Oct 11, 2017

Paper Lays Out Ways in Which All Nurses Affect Population’s Health

Nurse checks heartbeat of young patient, one of the many ways Nurses Affect Population's Health

How can nurses best help reverse course on the nation’s declining health and promote the health of the U.S. population? That question is addressed in a white paper commissioned by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and released last month.

The paper, “Catalysts for Change: Harnessing the Power of Nurses to Build Population Health in the 21st Century,” notes that “all nurses have a population health responsibility regardless of their education level or their work assignment.”

Researchers conducted literature reviews, interviews and attended regional and national meetings and conferences to develop recommendations on ways that nurses can help reverse the nation’s trend of declining health and promote the health of the U.S. population in the 21st century. The suggestions range from integrating population-focused nursing concepts into nursing school curriculum to recognizing nursing’s contribution to population health-related research.

Read the full report.

Check out RWJF’s new population-focused nursing resources.