Patient Advocacy

Rebecca S. Koszalinski, PhD, RN, CRRN, CMSRN, was inspired to become a nurse after experiencing a nurse’s care during her own health journey.

When Jana Lauderdale, PhD, RN, FAAN, took the stage at the National Student Nurses’ Association (NSNA) 66th Annual Convention plenary session presented by Johnson & Johnson, she introduced herself in a unique way: “I’m a Comanche Indian and I’m a nurse.” These descriptions shape Jana’s personal identity, but they also shape how she approaches and analyzes the world around her.

Marcus Henderson, BSN, and Ian McCurry, BSN, RN, are co-founders and chief operations officers of Up and Running Healthcare Solutions, which was born from a project they developed while in nursing school to address health disparities facing homeless people in Philadelphia, Penn. We recently spoke to them about their initiative, and how nurses and small interventions can make a big difference in addressing health disparities faced by homeless populations.

Are you drawn to a nursing career, but want to avoid working in a hospital setting? Visiting nurses meet patients where they are, by providing care for them in their homes. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, home healthcare is one of the nation’s fastest-growing industries, with a projected compound annual growth rate of 5 percent for 2014–2024, which translates to approximately 760,400 new jobs.