Registered nurses must practice “with cultural humility and inclusiveness” (American Nurses Association [ANA], 2021, p. 93) and fulfill their obligation to reduce disparities in healthcare (ANA, 2015). This ethical obligation requires immense collaboration and fierce advocacy. In May 2021, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NAM)—formerly known as the Institute of Medicine (IOM)—published The Future of Nursing 2020–2030: Charting a Path to Achieve Health Equity—the third in a series sponsored by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

Nursing professional development (NPD) practitioners play an integral role in the future of nursing and health equity. This report identifies 9 key recommendations, many of which are pertinent to NPD practice. For example, recommendation 7 states, “Nursing education programs, including continuing education, and accreditors and the National Council of State Boards of Nursing should ensure that nurses are prepared to address social determinants of health and achieve health equity” (NAM, 2021, p. 13–14).

Learn more in ANPD’s 2021 vlog and access this consensus report to determine what resonates with your organization and practice setting. 

References

American Nurses Association. (2015). Code of ethics for nurses with interpretive statements. American Nurses Association.

American Nurses Association. (2021). Nursing scope and standards of practice (4th ed.). American Nurses Association.

National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. (2021). The future of nursing 2020-2030: Charting a path to achieve health equity. The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/25982