This consensus paper explores avenues for federal action to address the root causes and impact of barriers to quality perinatal care, providing recommendations for change that can lead to improved care, access, and health outcomes for childbearing persons.

This consensus paper discusses the historical, legal, and cultural discrimination that perpetuates LGBTQ+ health inequities and recommends promoting inclusive laws and policies, expanding antidiscrimination protections, and amplifying awareness within nursing and other healthcare practitioner communities with a human rights-based approach and leveraging international frameworks.

This consensus paper is a follow-up to the Academy’s Policy Dialogue “Protecting our Caregivers - Comprehensive Strategies for Eliminating Workplace Violence” and explores the current legislative and regulatory environment affecting workplace violence in health care settings including the issues discussed during the policy dialogue.

This consensus paper provides an overview of the current crisis of disparities in maternal mortality and morbidity in the United States and highlights the importance of growing and supporting a health care workforce that reflects and meets the needs of a racially and ethnically diverse U.S. population to improve outcomes.

This paper on night shift nurses explores the occupational hazards of working night shifts, negative health outcomes, and concomitant organizational costs. Recommendations include promoting the development and implementation of novel technologies to assist nurses, as well as improving protections against unhealthy work environments and schedules.

This manuscript focuses on the investments in the treatment and prevention of mental health and substance use disorders that are inadequate to address the health care workforce and population needs, and utilization of the full nursing workforce. Recommendations include policies that promote the utilization of the full nursing workforce to effectively decrease long-standing treatment gaps and broaden access to and delivery of evidence-based mental health and substance use disorder care.

This paper explores the gender-related experiences of migrant women that intensify the stressors of resettlement, resulting in negative health outcomes unique to this group. The authors recommend policies to expand health literacy programs, extend Medicaid coverage, and fund research into the specific needs of this population.

The purpose of this paper is to update the Tobacco Control policy paper published over a decade ago by the American Academy of Nursing’s Health Behavior Expert Panel Tobacco Control subcommittee. Recommendations for nursing leaders include: promote tobacco dependence treatment as standard care, accelerate research on implementation of evidence-based treatment guidelines, reduce health disparities by extending access to evidence-based treatment, increase nursing competency in providing tobacco treatment, and drive equity-focused tobacco control policies.

The evidence shows that COVID-19 vaccines can reduce the risks of poor pregnancy outcomes. Yet, reluctance to vaccinate remains high in pregnant populations. In this consensus paper, the authors take a precision health and patient-centered approach to vaccine hesitancy, adopting the society-to-cells vaccine hesitancy framework to identify society, community, family, individual, and physiologic factors contributing to COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy in pregnancy. Recommendations are provided to bolster nurses’ engagement in precision health and patient-centered models of care to mitigate COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy in pregnancy.

The COVID-19 pandemic wrought significant negative impacts on youth well-being, particularly among Black, Hispanic, American Indian, Alaska Native, and LGBTQ+ (Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer or questioning) youth. Drawing from a policy dialogue on the youth mental health crisis conducted by 4 American Academy of Nursing Expert Panels, this consensus paper presents approaches to the current increase in youth mental health problems. Recommendations include increased support for families, engaging the school nurse role, and developing school-based innovative programs to build connections and youth wellness.

This consensus paper reviews measures to prevent and treat opioid use disorder (OUD) and overdose while examining the background and current practice of primary care registered nurses and nurse practitioners in OUD prevention, recognition, and treatment, with attention given to regional, legislative, and reimbursement issues that enable or act as a barrier to practice.

This consensus paper outlines issues of equity and evidence-based approaches for the care of nurses experiencing mental distress and substance use disorders. This paper also establishes an action plan to address risks to mental health and the factors contributing to nurse suicide.

This consensus paper outlines the way in which climate change has adverse impacts on the general and reproductive health of women and girls. Climate change is a phenomenon of interest to women's health professionals because women and girls are more vulnerable to the effects due to a combination of physiologic, biologic, cultural, and socioeconomic risk factors.