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A Call to Action

Wow, what an awesome Annual Meeting and Conference! From hearing first hand about the challenges of caring for SARS patients, to the looming presence of antibiotic-resistant microorganisms, to the challenges of the West Nile Virus and the need for us to play a significant role in both surveillance and public education, to the resources for best practice in nursing, the event was spectacular. Our public policy leaders called on registered nurses to defend Medicare by approaching all politicians to support a publicly funded, not-for-profit Medicare system.

I was and remain so proud of our nursing profession leading the way in advocating for strong healthy public policy. Make certain that you advocate during the upcoming federal election campaign. As you study the articles on our annual meeting and the membership resolutions, you will see that our members called for us to lobby for a stronger elder health agenda and for a more comprehensive strategy to address the obesity epidemic. This is the kind of dialogue and leadership that needs to grow within our membership and at our Annual Meetings. Again, I was never more proud of our profession.

Meanwhile, our provincial government is to be commended for its significant leadership role in tackling the problems of tobacco-related illness by introducing much needed and leading legislation to protect the people of our province. As registered nurses, I call on each and everyone of you to commend the government for such a bold move in healthy public policy. The Tobacco Amendment Act is something that we should all be proud of. This is a strong move in creating healthier workplaces and public health protection. At the same time, you need to continue to lobby for priority health needs in your local communities and workplace.

Nursing leadership will remain integral in supporting two key policy areas: strengthening Medicare through a publicly funded, pan Canadian not-for-profit health system and full time employment for graduating registered nurses. The practice of registered nursing cannot and must not be further eroded.

If you are willing to work with us on healthy public policy or if your unit has not yet considered embracing a 'best practice' approach, please contact us. We will be pleased to provide you with the necessary resources to begin your approach on this Best Practice journey.

Together, we can create a preferred future.

Donna Brunskill, RN

Copyright Saskatchewan Registered Nurses' Association Jun/Jul 2004
Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning Company. All rights Reserved

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