks disproportionately impacting low-income communities and communities of color.
Self-care is also emphasized as nurses face burnout from high workload and emotional demands of the job. Evidence-based self-care strategies shown to help include mindfulness, yoga, spending time with family/friends, getting adequate sleep, and seeking counseling or support groups as needed. Prioritizing self-care helps nurses provide more compassionate, high-quality care without compromising their own well-being.

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The National Academy of Medicine’s 2021 report “The Future of Nursing 2020-2030: Charting a Path to Achieve Health Equity” outlines an ambitious yet achievable vision for the nursing profession to advance health equity in the coming decade. As the largest segment of the healthcare workforce, nurses are well-positioned to play a leading role in addressing inequities through holistic, patient-centered care (National Academy of Medicine, 2021). Achieving health equity is a moral imperative and fundamental to improving population health outcomes in a just, sustainable manner.
The report emphasizes social determinants of health as major drivers of inequities (National Academy of Medicine, 2021). Social determinants refer to the conditions in which people are born, live, work and age that impact health risks and outcomes (Healthy People 2030, n.d.). One particularly influential determinant is socioeconomic status. Lower income levels are strongly associated with poorer health, higher mortality rates, and shorter life expectancy due to limited access to nutritious food, safe housing, transportation, education, and medical care (Braveman et al., 2011). Through screening patients for social needs and making appropriate referrals, nurses can help connect low-income individuals to community resources and public benefits that meet basic survival needs.
Nurses are well-positioned to screen for social determinants of health and address patients’ social needs due to the significant time they spend with individuals in both clinical and community settings (National Academy of Medicine, 2021). For example, through home visits, public health nurses can identify environmental health hazards disproportionately impacting under-resourced neighborhoods and advocate for mitigation strategies. They are also trusted members of the healthcare team who can educate patients on social services, empowering individuals to access available supports. Furthermore, nurses can advocate for policy changes to improve social conditions on a population level, such as expanding Medicaid access or increasing the minimum wage.
Self-care is another priority outlined in the report, as nursing is a demanding profession with high burnout risks (National Academy of Medicine, 2021). Evidence-based strategies shown to reduce burnout and promote nurse well-being include mindfulness practices, yoga, spending quality time with family and friends, ensuring adequate sleep, and seeking counseling or support groups as needed (Dall’Ora et al., 2020; Study Bay Sampaio et al., 2018). Prioritizing self-care helps nurses provide more compassionate, high-quality care without compromising their own mental and physical health in the process.
In summary, the National Academy of Medicine’s 2021 report provides a roadmap for nurses to play a leading role in achieving health equity through addressing social determinants of health and promoting self-care standards over the next decade (National Academy of Medicine, 2021). Realizing this vision will require coordinated efforts across nursing specialties and care settings but stands to significantly improve population health and access to care, especially for vulnerable groups.
Braveman, P., Egerter, S., & Williams, D. R. (2011). The social determinants of health: Coming of age. Annual review of public health, 32, 381–398. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-publhealth-031210-101218
Dall’Ora, C., Ball, J., Recio-Saucedo, A., & Griffiths, P. (2020). Characteristics of job dissatisfaction in nursing: Analysis of the UK Nursing Community comments on Facebook. Journal of advanced nursing, 76(2), 484–494. https://doi.org/10.1111/jan.14266
Healthy People 2030. (n.d.). Social determinants of health. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. https://health.gov/healthypeople/objectives-and-data/social-determinants-health
National Academy of Medicine. (2021). The future of nursing 2020-2030: Charting a path to achieve health equity. The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/25982.
Sampaio, F., Sequeira, C., & Teixeira, L. (2018). Stress and burnout among nurses: Comparative analysis between services. International nursing review, 65(4), 534–542. https://doi.org/10.1111/inr.12418

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Study Bay Notes:
The Future of Nursing 2020-2030: How Nurses Can Achieve Health Equity

Nurses are essential for improving the health and well-being of individuals, families, and communities. They have the skills, knowledge, and dedication to address health inequities and promote equity, while keeping costs at bay, utilizing technology, and maintaining patient and family-focused care. However, to unleash the full potential of nurses, the systems that educate, pay, employ, and enable them need to support them in building healthy communities.

This is the vision of the National Academy of Medicine (NAM) report, The Future of Nursing 2020-2030: Charting a Path to Achieve Health Equity. The report builds on the foundation set out by the previous NAM report, The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health, which called for nurses to practice to the full extent of their education and training, achieve higher levels of education and training, be full partners in redesigning health care, and improve data collection and information infrastructure.

The new report recognizes that the COVID-19 pandemic has magnified the challenges nurses face every day, such as inadequate staffing, low wages, lack of diversity, limited career advancement opportunities, and exposure to violence and burnout. But it also highlights the opportunities for nurses to advance health equity for all, especially for those who are marginalized, oppressed, or discriminated against.

The report offers 15 recommendations for the nursing profession and other stakeholders to achieve health equity. Some of these recommendations are:

– Increase the diversity of the nursing workforce at all levels to reflect the diversity of the U.S. population.
– Expand opportunities for nurses to lead and manage collaborative efforts with other health professionals and community partners.
– Ensure that all nurses have access to well-designed and well-funded programs for education, lifelong learning, and interprofessional development.
– Implement standardized processes for collecting data on nurses’ characteristics, roles, activities, outcomes, and well-being.
– Establish fair compensation policies and practices that provide livable wages and benefits for all nurses.
– Create healthy work environments that protect nurses from physical and psychological harm.
– Support nurses’ involvement in innovation and entrepreneurship to develop new models of care delivery, products, services, and technologies.

The report also emphasizes the need for a social movement that mobilizes nurses and their allies to advocate for health equity. It calls for a national campaign that raises awareness of the value of nursing, educates the public about health equity issues, and engages diverse stakeholders in collective action.

The Future of Nursing 2020-2030 is a visionary and practical guide for how nurses can contribute to achieving health equity in the United States. It challenges nursing leaders and other stakeholders both within and outside of health care to prioritize addressing the structural inequities that have fueled persistent health disparities. It also inspires nurses to use their unique combination of skills, knowledge, and dedication to make a difference in the lives of people and communities.

Works Cited

: Wakefield M., Kimball B., Hassmiller S., et al. The Future of Nursing 2020–2030: Charting a Path to Achieve Health Equity. Washington (DC): National Academies Press; 2021.

: Institute of Medicine. The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health. Washington (DC): National Academies Press; 2011.

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