A nursing PhD specialty in health policy: University of Massachusetts Boston

This article describes the Nursing PhD Program specialty in health policy conceived and developed at the University of Massachusetts Boston. The rationale for a specialty in health policy is that nurses have valuable knowledge and a unique perspective of the health care system. Nurses belong to the largest group of health care providers and are the providers that spend the most time with patients. The nursing profession has a responsibility to help assure members of society have access to safe and effective quality health care. As a group, nurses need to be politically savvy to translate their knowledge and perspective to benefit society. Nurses need to direct their attention to understanding issues and policy arguments and to contribute to policy discussion with reasoned arguments and objectivity. The PhD program at the University of Massachusetts Boston prepares nurses as policy analysts, researchers, and educators who will positively contribute to the health of society.