Engaging nurses in health policy in the era of COVID-19

Nurses have a unique place in redesigning the future of healthcare, particularly after experiencing health policy failures with the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic. Nurses consistently outperform other professions to enjoy a decades-long reputation as the most trusted profession. Nevertheless, the nursing voice is missing at a public level; representation in governments and boardrooms negligible. While nurses carry out health policy, rarely are they involved informing policy. While substantial dialog on health system reform, regulatory changes, care coordination, and health information technology occurs, nursing's presence is absent. The barriers are many: a lack of political sophistication, family, and work demands limiting time, and a lack of confidence. Using the Yoder-Wise Framework for Planned Policy Change, opportunities for engagement at each step in the process are made clear. Workplace opportunities provide entry-level representation and exposure to the machinations of governance. Nursing professional associations provide similar opportunities. For many nurses, social media, while not without its risks, offers a familiar and accessible platform by which to engage patients, the public, and policymakers in planned, strategic steps to create policy change and improve healthcare for patients.