Media Contacts:
Mary Boyle, AARP, mboyle@aarp.org  
Kristie Aylett, AACN, kristie.aylett@aacn.org

AARP and the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN Critical-Care) have awarded more than $355,000 to 20 projects offering innovative and replicable solutions to strengthen the nursing workforce by creating and sustaining healthy work environments aimed at improving recruitment and retention rates of registered nurses.

Strengthening the nursing workforce and sustaining healthy work environments are crucial to addressing a shortage that has already resulted in the loss of 100,000 registered nurses during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a 2023 National Council of State Boards of Nursing report. ﷟

Another 600,000 nurses have reported intent to leave the workforce by 2027, according to the same report, raising significant concerns for our nation’s health care system. Creating healthy work environments is essential for recruiting and retaining a strong nursing workforce. Nurses cannot optimally contribute to care delivery across the continuum without healthy work environments. Healthy work environments reduce stress, enhance overall job satisfaction, and foster a sense of belonging for patients, families, and health care team members. 

“Nurses play a critical role in protecting the health of our nation, but they need healthy work environments to effectively deliver care,” said Alan Weil, senior vice president, public policy and director of AARP Public Policy Institute. “AARP is proud to provide ongoing support to ensure a strong nursing workforce across all care settings where nurses practice.”

“Nurses represent the largest segment of the health care workforce, which positions them as essential catalysts for addressing health care challenges while driving innovation and transformation in the field,” said Vicki Good, DNP, RN, CENP, CPPS, chief clinical officer for AACN. “Creating supportive, healthy work environments isn’t just beneficial for nurses, it creates a ripple effect that can improve patient outcomes and strengthen family experiences.”

The funded projects are from Arkansas, California, Colorado, the District of Columbia, Florida, Maryland, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Texas, Viriginia, Washington and Wisconsin.

AARP administers the award program.

Find out about the projects.

AARP is the nation’s largest nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to empowering people 50 and older to choose how they live as they age. With a nationwide presence, AARP strengthens communities and advocates for what matters most to the more than 100 million Americans 50-plus and their families: health and financial security, and personal fulfillment.

American Association of Critical-Care Nurses is the world’s largest specialty nursing organization, with 137,000 members and nearly 200 chapters in the United States. To achieve its vision of a healthcare system driven by the needs of patients and families, where nurses make their optimal contribution, AACN’s advocacy priority is to establish and sustain healthy work environments that support nursing excellence.

The post Recipients of 2025 Nursing Innovations Fund Awards appeared first on Campaign for Action.

We are proud to celebrate the successful accomplishments of the Future of Nursing: Campaign for Action and the Center to Champion Nursing in America (CCNA), both initiatives of AARP Foundation, AARP, and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. As we reflect on the journey we have shared to build a healthier America through nursing, we are filled with immense pride and gratitude for the remarkable achievements we have accomplished together. It is bittersweet for us to announce the sunsetting of the Campaign for Action and CCNA.

Since its launch in 2007, this collaboration has made great strides, driven by the unwavering dedication of colleagues, allies and volunteers like you. Together, we have achieved remarkable milestones, improving the health of communities throughout the nation. We are grateful for the countless hours, enthusiasm, and energy you shared with us; you are the heart of the Campaign for Action and the reason for its success.

While the Campaign and CCNA are ending, the journey toward health equity through and within nursing continues. We are committed to harnessing the momentum we have built together to keep striving for a healthier nation.

We especially thank our state-based Action Coalitions, volunteer groups that stretched far beyond nursing and health care to include nearly 2,000 organizations, working together to make a difference in their communities. Thank you also to the visionary leaders who helped shape Campaign strategy as chairs of its Strategic Advisory Committee: Antonia M. Villarruel, PhD, RN, FAAN; Sheila P. Burke, MPA, BSN, FAAN; Daryl G. Kirch, MD; and Matt Longjohn, MD, MPH.

We also celebrate the innovative leadership of Susan B. Hassmiller, PhD, RN, FAAN, and Susan C. Reinhard, PhD, RN, FAAN, who built the unprecedented collaboration between the country’s largest philanthropy devoted to health (RWJF) and the largest nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to empowering people 50 and older to choose how they live as they age (AARP). AARP Foundation, AARP and RWJF launched CCNA in 2007, and the Campaign in 2010, guided by two landmark nursing reports: the then-named Institute of Medicine’s Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health and the National Academy of Medicine’s Future of Nursing: 2020-2030: Charting a Path to Achieve Health Equity. CCNA ran the Campaign for Action, and we are grateful for the many staff and volunteers who have contributed over the years.

CCNA and the Campaign produced results, in collaboration with our national and state champions, which include:

• Twenty-seven states and the District of Columbia now allow nurse practitioners to provide care to the full extent of their education and training, giving 98 million people better access to care.
• Through the establishment of the Nurses on Boards Coalition in 2014, we improved the health of communities throughout the nation with more than 10,000 nurses now serving on boards and influencing the health of communities.
• The Campaign helped lead progress in diversifying the nursing workforce so that it more closely reflects the communities it serves, though more progress needs to be made.
• We have made tremendous gains in advancing nursing education, tripling the number of RN-to-BSN graduates between 2009 and 2017.
• We are also making strides in the work to support nurses in the workforce, including creating and scaling pathways to nursing and allied health careers, and addressing barriers to faculty and student retention, graduation, and nurse licensure passage rates, particularly for communities underrepresented in nursing.

Read the full list of accomplishments on the Campaign’s timeline.

As we celebrate Nurses Week, we are pleased to announce that AARP will continue its support of initiatives that improve access to care for consumers, recognize and value nurses at all levels and from all backgrounds, strengthen recruitment, retention and diversity of our nation’s nursing workforce, and foster opportunities for nursing career success. Additionally, we are collaborating with a number of organizations to ensure the sustainability of programs initiated by the Campaign. We will keep you updated as agreements are finalized.

There are many ways to stay involved and connected with opportunities to strengthen nursing and build a healthier America, and we share those options here. Please stay engaged and keep the momentum going!

