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State Representative Kurt Zellers
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
651-296-5502
For more information contact: Austin Bleess 651-296-5529
NEWS COLUMN
NURSES TACKLE TODAY’S HEALTH CARE CHALLENGES
By State Rep. Kurt Zellers,
District 32B
Everyone from Members of Congress to the average taxpayer agrees that America’s healthcare system is facing some serious challenges with no clear solution in sight. From the outside looking in, well-intentioned policymakers attempt to find a quick fix for issues as varied and complex as America’s growing ranks of the uninsured to disparities in health delivery. While I applaud every effort to remedy these problems, some approaches are simply better-informed than others—particularly those spearheaded by nurses and other health professionals who have firsthand experience and insight into specific healthcare challenges.
Recognizing the ability of nursing leaders to pioneer innovative solutions grounded in real-world experience, the American Academy of Nursing (AAN) developed its Edge Runners program to promote the efforts of these industry thought leaders. Across the nation, AAN-sponsored, nurse-led initiatives are bringing dynamic and highly effective approaches to light. From improving access to patient care in an urban, low-income community to dramatically cutting re-hospitalization rates for geriatric patients, nurses are implementing solutions, piece by piece, from the ground up.
What is ultimately the big return on these successful community-based programs? The ability to leverage lessons learned and rollout successful models on a national scale. For example, a significant, multi-state program initiated right here in Minnesota identified ways to lower costs to Medicare and Medicaid costs by cutting the number of hospitalizations in half. And, in Chicago, an innovative parenting program dramatically reduced child behavioral problems to such a degree that the model is now being replicated by the Mayo Clinic, Chicago Head Start, and numerous agencies across the country.
As a state representative, I have worked diligently to bring a new hospital, the North Memorial Health Care and Fairview Health Services Partnership, to serve citizens of Maple Grove and Western Hennepin County. Our area was in dire need of this new hospital and with a growing suburban area, we needed it sooner rather than later. This was an important step in extending access to high quality healthcare in Minnesota, but there is far more work to be done.
I am confident that America’s nursing leaders are the trailblazers who can affect the kind of substantive change that is desperately needed to overhaul our healthcare system. I commend AAN for recognizing the vision and integrity of nursing solutions, and for giving these leaders the tools and inspiration to pursue healthcare transformation one community and one problem at a time.
News Items
- Legislative Update (April 20, 2013) - (Posted: Apr 20 2013 2:43PM)
- Zellers Statement on House DFL Budget Framework - (Posted: Mar 19 2013 4:57PM)
- ZELLERS STATEMENT ON FEBRUARY FORECAST - (Posted: Mar 1 2013 6:02PM)
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