Academy of Medical-Surgical Nurses Joins Nursing Organizations in Washington to Help Steer National Health Care Campaign

PITMAN, N.J., March 28, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Speaking for medical-surgical nurses across the country, Linda H. Yoder, PhD, MBA, RN, AOCN, FAAN, represented the Academy of Medical-Surgical Nurses (AMSN) at the launch of a national campaign mobilizing nurses to improve American's health and reduce inequities in care.

"We have a flawed system," Yoder said during the first public session of the campaign, The Future of Nursing 2020-2030, held recently in Washington, DC. "Among those paying a high price: People of color. Women. People who are economically poor. And people with multiple health conditions incurring unimaginable costs for uncoordinated care."

Read Yoder's Address

The National Academy of Medicine (NAM) officially began the campaign during the session, which was attended by influential nursing and health care leaders.

Yoder, AMSN's immediate past president, was one of seven top nursing leaders whose organizations were invited to provide comments to the committee tasked with producing a consensus report.

According to NAM President Victor Dzau, MD, the report will "Chart a path for the nursing profession to help our nation create a culture of health, reduce health disparities, and improve the health of the U.S. population."

Yoder, representing AMSN President Robin Hertel, EdS, MSN, RN, CMSRN, and AMSN members, discussed barriers nurses face, gave recommendations, and described med-surg nurses' front-line role in hospitals and communities. Med-surg nursing is the largest nursing specialty in the U.S., with an estimated 650,000 professionals.

Yoder told the committee that nurses in all settings are facing widespread challenges.

"We may have the most dynamic and productive economy, but failures of imagination and policy keep our nation unhealthy," Yoder said. "Rural America is paying a high price and hospitals are closing. I served in the Army 28 years and can state with authority my fellow Veterans also pay a high price."

Yoder suggested:

    --  Transforming payment systems to recognize nurses as a source of value
        and revenue.
    --  Supporting nurses in driving IT innovations.
    --  Forging a clear path for nurses to eliminate health disparities and
        improve social determinants of health.

Hertel pledged AMSN will catalyze its members and all med-surg nurses to help because "med-surg nurses are in an ideal position to identify solutions to health disparities and collaborate with other nurses and local leaders."

More information about med-surg nursing and AMSN: amsn.org.

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SOURCE Academy of Medical-Surgical Nurses