Lastly, on Tuesday, May 27, we invite you to join us in a celebration of the Campaign’s accomplishments and future opportunities to advance health equity through nursing. We hope to see you there. Register at: https://events.aarp.org/healthequitynursing052725.

We thank you again for all you have done. With deepest gratitude,

The post AARP RWJF Conclude Major Nursing Collaborative appeared first on Campaign for Action.

Media Contacts:
Ilse Zuniga, AARP Communications, izuniga@aarp.org
Kristie Aylett, AACN Communications, kristie.aylett@aacn.org

AARP continues its collaboration with the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses to support initiatives to strengthen the nursing workforce with grants from the 2025 Nursing Innovations Fund

ALISO VIEJO, Calif. – Feb. 20, 2025 – Proposals are being accepted for grants from the 2025 Nursing Innovations Fund, a continuing collaboration between the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN Critical Care) and AARP to strengthen the nursing workforce.

This program seeks innovative and replicable solutions to create and sustain healthy work environments and improve recruitment and retention rates of registered nurses, through implementation of one or more AACN Critical Care’s Standards for Establishing and Sustaining Healthy Work Environments.   

“Nurses play a critical role in protecting the health of our nation, but they cannot effectively deliver care without healthy work environments. AARP is proud to provide ongoing support to ensure a strong nursing workforce across all care settings where nurses practice,” said Megan O’Reilly, AARP Vice President of Government Affairs for Health and Family.

“Stressful working conditions and unhealthy work environments are key reasons nurses are leaving their profession at alarming rates. Research has shown that nurses who work where healthy work environments are actively created report higher job satisfaction, better quality of care, more shifts with appropriate staffing, and less intent to leave their current positions,” said AACN Chief Clinical Officer Vicki Good.

Projects will use AACN’s Healthy Work Environment Assessment Tool as a pre- and post-measure. The free online tool helps teams assess and measure progress in establishing and sustaining a healthy work environment. Awardees will submit a final report on the impact of the project as part of the grant’s emphasis on sustainability and sharing best practices.

Proposals are due by April 4, 2025, with finalists notified in May and funded projects to commence July 1. Awards of up to $20,000 will be given for projects completed in one year.  AARP will administer the grants.

For complete information about the awards, eligibility criteria, application and other details, visit /2025-innovations-fund/.

AARP is the nation’s largest nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to empowering Americans 50 and older to choose how they live as they age. With a nationwide presence, AARP strengthens communities and advocates for what matters most to the more than 100 million Americans 50-plus and their families: health and financial security, and personal fulfillment.

To learn more, visit www.aarp.org/about-aarp or follow @AARP,
@AARPenEspañol, and @AARPadvocates on social media.  

American Association of Critical-Care Nurses is the world’s largest specialty nursing organization, with more than 135,000 members and nearly 200 chapters in the United States. To achieve its vision of a healthcare system driven by the needs of patients and families, where nurses make their optimal contribution, AACN’s advocacy priority is to establish and sustain healthy work environments that support nursing excellence.

American Association of Critical-Care Nurses, 27071 Aliso Creek Road, Aliso Viejo, CA 92656; 949-362-2000; www.aacn.org; facebook.com/aacnface; x.com/aacnme

The post Initiatives to Strengthen Nurse Work Environments appeared first on Campaign for Action.

Contact: Mary Boyle, mboyle@aarp.org

Five outstanding nurses with very different specializations have been selected as recipients of the 2024 Equity-Minded Nurse Awards from the AARP Center for Health Equity through Nursing^SM and the Future of Nursing: Campaign for Action, an initiative of AARP Foundation, AARP and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The award program supports the Campaign’s vision that everyone in America can live a healthier life, advanced by equity-minded nurses as essential and valued partners in providing care and promoting health equity and well-being.

The awards are given in five categories, and each is generously co-sponsored by a national nursing organization named below. Each awardee will receive a $1,000 prize and paid travel to and recognition at an awards dinner in Baltimore on Sept. 10 before a national audience of nurse educators.

The awardees are:

Wei-Ti Chen, RN, PhD, FAAN of the UCLA School of Nursing is the recipient of the 2024 Equity-Minded Nurse Leader Award. Co-sponsored by the American Organization for Nursing Leadership, this award recognizes a catalyst for change at the systems or organization level that addresses and dismantles policies and structures that contribute to disparities and inequities and contributes to an overall climate of inclusion that encourages the institution to focus on community needs.

Chen’s research is directed toward the development and dissemination of tools to improve health care and quality of life of underserved or stigmatized groups, such as people with HIV/AIDS, Tourette Syndrome, and mobile populations. She continues to identify the best approaches for developing suitable, effective and sustainable health policies in the area of HIV care. Chen is one of the first nurse scientists to conduct HIV intervention research with Asians both in the U.S. and in Asia (Taiwan, China, Myanmar and Thailand). Read more. 

Selena Gilles, DNP, ANEF, FNYAM, FADLN, FAANP, FAAN, of the New York University Rory Meyers College of Nursing is the recipient of the 2024 Equity-Minded Nurse Practice Award. Co-sponsored by the National Commission to Address Racism in Nursing/American Nurses Association, this award recognizes a nurse whose work with patients, families and/or communities exemplifies efforts to reduce health disparities and advance health equity.

Gilles has been an adult nurse practitioner for 14 years, specializing in neuro, pain management and addiction medicine. She is regarded as a leader and prelicensure nursing education expert, with a focus on preparing entry-level professional nurses to practice across a variety of settings in the spheres of wellness/disease prevention and chronic disease management. She has strong community advocacy and passion for global health, participating in seven medical missions. She has published articles on such topics as the value of including reproductive justice in nursing curricula, the role of nurses educating patients about opioid overdose harm prevention and using community-based models to increase vaccination rates in marginalized communities. Read more.

Sabrina Jamal-Eddine, PhD, RN, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC), is recipient of the 2024 Equity-Minded Nurse Rising Star Award. Co-sponsored by the National League for Nursing, this award recognizes a student or early career individual whose contributions show promise for ongoing impact in reducing health disparities and advancing health equity.

