The Future of Nursing: Leading Change and Advancing Health

The Future of Nursing
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The Future of Nursing
Introduction
The “Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health” is a report that resulted from the combined cooperation of the Institute of Medicine (IOM) and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) Committee. The partnership between the two was aimed at creating a blueprint for action over that would be applied in the coming years. The blueprint would provide an outline of the critical role of nursing in the delivery of health care as the spearhead of a newly redesigned system. This paper seeks to discuss the report that resulted from the partnership as well as how it relates to the practice of nursing, education of nurses, and the development of the nursing workforce. The paper will also explore state-based action coalitions’ roles and responsibilities and their efforts to advance the goals of the “Future of Nursing” report.
Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health
The RWJF and the IOM established the initiative on the Future of nursing following the enactment of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The ACA provided the United States with the opportunity to revamp the present health care system and replace it with a system that advocated for more accessible, more affordable, safer, and higher-quality health care. The report by RWJF and IOM explores the education, responsibilities and roles of nurses and how they were likely to significantly change to keep up with the demand for health care that was expected to result from the enactment of the ACA (IOM & RWJF, 2011). The RWJF and IOM, on their part, envisioned a future where the diverse populations of the United States were all able to access quality health care. They also envisioned a health care system that promoted disease prevention and the wellness of the public, provided compassionate care across the lifespans of individuals, and improved overall health outcomes.
The vision for a better future in health care would see primary care and prevention take center stage and act as the driver for a better health care system. The expected results would be increased collaboration and coordination between professionals, and affordable pricing of health care services for everyone. The prices and payments for health care services would also be geared towards the creation of value and not the rewards for the volume of services (IOM & RWJF, 2011). The expected economic benefits included a reduction in health care expenditures’ rate of growth. Generally, the RWJF and IOM envisioned a health care system that would be more reactive to the needs and desires of individuals in a more consistent manner hence the development of a truly patient-centered health care system with nurses at the center of it all.
The importance of the RWJF and IOM’s “Future of Nursing” is best captured in the report’s key messages and recommendations. According to RWJF and IOM, considering the crucial role nurses play with regards to the value of cate, accessibility and quality of care, the profession of nursing was in need of fundamental transformation in order for the committee’s visions to materialize. As a result, the committee...