Nurses at the Table: Action Now! for Nursing Education

Abstract

Nursing faculty shortages are a crisis at both the state and national levels. In celebration of the Year of the Nurse and Midwife, we share the successes of Action Now!, a movement spearheaded by the Washington Center for Nursing; the Washington Board Of Nursing; and the Council on Nursing Education in Washington State. Securing sustainable financing for nursing programs was the top goal set by the Action Now! coalition. In addition, three major nursing unions assisted with legislative advocacy, helping to secure significant funding from the state legislature to increase nursing educator salaries. We offer background information about how a diverse coalition of nursing organizations joined forces with key stakeholders to address this crisis in nursing education. The article describes vision and implementation for Action Now!, our successes and lessons learned, and the effort to move forward with ongoing challenges to identify and address barriers in nursing education.