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The profession of
nursing is at a cross roads. It was 100 years ago that seven strong
women met to discuss how to improve nursing care. These special women,
while meeting in
Savannah,
started the professional organization for nurses in Georgia – what is
now the Georgia Nurses Association. Would these strong women be
surprised at the status of health care and nursing in 2007?
There is only ONE
professional nursing organization in Georgia that represents ALL
registered nurses –the
Georgia
Nurses Association (GNA). The mission of the
Georgia
Nurses Association is:
Nurses shaping the
future of professional nursing and advocating for quality health care.
There are dynamic
changes happening within health care daily, whether on the Federal,
state or local level. It is difficult to monitor and track how these
changes are affecting health care in Georgia. Therefore, it is the
Georgia Nurses Association that is watching, advocating and educating
about the changes in health care and nursing on a daily basis.
The Georgia Nurses
Association is involved and educated in so many different arenas within
health care. The Georgia Nurses Association MUST stay vigilant on so
many issues. This continual focus on the leading issues in health care
and nursing in Georgia is so important!
As a professional
registered nurse, it is imperative to be knowledgeable and proactive in
our profession. Although many registered nurses do not understand or
want to be politically active – it is our responsibility to know how
decisions made at the state and Federal levels affect our daily practice
of nursing. We also have the responsibility to provide direct input
into the changes that affect our practice and that of the health care
systems with which we are associated. This is an important aspect of
being a professional.
If as nurses, we do not
educate ourselves, our patients, our communities and our legislators on
the health care issues that we face daily, then someone (or some other
group) will do so.
Much has been written
and discussed in Georgia, about the Advance Practice Registered Nurses’
prescriptive authority issues – from what was passed into law in 2006 –
to the actual Rules and Regulations that have been established by the
Composite State Board of Medical Examiners as the implementation of the
legislation. But this is just one key part of the health care arena in
Georgia. Other key issues involve the shortage of nursing school
faculty, Medicaid funding, public health nursing issues, mandatory
overtime issues, labor unions, certificate of need changes, violence in
the workplace, background checks for licensure, retention of nurses and
other health care workforce staff. As funding for health care continues
to drive decisions on services, nurses need to be at the forefront in
leading these decisions. As advocates for our patients, nurses need to
be aware and vocal about those issues that affect our practice and our
patients. Whether you are at the bedside, in the board room or in the
classroom – we know what the true status of healthcare in Georgia is and
need to work to improve it!
It is important that
nurses step up to the challenge of becoming involved –meaning you need
to understand the issues and then work to improve the system. Who
better to understand all the issues, than nurses? Who better to educate
on the issues, than nurses? Who better to advocate for a better
healthcare system, than nurses?
The miracles that
happen in health care everyday are amazing…the changes that have been
made in the past 100 years of nursing in Georgia are amazing. Yet,
there is so much that needs to be addressed, improved, and amended! The
Georgia Nurses Association is the ONLY organization here to watch over
the profession of nursing every day! But who is the Georgia Nurses
Association? It is members – professional registered nurses from all
areas of nursing with the desire to improve the profession of nursing
and the health care system within Georgia. We are advocates for quality
care. We work in collaboration with many organizations but with the
understanding and focus on our mission. If you are not part of this
dynamic organization, ask yourself why. Who do you want to develop and
lead health care in to the next 100 years?
Easterly is president of the Georgia
Nurses Association (GNA). |
