Instruction
Advocacy for change can be accomplished through the development of a Health Policy Brief. The purpose of a health policy brief is to provide policymakers with a clear, succinct overview of an issue. These issues often involve vulnerable populations, health disparities, and social determinants of health. Wong, et al (2017) posits, “A policy brief puts front and center the problem to be addressed by policy, then presents relevant evidence to support or analyze a proposed policy” (p. 22).
Include the following headings and required information in your Health Policy Brief:
1. Statement of the Issue:
- Research a policy that is either open for comment or a proposed legislation that promotes social justice and/or health equality. Advocating for advanced practice for nurses, abortion access for women or any topic of choice.
- Define the healthcare issue being addressed by the policy under discussion.
- Who will be impacted by the policy?
- Who is your audience? For example, is this policy brief being developed to convince legislators or community leaders at local, state, or national level, nurses, or other interprofessional team members?
2. Proposed Policy Change:
- Identify two specific policy actions or interventions that could be recommended to address the issue and improve nursing practice and/or health outcomes.
3. Context/Background of the Issue:
- Discuss the facts and “make your case”.
- Include relevant information (statistics, demographics, trends, graphs, tables, etc.)
- Include an applicable ethical principle or law that could support your recommendations.
4. Impact of the Policy Change (This is the Conclusion):
- Briefly restate how your recommended policy change would specifically impact the problem. For example, how will patient outcomes, safety, access to care, etc. be impacted?
References:
- Reference relevant information from at least four scholarly/reliable sources with APA formatting
This should be 4-5 pages not including the Reference page.
Wong, S. L., Green, L. A., Bazemore, A. W., & Miller, B. F. (2017). How to write a health policy brief. Families, Systems & Health: The Journal of Collaborative Family Health Care, 35(1), p. 21-24.