Overcoming Barriers to Healthcare Reform: A Call to Action

The success of healthcare reform hinges on policymaker, regulator, and administrator actions that shape policies at various levels. These policies can either facilitate or hinder the practice of healthcare professionals and collaborative work environments. It is imperative for all healthcare profess...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:	Policy, politics & nursing practice Vol. 25; no. 4; pp. 254 - 259
Main Authors:	Ainslie, Marcy, Collins, Alicia F., Hebert, Danielle, Moore, Jeanne, Schriefer, Susan P., Venzke, Margaret Hadro
Format:	Journal Article
Language:	English
Published:	Los Angeles, CA SAGE Publications 01-11-2024 SAGE PUBLICATIONS, INC
Subjects:	Access Accreditation Administrators Barriers Certification Charges Clinical outcomes Clinical standards Education Financial incentives Health care access Health care industry Health care policy Health services Health status Interest groups Licensing Medical education Medical personnel Nurse practitioners Nursing Nursing licensure Occupational roles Policy making Primary care Professional practice Professionals Reforms Shortages Stakeholders Workforce Workplaces interprofessional care healthcare reimbursement issues patient-centered care scope of practice health system policy healthcare politics regulatory processes healthcare reform
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Summary:	The success of healthcare reform hinges on policymaker, regulator, and administrator actions that shape policies at various levels. These policies can either facilitate or hinder the practice of healthcare professionals and collaborative work environments. It is imperative for all healthcare professionals to fully utilize their education and certification, as fostering an equitable workplace culture is vital for retaining staff and improving access to care. Using nurse practitioners (NPs) as an exemplar, this article aims to specify systemic barriers to healthcare reform and call for policymakers, regulators, and clinical agency administrators to enact change. Barriers to NP practice include restrictive oversight by external stakeholders, financial incentives for indirect billing, and hierarchical constraints that limit NP contributions to the healthcare system. The growing healthcare provider shortage disproportionately impacts primary care and rural settings. NPs are increasingly more likely to fill these roles than medical doctors and have documented positive patient health outcomes. Removing systemic obstacles for NP practice increases access to care. Nursing—the largest healthcare workforce with diverse roles—operates under complex oversight from multiple organizations for licensure, accreditation, certification, and education. The recent trend of external stakeholders influencing and requiring additional oversight has created barriers to nursing practice. Despite national education, accreditation, and certification standards, nursing licensure and practice are increasingly negotiated with external stakeholders and supervised at the state and institutional levels. Supporting all healthcare professionals to practice according to their education and certification can advance healthcare reform, address workforce shortages, increase access to care, and improve health.
Bibliography:	ObjectType-Article-1 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-2 content type line 23
ISSN:	1527-1544 1552-7468 1552-7468
DOI:	10.1177/15271544241268411