What strategies can staff nurses use to collect and share evidence that could impact health policy decisions?

 Staff nurses play a significant role not only in the provision of patient care but also in policy development. Nurses support medical care and create a healthy population by participating in policymaking. Thus, nurses need to be more aggressive in their health functions. For them to intervene in policy development, they must work as leaders in their area of practice and not only working but also being proactive and innovative (Knebel & Greiner, 2003). Thus, they must evaluate the healthcare system and identify gaps that need to be filled to deliver effective care. Thus, they are professionals in providing care and in making decisions to influence practice standards. Staff nurses impact the health care policy formulation related to resource allocation, improving quality, best clinical practice, among other issues (Knebel & Greiner, 2003). Note that as they work to improve the quality of care, staff nurses improve knowledge and understanding, and while making health care policy, they will offer information with greater transparency toward formulating a policy. Note that a healthy system cannot be designed without healthcare professionals. Thus, staff nurses should collect and share information using the following practices;

• Patient-centered care

 Staff nurses should collect information using the patient-centered care approach. This means that the staff nurses should create a participatory decision-making process with the patient and understand and respect their unique values (Knebel & Greiner, 2003). Note that this approach will allow the staff nurse to understand the social-economic disparities and during the policymaking, the staff will share information that will improve health outcomes and reduce disparities.

• Teamwork and collaboration

 Staff nurses should collect information by working with inter-professional teams. Note that interdisciplinary collaboration will help the staff nurses review the care plan, identify barriers for quality care, and offer solutions, and work together toward common goals.

• Evidence-based research

 Another strategy that staff nurses can use to collect and share information is through evidence-based research. This means that staff nurses can conduct relevant research and come up with practice recommendations, after conducting research, the staff nurse can transfer knowledge to the healthcare care system to improve the performance (Hughes, 2008). Note that this strategy will enable the staff nurse to partner with other professionals and discuss if the evidence-based research should be implemented in every practice. In other words, during policymaking, the staff nurses will get the opportunity to talk about new knowledge and its role in improving performance (Hughes, 2008).General-evidence-based practices mean that nurses need to be committed to learning new skills that will bring positive changes in the healthcare system.

• Quality improvements

 Staff nurses can collect information that could be used in policymaking by ensuring the quality of care. This means that nurses need to adhere to the health care system's strategic goals, adhere to the standard of care, and identify barriers affecting quality improvement (Knebel & Greiner, 2003). During policy making, there will be quality reporting and communication about the quality improvement plan.  Staff nurses will talk about ways to improve care and state the appropriate tools to measure the quality of care.

• Informatics

 Staff nurses can collect information by using information and technology. The latter will help the staff nurse improve safety and quality (Knebel & Greiner, 2003). Moreover, the nurse will evaluate the information technologies and during policymaking, the policymakers will see the need of improving technology to minimize safety errors, communicate, and support decision making.

 

Reference

 

 

Knebel, E., & Greiner, A. C. (Eds.). (2003). Health professions education: A bridge to quality.

National Academies Press.https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK221519/

 

Hughes, R. (Ed.). (2008). Patient safety and quality: An evidence-based handbook for

nurses (Vol. 3). Rockville, MD: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK2659/