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PLEASE PROVIDE A POSITIVE FEEDBACK TO THE PEER’S POST.

PEER POST Initial Post: The purpose of this discussion post is to identify one policy issue related to barriers to accessing psychiatric and mental healthcare that is currently being addressed by American Psychiatric Nurses Association (APNA), discuss how NPs can become policy-aware, as well as act as patient advocates. I will also attach a policy white-paper to support my statement. As the shortage of qualified mental health professionals in the United States (U.S.) continues to rise, it has created a barrier to access quality mental health care for many people suffering from various psychiatric illness. The APNA is addressing this issue by advocating for increase in supply of skilled, educated, and highly trained mental health professionals to keep up with growing demand (APNA, 2019). One of the position statements of the APNA centers on the need for the role of Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioners (PMHNP) to be fully acknowledged and their utilization expanded to increase patient access to quality care for mental health and substance use challenges (APNA, 2019).Advocating for policy change at the state or even the federal level may be quite intimidating for Nurses practicing in the advanced role especially new graduates but NPs should never shy away from opportunities to bring about a policy change that improves the quality of care provided to patients.  Nurses make up the largest single group of health professionals and this carries with it significant lobbying power and influence at all levels of government (Barzegar Safari, et al., 2020). Nurses can become more policy aware by identifying, researching, and utilizing advocacy tools and resources that teaches NPs how to become effective advocates for policy change.  These tools and resources provide valuable information including learning about how the legislative process works and how to participate fully in legislative action committees and coalitions. Nurses practicing at the advanced level can become better advocates for the patients and the profession by becoming familiar, contacting, or meeting with health policy makers and legislators and providing expert testimonies based on personal experience from being at the frontlines of patient care to effectively present the case that convinces a legislator to support a bill for passage into a healthcare law. These expert testimonies and advocacy efforts can focus on providing better access to mental health services, removing barriers to facilitate the provision of quality mental health care and addiction services, decreasing the stigmatization of mental illness, driving down health care costs, and ultimately improving patient outcomes.NPs are uniquely positioned to serve as patient advocates because they possess the necessary education, knowledge, skills, and expertise to facilitate changes and improve patient outcomes (Davoodvand, et al., 2016). Another way that nurse can effectively advocate for patient is through advocating for a change in health policy. They can achieve this by identifying a senator or house representative through their professional organizations that possess the lobbying power to lobby congress by providing accurate evidence based information to elected officials on the subject matter, the need for the change, and the positive outcome it will have for patients.The link to the policy white paper supporting my discussion is attached below:https://www.apna.org/news/mental-health-policy/ References:American Psychiatric Nurses Association (2019). Expanding Mental Health Care Services in America: The Pivotal Role of Psychiatric-Mental Health Nurses. Retrieved on April 8, 2022 from https://www.apna.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Expanding_Mental_Health_Care_Services_in_America-The_Pivotal_Role_of_Psychiatric-Mental_Health_Nurses_04_19.pdf
Barzegar Safari, M., Bahadori, M., & Alimohammadzadeh, K. (2020). The Related Factors of Nurses’ Participation and Perceived Benefits and Barriers in Health Policy Making, Journal of Nursing Research. 28 (4) – p e103 doi: 10.1097/jnr.0000000000000385Davoodvand, S., Abbaszadeh, A., & Ahmadi, F. (2016). Patient advocacy from the clinical nurses’ viewpoint: a qualitative study. Journal of medical ethics and history of medicine, 9, 5.