Public Policy and Advocacy

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Nursing Policy Academy

Learn more about our Inaugural Nursing Policy Academy.

Illustration of the capitol building with words

Raise Your Voice

Nurses need to be active in influencing health policy, but sometimes don’t know how to get involved.

Becoming informed and developing advocacy skills are first steps. As students you can do both by participating in opportunities on campus and off.

Get Involved:

Local Opportunities

Maryland Action Coalition Summit

The Maryland Action Coalition (MDAC) serves as one of the driving forces for transforming state health care. Recognizing the important work already underway in Maryland and with a goal of improved health outcomes for its residents, the Maryland Action Coalition leads innovation in the health of the population through efforts that build and sustain a culture of health.

President's Panel on Politics and Policy Speaker Series

This speaker series examining issues important to the UMB community that are likely to be affected by the new presidential administration and the new Congress.

American Association of Colleges of Nursing Student Policy Summit

The American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) hosts its annual Student Policy Summit in Washington, D.C., typically in March. The two-day conference is open to baccalaureate and graduate nursing students enrolled at an AACN member institution, and UMSON typically selects and sponsors several students from both the Baltimore and Universities at Shady Grove locations to attend. The application process is competitive and requires submission of an essay. The call for applications is promoted annually, usually in the fall, through The Elm.

Students who attend the summit are immersed in didactic program sessions focused on the federal policy process and nursing’s role in professional advocacy. They have the opportunity to engage directly with speakers, who are leaders in the policy arena; AACN staff; and U.S. representatives and senators. Participation in the summit offers students the tools to advocate for issues that truly matter to them, their patients, and their communities. Students can also meet, connect, and network with a diverse group of fellow nursing students from across the country.

Policy News

Utilize these resources to stay abreast of policy issues.

American Association of Colleges of Nursing

  • browse the government affairs section of their website
  • sign up for the Washington Weekly Newsletter and other updates

American Nurses Association

  • browse their health policy website
  • browse their advocacy website
  • sign up for Capitol Beat updates
  • sign up for RNAction updates

Commonwealth Foundation

  • browse the surveys, data, and publications on their website
  • sign up for their newsletters

Kaiser Health News

  • browse their website on health policy issues
  • sign up for daily First Edition and Morning Briefing emails

Kaiser Family Foundation

Health Affairs

  • browse their website
  • sign up for e-alerts, blogs, and newsletters

Additional Resources

Maryland Healthcare Workforce Advocacy Legislative Toolkit

Created by an UMSON DNP student for students, this nonpartisan resource equips Maryland health care professionals and stakeholders to participate effectively in the Maryland General Assembly. The toolkit explains committees, hearings, and timelines in plain language and provides basic layouts for testimony, email, and call templates, plus a two-minute story framework, to help you translate experience into policy impact. 

Access the home page and navigate among the toolkit’s pages to learn more about the Maryland legislative process and where you can make your impact. Identify your senator and three delegates, personalize a template with your experience, and follow the session calendar prompts to act at the right moment. 

Use the Toolkit

This is an UMSON student’s DNP Quality Improvement project, meant to fill the structural gap of an evidence-based, easily accessible, Maryland-specific, online health care workforce advocacy toolkit.

My passion for advocacy was born long before I ever stepped into nursing school. Growing up with elderly parents and as a Black woman in America, I learned early how fragile access to care can be for those who are marginalized. I saw how easily people fall through the cracks of a system that prioritizes profit over people, where people of color, immigrants, women, LGBTQ+, and low-income communities are often left unseen in decisions that shape their health outcomes. It was in those moments that I understood advocacy and policy are inseparable from patient care, and that nurses must be the voices that challenge inequity from within the system. Eniola Sokera, BSN Student
Throughout my life I have been an advocate for myself as a person who is hard of hearing and for those like me. I have experienced inaccessible care as a patient because my provider did not have any education on how to communicate with me effectively. It was an experience that made me realize how much more work is needed to provide accessible care to those with disabilities, an issue that can be improved by nurses and through policy changes. Claire Vizzi, BSN Student
Advocating for patients is a key part of the nursing role, but when the issue goes beyond any one patient, I believe a nurse’s advocacy should too. Patient education on eating a balanced diet is not very useful when those receiving it are contending with food insecurity. Talking with a patient about the potential side effects of a medication will not matter if the patient’s insurance will not cover the prescription. Factors like these can directly impede the efficacy of nursing care, and nurses are uniquely situated to bring their knowledge and their patients’ concerns to bear on policy, and it is incumbent upon them to do so. Mary Kate Dougherty, MSN-E Student
I want to fight for individuals and communities that are underserved, who lack access to health care, and who are negatively impacted by systemic racism. I am particularly interested in advocating for people of all racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic backgrounds to ensure that they receive fair treatment not impacted by racial bias and medical myths about perceived pain tolerance, for example. Toyah Reid, MSN Entry-into-Nursing student
As a nursing student, I see it as a privilege to represent the voices of patients at a place where their presence will not be, advocating for patient rights and promoting autonomy in health care. Ifeoluwa Falana, BSN student
Nurses face many challenges in the workplace that could be resolved through legislation. With their critical thinking skills, problem-solving abilities, and insight about social determinants of health, nurses have a skillset that makes them ideal policymakers. Sadly, nurse engagement in legislation and healthcare policy are significantly lacking. Theresa Di Seta, DNP Post-Master’s option student