Tania Martinez, RN, MSN, FNP-BC, CPN (pictured on the left) and Carolina de Almagro, RN (pictured on the right) participated in a priceless opportunity to meet fellow nurses and nurse leaders to learn and discuss about legislative policies in the nursing profession. Their participation was made possible through the Nurse's Charitable Trust.
Tania's highlights on her experience:
This week's opportunity to attend the Florida Nurses Association's "Season of Advocacy" was a great experience. I was able to see the background work being done to help nursing progress further into the future. We hear just the basics through hearsay but don't really get to see what it takes to make things happen. The conference explained what is done in a concise manner. One of the takeaways for me was how easy it was to reach our legislators through social media platforms or at the very least via email. One of the exercises they walked us through showed us exactly how simple it was and that any communication with them is public information. It not only holds us accountable for what we write but them for how they responds to our queries. The work of our nursing association is ceaseless, definitely shining a light to what other nursing positions one can take within our healthcare policy and politics field. It truly was an experience that at some point or another all nurses should be afforded. Thank you for providing me with such experience and I will continue to help our profession in contacting our politicians as a Nurse constituent!
Carolina's highlights on her experience:
Despite FNA 2021 Advocacy Days being virtual in nature, the substance and quality of the conference has been unaffected. As someone deeply interested in healthcare policy and advocacy, this has been a priceless opportunity meeting and discussing legislative policies with legislative officials, networking with other nurse leaders and professionals, and staying up to date with all of the new changes in nursing. I am deeply humbled and honored to have been given this opportunity through Nicklaus Children's Hospital and through the Nurses' Charitable Trust. This has served as a stepping stone to what I aspire to be a career of healthcare advocacy and policy reform to continue to improve our healthcare atmosphere.
About Advocacy Days
Advocacy Days is FNA’s annual event that empowers nurses to have a voice on legislative issues that affect their profession and the well-being of the patients they serve. Each Advocacy Days, nurses from across the state gather in Tallahassee during legislative session to learn about current legislative issues and specific bills that may affect their practice or the overall healthcare environment in Florida. They then have the opportunity to meet with their legislators one-on-one to discuss these issues and advocate for nursing. Advocacy Days is a great opportunity for both upcoming and seasoned nurses to get involved in advocacy work, regardless of whether they have prior experience in this realm or not.