The need to improve the health sector and health care in the United States led to the formation of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF). The philanthropy was focused in promoting healthy communities, enabling for growth of children with a healthy weight, cultivation of leaders to promote an occupied, sufficient workforce and health and healthcare transformation. The foundations collaborated with many others in various sectors to develop a culture of health which allows everyone to have a healthiest life (Hassmiller, 2013).
Coming 2008, RWJF and IOM came up with a two-year initiative to react to the call for assessment and transformation of the profession of nursing. A committee was appointed aimed at production of report that would form recommendations for blueprint that is action-centered for the nursing future. The committee came up with four key messages through its deliberations (Hassmiller, 2013):
- There was the need of nurses to practice to a full extent of the education and training they got. The message was meant to utilize all the skills and knowledge the nurses had for the promotion of good healthcare.
- The nurses were expected to reach the highest education and training levels through systems of improved education which promoted faultless academic evolution. The message was good for the improvement of skills of the nurses to ensure provision of quality healthcare.
- Nurses are expected to form full partnerships with the physicians and various health professionals, in the improvement of the United States’ healthcare. This allowed high level of cooperation and promoted collaboration of the provision of a safer healthcare to the citizens.
- Efficient workforce planning and making of strategies needed for better data collection and information infrastructure. This allowed for appropriate data collection and organization meant for provision of the right care.
The RWJF collaborated with the AARP which also impacted on the future of nursing. This was driven by the fact that the population was aging and there was need to promote a quality healthcare. The initiative by the two organizations played various roles which impacted on the future of nurses. There was need for the improvement of accessibility to care. The campaign of action pushed for the changes that allowed to nurses’ access to full extent of education and training. This would allow more Americana access to quality and affordable health services in both urban and rural areas (Reinhard and Hassmiller, 2012). Also, they played a role in the promotion of inter-professional collaboration. This working together in the community promoted the need to approach health as a mutual goal. Furthermore, there was the need of promotion of nursing leadership, with the community benefiting most, as the nurses take the leadership role in full partnership with the physicians. The roles also played included; nursing education transformation, increasing in the nursing diversity and workforce data collection. All these impacted on the healthcare positively with nurses’ education and training deepening to the extent of application of technology to provide health services (Reinhard and Hassmiller, 2012).
The RWJF/IOM report was of much importance to the health sector in general, especially to the relation of the nursing workforce. First, the report provisions implementation would allow nurses to be equipped better for leadership, multiplicity of the needs of the patients, and high level of scientific research. Secondly, the redesigning the healthcare system as required by the policy, will bring reform all round the state so as to allow nurses to carryout their duties within an array of skills and education. Furthermore, through higher education, nurses will be in the position giving care that is patient-centered. Lastly, allowing nurses to partner with other health professionals would facilitate education transformation and nursing staff deployment (Finkelman and Kenner, 2009).
The population of the American is aging and becoming sicker, hence high needs of health care. The future of Nursing: Campaign for Action forms an unparalleled program to look into the high demand for care through utilization of all talents, experience, skills and knowledge of the nurses. The campaign key purpose is to guide implementations of IOM recommendations report. The implementations of the report recommendations will see the professionals from all the health sectors be it nurses, physicians, business, consumers, government, working to form a healthcare that is transformed. The foundation is in collaborations with AARP to come up with a nonpartisan coalition of partners aimed at the advancing the recommendations of the IOM committee (Finkelman and Kenner, 2009).
There are uniqueness of health programs and laws within every state. The rationale behind the implementations of the action coalitions within the state level was to allow high participation and initiative ownership by the citizens of the states, government and the private organizations in health. It incorporated this while maintain delivery of uniform programs of healthcare through application of RWJF guidelines. The RWJF played a role of providing planning equipment and help, information resources and facilitation of sharing of knowledge and exchange across the states.
One of the state-based action coalitions is Texas Action Coalition. The States of Texas had collaborated with nursing leaders showing an advancement planning which enabled adoption of one menu of effective course modules across 106 nursing schools. The first initiative is the engagement of institutions of nursing education in discussions that will incorporate the various classes from different institutions. The Advancing Nursing Education Team will carry out consultations to come up with one course structure for different nursing education levels throughout the schools within Texas. The second initiative is in connection to the nursing practice to a wider extent. The Advancing Nursing Practice Team is organizing a program to establish the nurses’ roles in health care services.
Therefore, it is through RWJF recommendations in collaboration with IOM report that the United States has started a journey towards the improvement of healthcare across the country. The collaboration are guided by certain mission and is moving towards the achievement of certain objectives that will see the citizen with the U.S, receiving affordable high quality health care. However, the organization has call for the collaboration of various parties across the nation of the achievement of its objectives.
- Finkelman, A. W., & Kenner, C. (2009). Teaching IOM: Implications of the Institute of Medicine reports for nursing education.
- Hassmiller, S. B. (2013). The RWJF’s investment in nursing to strengthen the health of individuals, families, and communities. Health Affairs, 32(11), 2051-2055.
- Reinhard, S., & Hassmiller, S. (2012). The future of nursing: transforming health care. The Journal AARP International.