Module 6 Discussion: Initial Post
What My Dues Bought: Professional Organizations and the Limits of Membership Advocacy
I have paid dues to my state nurses association for nine years, and until this course I could not have said what that money accomplished in policy. Following the community health worker coverage bill through the session gave me a concrete answer. The association did several things no individual nurse could do alone. It employed a registered lobbyist who met with committee chairs throughout the session, which is how the bill got a hearing. Its policy staff drafted amendment language that answered the Medicaid agency's concerns. It sent action alerts that generated more than 400 messages to legislators in the week before the committee vote. And it gave the bill the endorsement of a profession the public trusts.
Matthews (2012) describes professional organizations as a unified voice for nursing that advocates for the profession and for health policy, and she notes that their effectiveness depends on members' participation, not only their dues. That was visible here. The lobbyist opened doors, but what legislators remembered, according to one committee aide, was a school nurse and a community health worker from their own districts who described specific families. Dues pay for access; members supply the credibility that makes access count.
There were also limits. The association's policy priorities are set by a small board and a legislative committee, and community health worker coverage was the fourth of five priorities, which meant less lobbyist time than safe staffing legislation received. Members who are not active have little say in those choices. And the association's influence is strongest on issues framed as nursing's own, such as scope of practice, and weaker on broader health issues where nurses are one voice among many. The 2011 Institute of Medicine report on nursing's future urged nurses to be full partners in redesigning health care and to take part in policymaking, which requires engagement beyond membership (Institute of Medicine, 2011).
My conclusion is that membership is necessary but not sufficient. I have joined the association's legislative committee for next session, so that I help set priorities rather than only fund them. I also plan to invite two community health workers to present to the committee, since the association's positions will be stronger if they are shaped with the workforce the bill affects. Longest (2016) describes interest groups as most effective when they combine resources, expertise, and a credible connection to the people affected by a policy; a nursing organization that speaks alongside community health workers, rather than for them, has all three.
What have others seen their professional organizations accomplish, and where did they fall short?
References
Institute of Medicine. (2011). The future of nursing: Leading change, advancing health. National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/12956
Longest, B. B., Jr. (2016). Health policymaking in the United States (6th ed.). Health Administration Press.
Matthews, J. H. (2012). Role of professional organizations in advocating for the nursing profession. OJIN: The Online Journal of Issues in Nursing, 17(1), Manuscript 3. https://doi.org/10.3912/OJIN.Vol17No01Man03
How this DNP 870 Module 6 example is structured
DNP870 Module 6 discussions often examine professional organizations and what membership advocacy actually accomplishes. Aspen does not publish module deliverables, so check your classroom for the exact prompt. This example evaluates one organization's role in one policy effort, names its contributions and limits with sources, and ends with a personal commitment and a question for peers.
DNP870 Module 6 questions, answered
What does DNP870 Module 6 usually ask for?
The module's discussion often asks you to examine the role of professional nursing organizations in policy advocacy and what membership actually accomplishes. Aspen does not publish module deliverables, so your classroom's instructions govern.
What do professional nursing organizations contribute to policy?
They provide registered lobbyists, policy expertise, drafted legislative language, organized member action and the collective credibility of the profession, which individual nurses cannot supply alone.
Is paying dues enough to be a nurse advocate?
Dues fund access, but effectiveness depends on members' participation: contacting legislators, testifying, serving on committees and helping set the organization's priorities.
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