i-manager Publications

Preparing the Future Nursing Workforce for Political Activism

Cynthia D. Rubenstein*, Amy C. Graham**

* Assistant Professor, James Madison University.

* Instructor, James Madison University.

Periodicity:May - July'2011
DOI : https://doi.org/10.26634/jnur.1.2.1474

Abstract

Awareness of the importance of political advocacy for both the nursing profession and for patient outcomes is critical to the advancement of health related legislature at the state and federal level. The 2010 IOM report, The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health, recommends that nursing education prepares a workforce of nurses for key government leadership positions. This study evaluated the effectiveness of group participation in a health policy and legislative blog in increasing nursing student self-efficacy scores on political activism. The research design was an evaluative before-and-after design using each participant as his/her own control. The study utilized a convenience sample of 56 senior level nursing students enrolled in a leadership course. A paired-samples t test was conducted to compare the pre-test mean and the post-test mean of a 12 item political self-efficacy survey. The overall self-efficacy score and all three self-efficacy subscales were statistically significant (p<.05) demonstrating a noteworthy increase in self-efficacy for political activism. This study has identified an effective teaching strategy to improve the self-efficacy of nursing students in advocating for the nursing profession and patient outcomes. The outcome of this study was that graduating baccalaureate students enter the workforce with an established level of confidence in their ability to affect change in health policy promotion.

Keywords

Nursing Education, Health Policy, Blog, Self-efficacy, Political Activism, Nurse Advocacy

How to Cite this Article?

Rubenstein, C.D., and Graham, A.C. (2011). Preparing the Future Nursing Workforce for Political Activism. i-manager’s Journal on Nursing, 1(2), 18-23. https://doi.org/10.26634/jnur.1.2.1474

References

[1]. Andrews, A. B. (1998). An exploratory study of political attitudes and acts among child and family services workers. Children and Youth Services Review, 20(5), 435- 461. doi: 10.1016/SO190-7409(98)00016-4.

[2]. Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, (2010). Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2010-11 Edition, Registered Nurses.Retrieved from http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos083.htm.

[3]. Caprara, G. V., Vecchione, M., Capanna, C., & Mebane, M. (2009). Perceived political self-efficacy: Theory, assessment, and application. European Journal of Social Psychology, 39, 1002-1020. doi: 10.1002/ejsp.604.

[4]. Chan, S.W., & Cheng, B.S. (1999). Political participation in Hong Kong: A study. Journal of Nursing Management, 7, 167-175.

[5]. Des Jardin, K. E. (2001). Political involvement in nursing – Education and empowerment. American Operating Room Nursing Journal,74(4),467-482.doi: 10.1016/S0001-2092(06)61679-7.

[6]. Deschaine, J.E., 7 Schaffer, M.A. (2003). Strengthening the role of public health nurse leaders in policy development. Journal of Nursing Scholarship, 4(4), 266- 274. doi: 10.1177/1527154403258308.

[7]. International Council of Nurses. (2010, May 10). About ICN: Members. Retrieved from http://www.icn.ch/abouticn/ about-icn/.

[8]. DeMoro, R.A. (2006). Caring for democracy. Registered Nurse: Journal of Patient Advocacy, 102(7), 9.

[9]. Institute of Medicine. (2011). The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.

[10]. Hahn, J. (2010). Integrating professionalism and political awareness into the curriculum. Nurse Educator, 25(3), 110-113.

[11]. Magnussen, L., Itano, J., & McGuckin, N. (2005). Legislative advocacy skills for baccalaureate nursing students. Nurse Educator, 30(3), 109-112.

[12]. Rains, J. W., & Barton-Kriese, P. (2001). Developing political competence: A comparative study across disciplines. Public Health Nursing, 18(4), 219-224. doi: 10.1046/j.1525-1446.2001.00219.x.

[13]. Zauderer, C. R., Ballestas, H. C., Cardoza, M. P., Hood, P. & Neville, S. M. (2009). United we stand: Preparing nursing students for political activism. Journal of the New York State Nurses Association, Fall/Winter ed., 4-7.

Preparing the Future Nursing Workforce for Political Activism

Abstract

Keywords

How to Cite this Article?

References

If you have access to this article please login to view the article or kindly login to purchase the article

Purchase Instant Access

Options for accessing this content:

	North Americas,UK, Middle East,Europe		India	Rest of world
	USD	EUR	INR	USD-ROW
Pdf	35	35	200	20
Online	35	35	200	15
Pdf & Online	35	35	400	25