Jamal-Eddine is a nurse scientist and interdisciplinary disability justice scholar. Her doctoral research explored the use of critical narrative pedagogy to educate nursing students about disability, ableism, and disability justice in the context of health care, and she will advance this research through her postdoctoral fellowship. She serves on the board of directors of the National Organization of Nurses with Disabilities (NOND) as well as UIC Chancellor’s Committee on the Status of Persons with Disabilities. Jamal-Eddine’s long-term goal is to found an interdisciplinary, applied public-humanities community-engaged healthcare equity center in a university. Read more.

Robert Lucero, PhD, MPH, RN, FAAN, FACMI, UCLA School of Nursing is the recipient of the 2024 Equity-Minded Nurse Research Award. Co-sponsored by the American Academy of Nursing, this award recognizes a nurse researcher whose scholarship advances the science and the body of knowledge that advances health equity. The research or scholarship of this award should be or have the potential to be disseminated widely as best or promising practices.

Lucero’s research focuses on improving health outcomes of vulnerable populations using innovative health systems and informatics approaches. Two of his focus areas are enhancing the quality of care for hospitalized older adults and improving self-management of chronic health conditions among Hispanic, African American and LGBTQ+ populations. His research is leading the way to inform infrastructure development for data-driven knowledge generation that serves as a model for organizations across the United States to improve the quality of care for hospitalized older adults. Read more.

M. Rebecca O’Connor, PhD, RN, the University of Washington School of Nursing, is the recipient of the 2024 Equity-Minded Nurse Educator Award. Co-sponsored by the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, this award recognizes a nurse educator whose efforts demonstrate excellence in diversifying the nursing student body, inclusive teaching/learning practices, and whose teaching and/or curriculum design include topics that lead to the graduation of equity-minded nurses.

O’Connor is an associate professor in the University of Washington School of Nursing (SON), and an inaugural Betty Irene Moore Nurse Leaders and Innovators Fellow. Her research, teaching, and service reflect her commitment to addressing bias in nursing and beyond. She collaboratively designed and leads the Implicit Bias Clinical Education Program (IBIAS^TM) to develop bias-interrupting habits among future nurses, implicit bias training for interdisciplinary health sciences students, faculty, and research teams nationally, and an Anti-racism and DEI Teaching Institute for SON faculty. O’Connor received the Excellence in Promoting Diversity Through Teaching Award in 2016, 2018, 2019, and 2021 and Excellence in Graduate Teaching Award in 2022. Read more.

Antonia M. Villarruel, PhD, RN, FAAN, Professor, and the Margaret Bond Simon Dean of Nursing at University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing, who chairs the Campaign’s Strategic Advisory Committee, said the following about the award and 2024 honorees:

“Dismantling the structural barriers to equitable health care for all people continues to be one of nursing’s top priorities. Each awardee takes a unique approach to this challenge in their work, and it is such an exciting cohort this year!  We are pleased to partner with national nursing organizations to recognize the many different ways in which nurses, and nursing, advance health equity. Education, practice, and research are synergistic in nursing. We benefit from experienced, courageous leadership and we need passionate rising stars to keep moving us forward. We are fortunate to have these five extraordinary nurses in our ranks, and I am grateful for their contributions.”

Villarruel will recognize and celebrate the five awardees at the Hyatt Regency Baltimore Inner Harbor. The dinner is part of a two-day workshop hosted by the AARP Center for Health Equity through Nursing on mentoring for success for schools of nursing.

The Campaign defines equity-mindedness as so deeply understanding and embracing health equity, social justice, anti-racism, and cultural humility that these concepts emerge as normalized, automatic and default thought processes no matter the setting or the group of people they work with.

The Campaign wishes to acknowledge the thought leadership of Piri Ackerman Barger, PhD, RN, FAAN, associate dean for Student Affairs and Health Equity, Diversity and Inclusion and clinical professor at the University of California Davis Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing, for her role in shaping the Campaign’s equity-minded nurse initiative as its health equity senior fellow.

Learn about the Equity-Minded Nurse Initiative.

Meet the 2023 Equity-Minded Nurse awardees.

Learn about the awards.

The AARP Center for Health Equity through Nursing (A-CHEN) was founded to align nurse leadership and consumer voices to end structural barriers to health and well-being. It serves as a vehicle for change, hosting specific programs and activities that align with AARP’s health equity priorities.

The Future of Nursing: Campaign for Action is a national initiative of AARP Foundation, AARP and RWJF, guided by the National Academy of Medicine’s evidence-based recommendations on the future of nursing 2020-2030, Charting a Path to Achieve Health Equity, which explores nursing’s pivotal role in advancing health equity. The Campaign includes Action Coalitions in many states and the District of Columbia and a wide range of health care professionals, consumer advocates, policymakers, and the business, academic, and philanthropic communities. The Center to Champion Nursing in America, an initiative of AARP Foundation, AARP and RWJF, serves as the coordinating entity for the Campaign.

Learn more at www.campaignforaction.org. Follow on Twitter/X at @Campaign4Action and on Facebook.

Thank you to our co-sponsors:

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Contact: Mary Boyle, mboyle@aarp.org

AARP, the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN Critical Care), and the Future of Nursing: Campaign for Action, an initiative of AARP Foundation, AARP, and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, have awarded nearly $275,000 to 12 projects offering promising solutions to strengthen and diversify the nursing workforce through innovative nurse recruitment and retention strategies that establish and sustain healthy, equitable work environments.

Strengthening the workforce and sustaining healthy, equitable work environments are key to addressing a shortage that has already resulted in the loss of 100,000 registered nurses during the COVID-19 pandemic due to stress, burnout, and retirement. Another 600,000 nurses have reported intent to leave the workforce by 2027 – and the public is concerned.

