Assignment: Agenda Setting

A key aspect of the policy process is agenda setting. How do topics get on that agenda? Agenda setting requires the support of stakeholders to move the issue forward. In this week's media presentation, Dr. Kathleen White outlines the policy process and discusses how to move issues into the policy arena through agenda setting. The ultimate goal is to gain the attention of leadership whether at the organizational, local, state, national, or international level.

To prepare:

Review this week's media presentation, focusing on the insights shared by Dr. White and Dr. Stanley on agenda setting and identification of stakeholders.

Brainstorm clinical practice issues that you believe are worthy of being on your organization's systematic agenda.

Who are the stakeholders who would be interested in this clinical practice issue?

Write a minimum of 550 words in APA format with at least 3 scholarly references from the list of required readings below. Include the level one headings as numbered below"

Post a cohesive response that addresses the following:

1) In the first line of your posting, identify the clinical practice issue you would like to see on your organization's systematic agenda.

2) What strategies would you use to inform stakeholders and persuade them of the importance of your identified clinical practice issue?

Required Readings

Hyder, A., Syed, S., Puvanachandra, P., Bloom, G., Sundaram, S., Mahmood, S., ... Peters, D. (2010). Stakeholder analysis for health research: case studies from low- and middle-income countries. Public Health, 124(3), 159-166.

This study demonstrates how the engagement of stakeholders in research and policy making can assist in the successful implementation of policy proposals. The authors propose that by engaging stakeholders, researchers and policy makers are provided with multiple perspectives on proposed policies, which can lead to greater success with policy adoption and implementation.

Lavis, J. N., Permanand, G., Oxman, A. D., Lewin, S., & Fretheim, A. (2009). SUPPORT Tools for evidence-informed health Policymaking (STP) 13: Preparing and using policy briefs to support evidence-informed policymaking. Health Research Policy & Systems, 71-79. doi: 10.1186/1478-4505-7-S1-S13

The purpose of a policy brief is to communicate an issue clearly and definitively to policy makers. The authors of this article propose an outline for policy briefs and also stress the importance of using research when creating a policy brief.

Lowery, B. (2009). Obesity, bariatric nursing, and the policy process: The connecting points for patient advocacy. Bariatric Nursing & Surgical Patient Care, 4(2), 133-138.

This article provides an example of nurse involvement in policy making by examining a bariatric nursing issue. The author stresses that nurses, in their patient-advocacy role, have a responsibility to be involved in the health care policy process.

Moore, K. (2006). How can basic research on children and families be useful for the policy process? Merrill-Palmer Quarterly, 52(2), 365-375.

Institute of Medicine. (2010). The future of nursing: Leading change, advancing health: Report recommendations.

Introduced in Week 2, this IOM report highlights four key recommendations in its proposal for the future directions of the nursing profession. These recommendations focus on nursing practice, education and training, partnerships with other healthcare professionals, and workforce planning and policymaking.

National Center for Policy Analysis (2010). Ideas changing the world: Free-market health care policy.

The NCPA is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that promotes private sector solutions to public policy issues.

Slack, B. (2011). The policy process.

The author presents a policy-making framework and provides details on the four steps of that process: problem definition, policy objectives and options, policy implementation, and policy evaluation and maintenance.

Required Media

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2011). Healthcare policy and advocacy: Agenda setting and the policy process. Baltimore: Author.

Note: The approximate length of this media piece is 17 minutes.

Dr. Kathleen White and Dr. Joan Stanley share their insights into agenda setting and how issues are moved forward into the policy process.

Optional Resources

Barnes, M., Hanson, C., Novilla, L., Meacham, A., McIntyre, E., & Erickson, B. (2008). Analysis of media agenda setting during and after Hurricane Katrina: Implications for emergency preparedness, disaster response, and disaster policy. American Journal of Public Health, 98(4), 604-610.

Jennings, C. (2002). The power of the policy brief. Policy, Politics & Nursing Practice, 3(3), 261-263. doi: 10.1177/152715440200300310

Neumann, P. J., Palmer, J. A., Daniels, N., Quigley, K., Gold, M. R., & Chao, S. (2008). A strategic plan for integrating cost-effectiveness analysis into the US health care system. American Journal of Managed Care, 14(4), 185-188.

Plan, Policy, Procedure Relationship Diagram. (n.d.).