 2001 AJN Table of Contents
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Washington Watch
American Journal of Nursing -
December, 2001 - Volume 101, Issue 12
Becoming a Grassroots Advocate
Nurse involvement is a key factor in legislative success
Grassroots advocacy has always been crucial to legislative success. For example, in the past several years, nursing has succeeded in getting increased federal funding for education because of the collective efforts of individual nurses to get their voices heard on Capitol Hill. Through the ANA’s Nurses Strategic Action Team (N-STAT) program, nurses were alerted to critical junctures in the congressional approval process for nurse education funding and were inspired to contact their Congressional representatives. In addition, many nurses had built solid relationships on their own with members of Congress, helping them to be heard above the din of voices trying to reach those representatives.
All of nursing’s legislative successes in recent years—including needlestick protections and Medicare reimbursement for advanced practice registered nurses—would not have been possible without grassroots advocacy among nurses. How can you be successful as a grassroots advocate?
Contact with elected officials
Develop strong relationships with your elected officials and their staffs. Lawmakers respond best to people they know and trust. Focus on your elected officials’ district staff and visit the district office if possible. The staff will have more time to delve into the nuances of your issues and gain better understanding of how those issues affect the officials’ constituents.
In fact, by effectively educating the staff on your issue, you can turn them into “lobbyists” who will advocate your cause to the elected official.
“The key to being successful as a grassroots advocate is to make sure your elected officials are able to put a face on the legislative and regulatory priorities of the nursing profession,” says ANA political action committee board member Sandy Whitley Ryals, MS, RN, CNAA. “The personal contact that results from grassroots advocacy is absolutely essential to continuing to get our message out loud and clear.”
Get comfortable with contacting your elected officials by joining the ANA’s N-STAT. You will be contacted periodically with action alerts and legislative updates on issues that affect the nursing profession and will be asked to contact your Congressional representaives. This type of coordinated grassroots contact allows nurses to build individual relationships with their legislators as well as speak with a united voice on a hot issue.
Showcasing expertise
Once you have developed personal relationships with your elected officials, you will be seen by them as an expert in nursing and health care issues. You can also become recognized as a nurse expert by working in coalitions and partnerships with other organizations that share your interests. Also, write letters to the editor about nursing concerns. Newspaper editorials and op-ed pieces can be influential ways to spread your message and to underscore your lobbying efforts; district staff read them to get a sense of which way the wind is blowing on issues.
Communications
Share information about your elected officials’ voting records and the latest legislative developments with other nurses, attend public debates and hearings, and when necessary, send letters to the editor describing elected officials’ support for nursing issues. Invite the officials’ district staffs to an event, such as a tour of your facility. Use your communications network to invite a large number of nurses to take the tour and ask questions. Any activity will do—the goal is to get them involved in your issues and policy concerns.
Campaign work and money
Nurses who contribute money to a campaign or who volunteer for it are more likely to receive a quick response from elected officials to requests for meetings or help on key issues. A contribution also may allow you time with an elected official at an event or fund-raiser. In addition, attending or hosting a fund-raiser or working on a campaign for an elected official increases nursing’s visibility and your own visibility in local political circles. Keep this in mind as the 2002 congressional campaigns gain momentum in the coming months.
For more information on becoming a grassroots advocate, contact the ANA’s Government Affairs office at (202) 651-7000. To learn about the N-STAT, go to www.NursingWorld.org/gova/federal/politic/nstat/gnstat.htm.
Sheila M. Roit and Marcella Wilding are senior political action specialists at the ANA.
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