A recent AARP Research Center survey showed that nearly all adults (98%) say that nurses are vital to the health and well-being of the nation and the vast majority (84%) recognize that the nursing shortage is critical and could negatively impact our population’s health. The same survey showed that 95% of adults believe more should be done to retain nurses and 96% say more should be done to recognize the value of nurses.

This award recognizes that if health equity is to be realized, and if people are going to live their healthiest lives, ongoing support is required to ensure a strong nursing workforce and healthy, equitable work environments across all care settings where nurses practice.

“The number of stressors on nurses keeps multiplying, and many of them have to do with the workplace itself,” said Susan C. Reinhard, PhD, RN, FAAN, chief strategist emeritus, Center to Champion Nursing in America, which runs the Campaign for Action. “Nurses are leaving the profession at alarming, unsustainable rates. These 12 projects are aimed at reversing this trend. We are optimistic they will lead to replicable strategies for healthier work environments and workforce recruitment and retention strategies.”

Antonia M. Villarruel, PhD, RN, FAAN, professor, and the Margaret Bond Simon Dean of Nursing University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing, who chairs the Campaign’s Strategic Advisory Committee, said the following about the significance of the awards:

“Nurses are witnesses to or recipients of racism and discrimination in health care settings. Yet, nurses are in the best position to leverage their commitment, expertise, and leadership to address these issues for patients, families, and co-workers. Healthy, empowering, and safe work environments are critical to supporting nurses’ efforts to achieve health equity. Each of these projects holds promise for doing just that.”

Vicki Good, DNP, RN, CENP, CPPS, chief clinical officer for AACN Critical Care, said, “As the largest segment of the health care workforce, nurses are uniquely positioned to not only navigate today’s challenges, but to shape the future of health care. Healthy work environments are crucial to those efforts, with far-reaching benefits for patients, families, and communities.”

The funded projects are from California, the District of Columbia, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Tennessee, Texas, and Washington.

Read more about the projects and recipients.

The AARP Center for Health Equity through Nursing^SM administers the award program.

AARP is the nation’s largest nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to empowering Americans 50 and older to choose how they live as they age. With a nationwide presence, AARP strengthens communities and advocates for what matters most to the more than 100 million Americans 50-plus and their families: health security, financial stability, and personal fulfillment.

American Association of Critical-Care Nurses is the world’s largest specialty nursing organization, with over 130,000 members and nearly 200 chapters in the United States. To achieve its vision of a health care system driven by the needs of patients and families, where nurses make their optimal contribution, AACN advocacy priority is to establish and sustain healthy work environments that support nursing excellence.

The Future of Nursing: Campaign for Action is an initiative of AARP Foundation, AARP, and RWJF. Through its state Action Coalitions, the Campaign works with policymakers, health care professionals, educators, and business leaders to respond to the country’s increasing demand for safe, high-quality, and effective health care. The Campaign’s vision is that everyone in America can live a healthier life, advanced by equity-minded nurses as essential and valued partners in providing care and promoting health equity and well-being.

XXX

The post Recipients of 2024 Health Equity and Nursing Innovations Fund Awards appeared first on Campaign for Action.

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Contact: Mary Boyle, Campaign for Action communications director, mboyle@aarp.org}

A nurse educator in Maryland who centers health equity in classroom innovations and program implementation.

A nurse practitioner in Wisconsin who thrives on solving big issues that patients face by using nurse-created and inspired solutions.

A nurse scientist in Texas passionate about ensuring that research evidence translates into policy and practice to support health equity for communities of color and those affected by trauma and substance use.

A nurse educator in Kentucky whose 30-plus year career has focused on community engagement to advance health equity.

A nurse researcher in Connecticut who leverages eHealth and community engagement to enhance cardiovascular health equity in gay and bisexual men with HIV.

These five accomplished nurses are the recipients of the inaugural Equity-Minded Nurse Awards from the AARP Center for Health Equity through Nursing^SM and the Future of Nursing: Campaign for Action, an initiative of AARP Foundation, AARP and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation that is building a healthier America through nursing. The awards are part of the Campaign’s work to implement the goals of the National Academy of Medicine report, the Future of Nursing 2020-2030: Charting a Path to Achieve Health Equity, which explores nursing’s pivotal role in advancing health equity.

The awards are given in five categories and each is generously co-sponsored by a national nursing organization. The winners will receive a $1,000 prize each and paid travel to and recognition at the AARP Health Equity and Nursing Summit: Turning Commitments into Action, in Washington, DC, Oct. 31-Nov. 1.

The honorees are:

• Kamila A. Alexander, PhD, MPH, RN, Johns Hopkins School of Nursing, Baltimore, Maryland
• Kelly Ayala, DNP, APRN, BSN, Milwaukee, Wisconsin   
• Vicki Hines-Martin, PhD, MA(Ed), FAAN, University of Louisville (UL) School of Nursing; UL Health Science Center Office of Diversity & Inclusion; UL Center for Integrative Environmental Health Sciences; & School of Public Health and Information Sciences, Louisville, Kentucky
• Kelly McGlothen-Bell, PhD, RN, FAWHONN, UT Health San Antonio, School of Nursing, San Antonio, Texas
• S. Raquel Ramos, PhD, MSN, MBA, Yale University School of Nursing, West Haven, Connecticut

Kamila A. Alexander, PhD, MPH, RN, of Johns Hopkins School of Nursing in Baltimore, Maryland, is the recipient of the Equity-Minded Nurse Educator Award. Co-sponsored by the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, this award recognizes a nurse educator whose efforts demonstrate excellence in diversifying the nursing student body, inclusive teaching/learning practices, and whose teaching and/or curriculum design include topics that lead to the graduation of equity-minded nursing.

Alexander is an experienced educational leader and health equity scholar. Using innovative teaching methods and creative curricular programming, she aims to increase the number of nurses, scientists, and leaders who will transform health and advance equity. She is recognized as an outstanding mentor to a broad cadre of interdisciplinary students and fellows. Alexander’s community-engaged research promotes sexual and reproductive health equity through gender-based violence prevention and survivor-centered models for safety. She is a member of the inaugural cohort of Betty Irene Moore Fellowships for Nurse Leaders and Innovators.

