Around the country, print, broadcast and online media outlets are covering the groundbreaking work of Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) leaders, scholars, fellows and grantees. Some recent examples:

RWJF Clinical Scholars program alumnus Arthur Kellerman, MD, MPH, FACEP, was quoted in a Washington Post story on the Obama Administration's push to renew federal funding for public health research on gun violence. Language initially included in a 1996 appropriations bill has, he said, "virtually stopped good public health science on [gun research] for the last 10 to 15 years.” White House lawyers recently concluded that the law doesn’t prohibit such research. Kellermann, also an alumnus of the RWJF Health Policy Fellows program, co-authored an article on the subject in the Journal of the American Medical Association with Clinical Scholars alumnus Frederick Rivara, MD, MPH.

RWJF Health & Society Scholars Program Director and Health Policy Fellows alumna Jo Ivey Boufford, MD, was also in the news discussing gun violence. Boufford wrote an op-ed that appeared in the Idaho Statesman and Long Island, New York's Newsday, about the public health effects of gun violence. “As a society, we address public health threats by identifying the root causes, reducing exposure, and instituting protective measures…  In the same way, we must protect Americans from irresponsible gun use,” she writes.

A study by RWJF Investigator Awards in Health Policy Research recipients Jason Schnittker, PhD, and Chris Uggen, PhD, finds that incarceration increases the risk of mood disorders such as major depressive disorder, bipolar disorder, and dysthymia after release. That, in turn, is strongly related to disability and increased incidence of substance abuse and impulse control disorders. United Press International, Medical Xpress and Science Day are among the outlets to report on the findings. Read an RWJF Human Capital Blog post about the study.

A member of the Navajo Nation, Lisa Palucci, MSN, RN, is a nurse consultant at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and a fellow with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Nursing and Health Policy Collaborative at the University of New Mexico. This post is part of the "Health Care in 2013" series.

As the nation trudges forward in its quest to improve health care access for all Americans, I think it is essential that we continue to make progress in decreasing the health disparities and social determinant of health gaps that continue to be ignored in mainstream health policy initiatives.  Throughout the course of my PhD program at the University of New Mexico (UNM), we have had numerous opportunities to experience nursing and health policy in action by attending national conferences, meetings, and orientation programs.   To my disappointment, discussion about improving health disparities and social determinants of health are seldom a topic on the agenda.  This poses the question: Aren’t the health disparities and social determinants of health what got us to the point of an inequitable health care system in the first place?

Kelly Buettner-Schmidt, MS, BSN, is executive director of Healthy Communities International at Minot State University, and a doctoral fellow with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) Nursing and Health Policy Collaborative at the University of New Mexico. She has been awarded numerous grants for her work on tobacco control policy. This post is part of the "Health Care in 2013" series.

This is an exciting time for the U.S. health care system or, as I prefer to call it, the U.S. health system (because health “care” system limits what one includes as part of the “system”). As a public health professional for nearly 30 years—about 20 years as a frontline public health nurse, and now 10 years in academia—I have discovered the need to educate people on all that the state and federal public health systems do to improve the health of not only individuals and families but also communities.[i] [ii]

More than half of my professional career, both as a practitioner and academic, has focused on tobacco prevention and control policies.[iii]  Professional and nursing colleagues, acquaintances, friends, and family often think of my work in tobacco control policy as separate from my public health nursing career. The reasons for this, I believe, are at least two-fold. First, nursing is often equated with direct client care; second, the tobacco industry effectively confuses many into believing the science of tobacco control is controversial and thus spending public health and tax dollars on tobacco control seems wasteful to the public. (As an aside, many nurses are involved in tobacco control. Please join us!)[iv],[v],[vi]

The following are among the many honors received recently by Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) leaders, scholars, fellows and grantees.

The Institute of Medicine (IOM) named 70 new members and 10 foreign associates at its 42nd annual meeting. Among the new members with RWJF connections: RWJF Clinical Scholars alumni Christopher J. Elias, MD, MPH, and Tracy A. Lieu, MD, MPH; RWJF Investigator Award in Health Policy Research recipients Sandro Galea, MD, DrPH, Jens Ludwig, PhD, Jack Needleman, PhD, FAAN, and Sara Rosenbaum, JD; and RWJF Scholars in Health Policy Research alumnus Paula M. Lantz, PhD.

Sally S. Cohen, PhD, RN, FAAN, director of the RWJF Nursing and Health Policy Collaborative at the University of New Mexico (UNM), has been named to the UNM School of Nursing’s newly created Virginia P. Crenshaw Endowed Chair in Nursing—the School of Nursing's first endowed chair.

Anisha Patel, MD, MSPH, an alumnus of the Clinical Scholars program, was awarded the 2012 American Academy of Pediatrics Outstanding Achievement Award in the application of epidemiologic information to child health advocacy.

