Why are healthcare policies—including financial and regulatory—that directly and indirectly influence the nature and function of the healthcare system important considerations in professional nursing practice?

1. Why are healthcare policies—including financial and regulatory—that directly and indirectly influence the nature and function of the healthcare system important considerations in professional nursing practice?

Essential V: Healthcare Policy, Finance, and Regulatory Environments Rationale Healthcare policies, including financial and regulatory policies, directly and indirectly influence nursing practice as well as the nature and functioning of the healthcare system. These policies shape responses to organizational, local, national, and global issues of equity, access, affordability, and social justice in health care. Healthcare policies also are central to any discussion about quality and safety in the practice environment. The baccalaureate­educated graduate will have a solid understanding of the broader context of health care, including how patient care services are organized and financed, and how reimbursement is structured. Regulatory agencies define boundaries of nursing practice, and graduates need to understand the scope and role of these agencies. Baccalaureate graduates also will understand how healthcare issues are identified, how healthcare policy is both developed and changed, and how that process can be influenced through the efforts of nurses, and other healthcare professionals, as well as lay and special advocacy groups. Healthcare policy shapes the nature, quality, and safety of the practice environment and all professional nurses have the responsibility to participate in the political process and advocate for patients, families, communities, the nursing profession, and changes in the healthcare system as needed. Advocacy for vulnerable populations with the goal of promoting social justice is recognized as moral and ethical responsibilities of the nurse. The baccalaureate program prepares the graduate to: 1. Demonstrate basic knowledge of healthcare policy, finance, and regulatory environments, including local, state, national, and global healthcare trends. 2. Describe how health care is organized and financed, including the implications of business principles, such as patient and system cost factors. 3. Compare the benefits and limitations of the major forms of reimbursement on the delivery of health care services. 4. Examine legislative and regulatory processes relevant to the provision of health care. Describe state and national statutes, rules, and regulations that authorize and define professional nursing practice. 6. Explore the impact of socio­cultural, economic, legal, and political factors influencing healthcare delivery and practice. 7. Examine the roles and responsibilities of the regulatory agencies and their effect on patient care quality, workplace safety, and the scope of nursing and other health professionals’ practice. 8. Discuss the implications of healthcare policy on issues of access, equity, affordability, and social justice in healthcare delivery. 9. Use an ethical framework to evaluate the impact of social policies on health care, especially for vulnerable populations. 10. Articulate, through a nursing perspective, issues concerning healthcare delivery to decision makers within healthcare organizations and other policy arenas. 11. Participate as a nursing professional in political processes and grassroots legislative efforts to influence healthcare policy. 12. Advocate for consumers and the nursing profession. Sample Content · policy development and the legislative process · policy development and the regulatory process · licensure and regulation of nursing practice · social policy/public policy · policy analysis and evaluation · healthcare financing and reimbursement · economics of health care · consumerism and advocacy · political activism and professional organizations · disparities in the healthcare system · impact of social trends such as genetics and genomics, childhood obesity, and aging on health policy · role of nurse as patient advocat