Kelly Ayala, DNP, APRN, BSN, of Milwaukee, Wisconsin is the recipient of the Equity-Minded Nurse Practice Award. Co-sponsored by the National Commission to Address Racism in Nursing/American Nurses Association, this award recognizes a nurse whose work with patients, families and/or communities exemplifies efforts to reduce health disparities and advance health equity.

Ayala is practicing as the regional director for clinical operations for a heart health tech startup, currently in stealth mode. She is also co-founder of Streamline Flow, a solution for identifying, tracking and managing patients throughout their healthcare journey. A learn-it-all and healthcare nerd, she enjoys creating process maps and looking for patterns to improve care for patients, particularly those in underserved or marginalized communities. She finds meaning and joy in working alongside her patients to improve health rather than react or solely provide sick care. Her absolute favorite part of practice is de-prescribing with patients who have successfully improved their own health.

Vicki Hines-Martin, PhD, MA(Ed), FAAN, University of Louisville (UL) School of Nursing; UL Health Science Center Office of Diversity & Inclusion; UL Center for Integrative Environmental Health Sciences; & School of Public Health and Information Sciences, Louisville, Kentucky, is the recipient of the Equity-Minded Nurse Leader Award.  Co-sponsored by the American Organization for Nursing Leadership, this award recognizes a catalyst for change at the systems or organization level that address and dismantle policies and structures that contribute to disparities and inequities and contribute to an overall climate of inclusion that encourages the institution to focus on community needs.

Hines-Martin has been a faculty member at the University of Louisville School of Nursing since 1998 and her scholarship has focused on mental health, health equity, cultural diversity and community engaged partnerships. She conducts community-based participatory research with low income, under-served and multicultural populations and says community engagement is the mechanism through which she accomplishes most of her professional work.

Kelly McGlothen-Bell, PhD, RN, FAWHONN, UT Health San Antonio School of Nursing, San Antonio, Texas, receives the Equity-Minded Nurse Rising Star Award. Co-sponsored by the National League for Nursing, this award recognizes a student or early career individual whose contributions show promise for ongoing impact in reducing health disparities and advancing health equity.

A nurse scientist, McGlothen-Bell’s research focuses on examining the interplay between social context, policy and practice dissemination and implementation, and reproductive justice for substance-affected families. Through a practice lens, she became aware of how discriminatory health and social policies often take advantage of, rather than support historically marginalized people. Thus, she is passionate about addressing social and systemic injustices that create health inequities among communities of color and those affected by trauma and substance use.

S. Raquel Ramos, PhD, MSN, MBA, Yale University School of Nursing, West Haven, Connecticut, is the winner of the Equity-Minded Nurse Research Award. Co-sponsored by the American Academy of Nursing, this award recognizes a nurse researcher whose scholarship advances the science and the body of knowledge that advances health equity. The research or scholarship of this award should be or have the potential to be disseminated widely as best or promising practices.

Ramos’ research examines how user-centered design and technology-driven, behavioral interventions can enhance cardiovascular health equity in sexual minority men of color with HIV and at risk of HIV-related comorbid conditions. As a protocol nurse for the Multicenter AIDS cohort study, the longest running study on the life course of HIV in gay and bisexual men, Ramos observed the connection between HIV and cardiovascular disease risk.

Antonia M. Villarruel, PhD, RN, FAAN, Professor and the Margaret Bond Simon Dean of Nursing University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing, who chairs the Campaign’s Strategic Advisory Committee, talked about the significance of this award and this inaugural cohort of awardees:

“There is a breadth of diversity among the awardees and the work they do that exemplifies the almost infinite ways in which nurses can and do advance health equity – every single day,” Villarruel said. “These outstanding nurses work in different parts of the country and with different populations, and each is clearly passionate about their work. It’s exciting how each honoree has found a unique way to weave together theory and practice, ideas and implementation. While they have been recognized in these five different areas, each of them is also a leader, educator, researcher, and practitioner in their own right – and they are all stars.”

Villarruel will join Susan C. Reinhard, PhD, RN, FAAN, Senior Vice President and Director, AARP Public Policy Institute and Chief Strategist, Center to Champion Nursing in America and Family Caregiving Initiatives, and Piri Ackerman-Barger, PhD, RN, FAAN, Senior Health Equity Fellow at the Campaign for Action and associate dean of Health Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, as well as a clinical professor at the University of California Davis Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing, to recognize and celebrate the five awardees during a reception at the AARP Health Equity and Nursing Summit on October 31 in Washington, DC.

The Campaign defines equity-mindedness as so deeply understanding and embracing health equity, social justice, anti-racism, and cultural humility that these concepts emerge as normalized, automatic and default thought processes no matter the setting or the group of people they work with. You can read more about its Equity-Minded Nurse Initiative at /issues/the-equity-minded-nurse/.

More information about the awards can be found at /equity-minded-nurse-awards/.

The AARP Center for Health Equity through Nursing (A-CHEN) is a vehicle for change and a national resource for advancing health equity. It stimulates, promotes, and replicates actionable solutions that eliminate disparities and create better opportunities for people to live their healthiest lives possible. 

The Future of Nursing: Campaign for Action is a national initiative of AARP Foundation, AARP and RWJF, working to implement the National Academy of Medicine’s evidence-based recommendations on the future of nursing. The Campaign includes Action Coalitions in nearly every state and the District of Columbia and a wide range of health care professionals, consumer advocates, policymakers, and the business, academic, and philanthropic communities. The Center to Champion Nursing in America, an initiative of AARP Foundation, AARP and RWJF, serves as the coordinating entity for the Campaign.

Learn more at www.campaignforaction.org. Follow on Twitter/X at @Campaign4Action and on Facebook.

