Situation:

Nurses make up the majority of health care providers. We’re the bridge between patient and physician, and to do our jobs need to fully understand the issues facing both our patients in their access to care and our colleagues in care delivery. HOWEVER, we are used by journalists as sources in media (newspapers, TV news, magazines) less that 3% of the time. Doctors are the go-to.

Background:

In the old days, nurses were employed by or subordinate to physicians. Now, we are a profession with its own code of ethics and scope of practice, beholden to none but our own licensing boards. We are experts, we are educated, we are experienced, and our stories and knowledge of direct patient care is crucial to making good policy.

Assessment:

According to the Woodhull Study, journalists claim nurses are “hard to find” as sources. The Nurse Voices Project aims to, in step one, collect the names and numbers of nurses in the field who are happy to speak about their area of expertise. Step two will be promoting this free resource, a directory of nurses with their areas of expertise and credentials as a source for their next article.

Recommendation:

Speak! Add your name to the list. Our experiences matter. We speak for patients that have no voice. We can open eyes to the issues we see within our health care system.