Congress must pass nursing workforce bill

After more than 20 years as a registered nurse, I recently went back to graduate school to enhance my scope of practice and fight the shortage of advanced practice nurses in our nation.

A bill in the U.S. Senate can be an ally in this fight by enhancing access to health care for millions of Americans. The Senate must pass the Nursing Workforce Reauthorization Act of 2019, which will fund and build our nursing workforce.

There is a growing need for nurses and advanced practice nurses in our country based on increased access to health care for millions of Americans — through the Affordable Health Care Act of 2010, the rapid rate of baby boomers turning 65 and advanced medical technology that can extend people’s life spans.

As Americans, we are fortunate to have talented health care professionals, state-of-the-art medical facilities and a strong education system. There is an increasing demand on a limited amount of providers, which makes routine and critical care hard to access in a timely manner.

From personal experience, I have seen patients who, perhaps several years ago, may have had a health problem that would place them at the top of a provider’s list to be seen. Today, these same patients may wait weeks for an appointment due to a shortage of providers. Time constraints may limit the scope of assessments that providers can address in one office visit, making follow up appointments necessary that may delay treatment of less critical needs for weeks.

Many nursing school applicants are turned away each year due to shortages in nursing faculty. Continued funding for Title VIII will extend advanced nursing education grants to support programs for nurse practitioners, nurse midwives, nurse anesthetists and other advanced education nurses. The Nursing Workforce Reauthorization Act includes the creation of internships, fellowships, and residency programs in collaboration with accredited schools of nursing. This will increase the capacity for nurse education and practice, quality, and retention of highly needed advanced degree nurses.

Opportunities for partnership with federally qualified health centers and nurse-managed clinics are key ways in which we can enhance our nursing workforce and meet the demand for high quality health care. Career ladder programs will help to promote leadership roles in nursing and enhance numbers of needed nursing faculty.

The Senate must pass this bipartisan legislation, which will provide additional funding to enhance care for underserved populations and high-risk populations including those living in rural areas, the elderly, veterans of war, people living with HIV/AIDS, mental illness and substance use disorders, as well as the homeless and victims of human trafficking and domestic violence.

Senators may oppose the bill due to budgetary constraints. This act provides budgetary appropriations for various segments of nursing care for each fiscal years 2020 through 2024.

This bill is important for the future of health care for our citizens. Every two years, a report on the allocation of funds and progress made under this bill will be submitted to the Senate and Congress for review.

To address our nation’s nursing shortage, and to promote quality health care for our citizens, we must implore our senators to pass this bill. It will signify great progress toward securing the right for high quality health care for all of our nation’s citizens.

Lynda S. Emard is a graduate student at the University of Saint Joseph in West Hartford.