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Contact: Mary Boyle, CCNA Communications Director at mboyle@aarp.org

The AARP Center for Health Equity through Nursing^SM and the Future of Nursing: Campaign for Action, an initiative of AARP Foundation, AARP, and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF), have awarded nearly $700,000 to 15 projects (updated August 15, 2023) offering promising solutions aimed at eliminating structural inequities, particularly structural racism, within the nursing profession, health systems, or community, and for projects that  help improve  access to care and services for those most disproportionately impacted by  health disparities. Projects also support the advancement of one or more of the recommendations in the National Academy of Medicine report, The Future of Nursing 2020-2030: Charting a Path to Achieve Health Equity.

Structural racism is pervasive within the nation’s health and health care systems, and despite progress, still poses significant barriers to health and wellbeing for far too many. Additionally, health and wealth disparities disproportionately affect people of color, as well as older Americans, women, people with low-income, those with disabilities, those from LGBTQ communities, and those who live in isolated rural communities.

The 15 winning projects are from: California (3), District of Columbia, Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland (2), Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Tennessee, Utah, and Wisconsin (2). (Update August 15, 2023) Read more about the projects and recipients.

“This is our first time offering this award and we received an impressive number of applications addressing a range of issues and potential solutions,” said Susan C. Reinhard, PhD, RN, FAAN, senior vice president and director of the AARP Public Policy Institute, and chief strategist at the Center to Champion Nursing in America (CCNA) and Family Caregiving Initiatives. “It’s clear to me that nursing recognizes its role and is committed to advancing health equity. It’s an exciting time for our profession, and for the Campaign and the AARP Center for Health Equity through Nursing. We have work to do, and we are all in.” 

“Longer, healthier lives are not just the result of individuals making healthy choices,” said Jean Accius, PhD, senior vice president for AARP Global Thought Leadership. “Good health and longevity are simply not available to everyone in this country. There are structural barriers and biases in the health care system and how it’s funded.” He continued, “I am very proud of AARP’s commitment to supporting nurses in the fight against health disparities.”

“Nurses are everywhere in our communities – from the bedside to our schools and in board rooms,” said Beth Toner, RN, MSN, MJ, and senior communications officer at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF). “They see firsthand the impact of the structural injustices baked into the systems that impact health. At RWJF, we understand that their expertise and innovation are absolutely essential to dismantling structural racism within our health systems and beyond,” she continued. “And for the same reasons, we are helping to fund these awards. The innovation, passion and commitment we see in all these grantees is exactly what I expect from nurses.”

The awards will be administered by the Center to Champion Nursing in America (CCNA) at the AARP Center for Health Equity through Nursing. (Read more below.)

For more information and to learn about individual projects, go to campaignforaction.org/health-equity-innovations-fund.

The AARP Center for Health Equity through Nursing serves as a vehicle for change and national resource for advancing health equity.  CCNA is an initiative of AARP Foundation, AARP and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and it runs the Future of Nursing: Campaign for Action, an initiative of the same organizations building a healthier America through nursing. Since its founding in 2007, CCNA has created national and state multi-sector networks to stimulate collaboration, innovation and spur action for better health and well-being through nursing.

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The Future of Nursing: Campaign for Action is pleased to announce that it will implement a new three-year grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) to continue its work disrupting structural barriers to health equity by tapping the full potential of a diverse nursing work force and increasing access to care. The Campaign, a national initiative of AARP Foundation, AARP and RWJF, is run by the Center to Champion Nursing in America (CCNA), an initiative of the same organizations. CCNA is led by Susan Reinhard, PhD, RN, FAAN, senior vice president and director of AARP Public Policy Institute and chief strategist of CCNA and the Institute’s family caregiving initiatives.

Susan Reinhard, PhD, RN, FAAN

“We could not be more excited to continue the Campaign’s critical work of building a healthier America through nursing,” said Reinhard. “We plan great strides in achieving health equity in the U.S. built on strengthened nursing capacity and expertise.”

The $3.8 million grant is part of an 18-year RWJF investment in CCNA, which was established in 2007 with the goal of ensuring all Americans have access to a highly skilled nurse when and where they need one.

In 2010, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the country’s largest philanthropy devoted to health and health equity, joined AARP Foundation and AARP, the nation’s largest nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to empowering people to choose how they live as they age, to found the Campaign for Action. CCNA would coordinate the Campaign, guided by a 2010 report by the Institute of Medicine, the Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health.

Twelve years later, RWJF turned to the same partnership, this time to implement what is known as the second future of nursing report, released in 2021 by the National Academy of Medicine, with a focus on nurses leading in advancing health equity and disrupting structural racism.  

“We believe this three-year investment in the Campaign for Action is the natural next step in ensuring that the important recommendations in The Future of Nursing 2020-2030: Charting a Path to Achieve Health Equity are moved forward,”  said Don Schwarz, senior vice president of program at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, “and implementing those recommendations will ensure nurses have the tools they need to heal and to advance health equity for everyone.”

AARP Foundation has been a partner in the work since the beginning.

“AARP Foundation is proud to be on this extraordinary journey with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, AARP and the Center to Champion Nursing in America/Campaign for Action to advance health equity and well-being through nursing so everyone can live longer, healthier lives,” said Emily Allen, interim president and senior vice president for programs at AARP Foundation. “With RWJF’s support, we have strengthened the nursing profession, which is now better able to advance the cause of health equity in our nation. AARP Foundation shares nursing’s commitment to fighting health disparities. Our mission is to create a world without senior poverty, where no older adult feels vulnerable.  We invest in and create effective solutions that help tackle the root causes of senior poverty and emphasize equitable outcomes for populations that have faced systemic discrimination.”  

The Campaign plans to leverage, strengthen and engage its robust, multi-sector national network to implement the NAM’s 2020-2030 recommendations. That network includes national, state and local coalitions, as well as more than 2,000 businesses, health organizations, hospital systems, insurers, private companies and non-profit organizations, as well as nurses.  

Guided by a vision that everyone in America can live a healthier life, advanced by equity-minded nurses as essential and valued partners in providing care and promoting health and well-being, the Campaign’s focus through May 2025 will be:

• Fostering and unleashing the power of equity-minded nurses to lead and advocate for health equity and disrupt structural racism,
• Increasing equitable access to care and services by nurses, and
• Strengthening, growing and diversifying nursing at all levels.

