Running head: ESSENTIAL V 1

e-Portfolio – Essential V: Healthcare Policy, Finance, and Regulatory Environments

Angèle C. Wright

Frostburg State University

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e-Portfolio – Essential V: Healthcare Policy, Finance, and Regulatory Environments

Essential V summarizes the importance of the baccalaureate trained nurse’s ability to

navigate within the realms of healthcare finance and regulatory environments. In order to

properly advocate for the needs of the community at large, the baccalaureate nurse must first

understand the financial and political infrastructure and assess any gaps in healthcare that can

potentially fail to provide adequate care for patients; both potential and actual. The

baccalaureate nurse must also understand both the current healthcare climate as well the political

landscape in order to properly identify the relevant policymakers that can champion their cause.

In addition, the baccalaureate trained nurse must also be able to properly gather the pertinent data

and succinctly communicate them in a timely and provocative fashion that will convince the

policymakers to pick up the subject and wholeheartedly pursue the goal to promote equal and

safe care for all parties involved.

Reflection

This project focused on the nursing student’s perceived need and outreach efforts for

adequate and specialized mental health and substance abuse care in Anne Arundel County,

Maryland. Currently, those seeking support for exacerbation in mental illness symptoms or

substance abuse must seek care through the county’s two Emergency Departments, which can

often times be overwhelmed by the sheer number of patients seeking care for a myriad of

complaints. In addition, due to a triage system that appropriately prioritizes emergent or urgent

medical concerns over chronic mental illness symptoms or a desire to detoxify from illicit

substances: those seeking treatment can wait for hours before receiving appropriate care from an

advanced practice provider.

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Through a letter to the appropriate Congressman, the nursing student was able to quickly

outline the current needs and gaps in care for those struggling with mental illness and substance

abuse. As listed in Essential V in the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN), the

nursing student was able to advise the Congressman on the limited access to appropriate and

affordable care for the uninsured and underinsured (AACN, 2010, p. 21). The nursing student

was also able to identify the impact the lack of care had on the surrounding communities by

listing the positive correlation between untreated mental illness and illicit drug abuse as well as

the number of drug- and alcohol-related deaths in the surrounding areas. In an effort to identify

the direct effect that the lack of sufficient mental health and substance abuse care had on the

Congressman’s constituents, the nursing student hope to positively influence the Congressman

and spur him into action and advocacy for the less fortunate, overlooked, and often voiceless

members of the community.

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References

American Association of Colleges of Nursing. (2008). The essentials of baccalaureate

education for professional nursing practice. (1st Ed.). Washington, D.C.