Antonia M. Villarruel, PhD, RN, FAAN, professor and the Margaret Bond Simon Dean of Nursing at the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing, is co-leader of the Campaign’s Strategic Advisory Committee. She said the Campaign’s work to advance health equity has never been more urgent given numerous conditions that have brought social and racial injustice and disparities to the forefront of public health. “Equity, diversity, and inclusion are essential core values of nursing and what’s needed to build a healthy United States of America,” Villarruel said.

Learn more about the Campaign.

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The Future of Nursing: Campaign for Action, an initiative of AARP Foundation, AARP, and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF), has announced that six nurse-led projects will receive Nursing Innovations Fund awards of up to $25,000 each. The projects submitted by the Campaign’s state-based coalitions all serve to strengthen nursing’s role in building a Culture of Health and promoting health equity by addressing societal barriers to health and well-being, including structural racism. The projects are described below.

The winning projects are from Delaware, Kentucky, Montana, Pennsylvania, Utah and West Virginia, and were selected based on offering replicable strategies that help nurses promote health equity and well-being, while highlighting the importance of collaboration with diverse stakeholders. In fact, each of the 2021 Nursing Innovations Fund projects secured dollar-to-dollar matching funds from local and state partners as a condition of the award, which prioritizes coalition building to achieve sustainable change. As of 2020, the Campaign’s state coalitions have raised more than $93 million from community partners.

“This award’s focus on health equity has never felt more urgent,” said Susan B. Hassmiller, PhD, RN, FAAN, senior adviser for nursing at RWJF and director of the Campaign for Action. “This pandemic has put a spotlight on the inequities in our healthcare system. People of color, with lower incomes and those living in remote communities have gotten sick and died in the greatest numbers. Nurses remain on the front lines as trusted providers of care, and they are stepping up to innovate ways to build more equity into the system.”

“It is remarkable to me that despite the unprecedented pressure nurses are under during this pandemic, they are prioritizing the critical work that is needed to create structures to make health care more equitable in every way,” said Susan C. Reinhard, PhD, RN, FAAN, senior vice president and director of the AARP Public Policy Institute, and chief strategist at the Center to Champion Nursing in America, an initiative of AARP Foundation, AARP, and RWJF, which coordinates the Campaign for Action. “We received impressive proposals from all over the country, including some places hardest hit by COVID. I feel so much pride in our profession right now.”

“When nurses reflect the communities they serve, you see significant improvements in health and health equity,” said Eric J. Williams, DNP, RN, FAAN, interim associate dean of health sciences, nursing program director at Santa Monica College, and co-chair of the EDISC. “No one is better positioned than nurses to innovate ways to make their profession more inclusive and diverse.”

The Campaign’s Nursing Innovations Fund was created in 2018 to support work of its state Action Coalitions and allies that inform and influence policy, produce replicable strategies that place nurses in positions as essential partners in providing care, and strategically involve a diversity of stakeholders. This competition was limited to the Action Coalitions or organizations designated by Action Coalitions and required applicants to raise funds to match the award dollars. To date, Action Coalitions and their allies in 23 states have received Nursing Innovations Fund awards to build healthier communities through nursing.

The winners and an overview of each of their projects are listed below:

Delaware

Title: Nursing in the 21st Century: Exposing Middle School Students to a Career in Nursing

School nurses from Delaware’s Brandywine School District will pilot an afterschool program that aims to increase awareness of nursing career pathways among students from underrepresented communities. Working with key stakeholders, the project staff will construct and administer a program that focuses on informing middle schoolers, especially students from racially and ethnically diverse backgrounds, low-income communities, and boys about potential career opportunities in nursing. The pilot will be administered in three district middle schools during the project year and shared with educators across the state.

Kentucky

Title: School Nurses to BARN Camp for the Mental Health and Wellness of Kentucky Youth

The Kentucky Nurses Action Coalition will partner with the University of Kentucky College of Nursing to implement a mental health and wellness training for school nurses with the goal of decreasing youth suicide in the state, which far exceeds the national average. This project expands on the Bringing Action Right Now, or BARN, initiative aimed at addressing health equity via social isolation awareness and training. Project leaders will recruit 100 school nurses to participate in the program and will work with a variety of community stakeholders, including the Actors Theatre of Louisville.

Montana

Title: Coalition Catalyst: Building Health Equity in Montana

The Montana Center to Advance Health Through Nursing (MT CAHN) aims to advance health equity by involving two nurse leaders on the newly formed Montana Health Equity Task Force. This task force was created to influence policy and guide programs that will improve health equity for Montanans, and the nurse leaders will provide a nursing lens and act as a liaison for the state’s nursing community supporting local level, health equity-focused strategies. Additionally, the nurse leaders will utilize the Campaign for Action’s Health Equity Toolkit to help develop and deliver a health equity track at the MT CAHN Nursing Summit in June 2022.

Pennsylvania

Title: Pennsylvania Action Coalition Cohort of Exchanged Learning (PA-ACCEL) Mentorship Program

The Pennsylvania Action Coalition (PA-AC) will expand its current mentoring program that aims to equip nurses from underrepresented backgrounds with the tools they need to be successful nursing students and nursing professionals. Key components of the 2021-2022 program include mentorship matching from the PA-AC’s Nurse Diversity Council, along with exposure to public health advocacy to inspire health equity and justice. Additionally, the coalition will enhance and promote its PA-ACCEL Toolkit as a model for replication nationwide.

Utah

Title: Building Diversity and Health Equity Competence into the Pipeline of Utah’s Nursing Workforce

The Utah Action Coalition for Health, working with Holy Cross Ministries, will pursue a two-part project designed to build diversity and health equity competence in Utah’s nursing workforce pipeline. The project will increase exposure to nursing careers in predominantly Hispanic communities, and embed Certified Health Workers’ knowledge of health equity/disparities into Certified Nursing Assistant training programs. The Campaign for Action’s Health Equity Toolkit will be interwoven in the project’s implementation phase, and a steering committee composed of key partners will be created for guidance. The project will focus on two school districts initially, with the opportunity for expansion later.

West Virginia

Title: Health Equity Skill Building Multimedia Continuing Education Pilot Project

The Future of Nursing West Virginia (FONWV) will develop a Health Equity Skills Building Multimedia Continuing Education (CE) package for nurses and nursing students. It will focus on the multicultural needs of Appalachian and minority communities in rural and underserved areas of the state and cover systemic racism, implicit bias, equity in care for select populations (starting with LGBTQIA), improving culturally competent care, and building effective cross-cultural communication. The goal is to improve nurse and student nurse skills in building healthier relationships that address disparities, particularly related to stress and trauma.

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About the Future of Nursing: Campaign for Action

The Future of Nursing: Campaign for Action is a national initiative of AARP Foundation, AARP and RWJF, working to implement the National Academy of Medicine’s evidence-based recommendations on the future of nursing. The Campaign includes Action Coalitions in nearly every state and the District of Columbia and a wide range of health care professionals, consumer advocates, policy-makers, and the business, academic, and philanthropic communities. The Center to Champion Nursing in America, an initiative of AARP Foundation, AARP and RWJF, serves as the coordinating entity for the Campaign. Learn more at www.campaignforaction.org. Follow on Twitter at @Campaign4Action and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/CampaignForAction.

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First, a heartfelt thank you. Thank you for the contributions that we know you have made to your family, your community, the profession, and more, during a year of enormous challenges that include sickness in our ranks, burnout, grief, and worse. The pandemic has tested the world, and nursing as a whole. Even as we help others—as we always do—we also hurt.

Bearing witness to the pain and loss and the frailty of our systems continues to be hard. As the new year brings the hope of widespread availability and use of vaccines, we know that we still need to fight to heal ourselves, our fellow nurses and their families—all who continue to sacrifice.

In these earliest days of 2021, we would like to pause to look back—and forward—at nursing and the role the Future of Nursing: Campaign for Action, an initiative of AARP Foundation, AARP, and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF), plays in the nation’s well-being.

It was the Year of the Nurse and the Midwife, chosen to honor—200 years after her birth—the founder of modern nursing. But COVID-19 ravaged the world, which means that Florence Nightingale’s name is also now part of another sort of homage: The Nightingale Tribute names the nurses who have given their lives helping others during the worst pandemic in a century.

While the health disaster has highlighted the courage of nurses, it has also highlighted the disparities in health and health care. Then with the killing of George Floyd came a public reckoning of the effects of structural inequities, and the nation’s recognition of the need to right historical wrongs. As we affirmed at the time: Racism and injustice have no place in our country today. Our pathway to equity is to help build better health through nursing.

In ways large and small, we made strides in 2020 to do just that. Progress includes:

Access to Care

States: Through the Center to Champion Nursing in America, the Campaign’s operating arm, also an initiative of AARP Foundation, AARP and RWJF, we hosted monthly sessions to guide others on how to work with state policymakers to lift—at least during the pandemic—legal restrictions on nurses. Participants included Action Coalitions, AARP state offices, and community groups. Successes in Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Virginia, and Wisconsin expanded access to care for nearly 59 million people.

Florida, California, and Massachusetts also saw changes in laws that improve consumer’s access to care.

Federal: Nursing organizations including the Campaign, through AARP, helped pass the 2020 Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, providing consumers easier access to care at home.

Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion

Among contributions toward building a more diverse nursing workforce, the Campaign’s Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Steering Committee has created a mentoring program and a health equity toolkit for use by nursing schools. The mentorship program, designed in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Minority Health and historically black colleges and universities, includes mentor-training workshops and a learning collaborative. Postponed last year, but back on track, are similar programs for students at schools that serve largely Hispanic populations, and those that serve American Indians.

Population Health in Nursing

The Campaign, with a grant from RWJF, completed a series of reports exploring promising models of nursing education related to improving population health. The Population Health in Nursing (PHIN) project, found here, also examines how nurses should be prepared for new roles in population health practice.

National Academy of Medicine report

The National Academy of Medicine (NAM) delayed to late spring 2021 its much-anticipated report on the future of nursing 2020-2030, expanded to include nursing’s role in responding to the public health crisis. Many reading this letter have contributed to the committee’s broad outreach and research, including during an August 2020 webinar.

Coming Up: Virtual Gatherings to Plan Action

The focus of each is important, so we’ll list in chronological order brief notes on the meetings we have in store for early 2021.

• On January 12, we held the first of our Health Equity Action Forums, focusing on the value of diversifying the nursing workforce to achieve health equity. It was the first of several such virtual meetings. The second, slated for February 3, will cover the topic of nursing as a career ladder for establishing financial well-being for underrepresented communities.
• February 24, we will honor the work that so many have carried out based on the 2010 Future of Nursing report. We’ll also look ahead to the next NAM report.
• In May, we expect the release of the Future of Nursing 2020-2030 report.
• June 3–4, we’ll gather Action Coalitions and other Campaign members, allies, and stakeholders to plan how to implement the new report recommendations.

Nursing Innovations Fund

Wrapping up our yearly note is a spotlight on an inspiring set of projects past and future: the Nursing Innovations Fund Awards. In October, we announced 10 ambitious projects designed to address health disparities that each earned $25,000 awards. And look for news in May about a similar funding opportunity, for projects that address structural inequities.

Again, we want to thank you for all that you have done. Nursing, long the most trusted profession, has never been more important. You have pushed through and persevered. For all you’ve endured and the grace you have shown, thank you.

Susan B. Hassmiller, PhD, RN, FAAN Senior Adviser for Nursing, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation; Director, Future of Nursing: Campaign for Action

Susan C. Reinhard, PhD, RN, FAAN Senior Vice President and Director, AARP Public Policy Institute; Chief Strategist, Center to Champion Nursing in America

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