Robin Newhouse, an Interdisciplinary Nursing Quality Research Initiative (INQRI) grantee, was appointed vice-chair of the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute’s Methodology Committee.

Carolyn Montoya, RN, MSN, CPNP, is a fellow with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) Nursing and Health Policy Collaborative at the University of New Mexico. A PhD Candidate, Montoya serves on the New Mexico Medicaid Advisory Committee, an advisory body to the Secretary of the state’s Human Services Department and the Director of the Medical Assistance Division Director. The RWJF Human Capital Blog asked scholars and fellows from a few of its programs to consider what the election results will mean for health and health care in the United States.

Human Capital Blog: Do you think there will be fewer challenges to the Affordable Care Act and more attention to how to implement it?

Montoya:  Now that the election is over, the reality is that the Affordable Care Act (ACA) will not be repealed. As we go forward with the ACA in place, a strong emphasis should be placed on evaluation. Outcome measures, such low rates of diabetes complications or increased immunization rates, will be essential in terms of being able to establish what aspects of the ACA are working and which ones need to be revised.

This is part of a series introducing programs in the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) Human Capital Portfolio.

New Mexico is widely known for its scenic vistas and its rich cultural heritage. Thanks to the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF), it may soon add its health policy experts to the list of notables. The RWJF Nursing and Health Policy Collaborative at the University of New Mexico is preparing a new generation of diverse, PhD-prepared nurses to meet the nation’s health policy challenges.

Fellows are exploring a vast array of health care challenges with a specific focus on public policy solutions. Their research ranges from childhood obesity prevention policies, to cost analyses of obstetrical care, to enhanced access to mental and behavioral health, and more.

Through the program, fellows develop a unique understanding of the factors influencing public policy, and learn how they can become a powerful voice in that process.

Earlier this year, two of the program’s fellows, Laura Brennaman, MSN, RN,CEN, and Lauri Lineweaver, MSN, RN, CCRN-CSC, attended the historic Supreme Court oral arguments on the Affordable Care Act. Brennaman was also present in the chamber when the final decision was announced on June 28. The program strives to bring its fellows into events like these, which impart a profound lesson about the interconnectedness of the health care and policy worlds.

Around the country, print, broadcast and online media outlets are covering the groundbreaking work of Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) leaders, scholars, fellows and grantees. Some recent examples:

The Philadelphia Inquirer reports on the Foundation’s 40th anniversary celebration last week, as well as some of its most notable accomplishments during its first four decades. Learn more about RWJF’s anniversary, and about the “Force Multipliers” it is saluting this year.  The Foundation also announced ten winners of its first-ever RWJF Young Leader awards last week.

RWJF Physician Faculty Scholar Ruchi Gupta, MD, MPH, gave comments to Reuters about a study that finds babies are less likely to get eczema if their mothers take probiotics during pregnancy. Gupta, who was not involved in the research, calls the findings “fascinating.” Read a post Gupta wrote for the RWJF Human Capital Blog about her professional and personal experience with children’s food allergies.

Kristy Nichols, MS, an RWJF Community Health Leader, spoke to the Associated Press about cuts to Louisiana State University’s (LSU) hospital health care system, and proposed changes to the state’s graduate medical education training program.

“Many people see the Supreme Court's ruling as a watershed moment in the history of health care. I have a slightly different view,” Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) President and CEO Risa Lavizzo-Mourey, MD, MBA, writes in the Atlantic. “[Last week’s] decision cleared the way for states to go forward in implementing the law and ensuring that people don't die or go bankrupt for a lack of coverage. That will mean a lot of hard work from all parties: states, the federal government, individuals and the private sector. No doubt it was a historic day. But it's not yesterday that is going to define health care in this country. It's what we all do today, tomorrow and every day after.” Read Lavizzo-Mourey’s statement on the Supreme Court’s Affordable Care Act ruling.

Several media outlets spoke to Laura Brennaman, RN, MSN, CEN, a scholar at the RWJF Nursing and Health Policy Collaborative at the University of New Mexico, as she camped outside the Supreme Court to get a seat for the announcement of its ruling. Among them: the Washington Post, CNN’s Political Ticker blog, the Daily Beast, and NurseZone.com. Brennaman, who is an emergency department nurse from Fort Myers, Fla., was also present for the Supreme Court’s oral arguments on the law in March. Read a post her Nursing and Health Policy Collaborative colleague, Lauri Lineweaver, MSN, RN, CCRN-CSC, wrote about the experience.

Other RWJF fellows and program directors were in the news to discuss the Supreme Court ruling on the Affordable Care Act. RWJF Executive Nurse Fellows alumna Juliann Sebastian, PhD, RN, FAAN, dean of the College of Nursing at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, was a guest on KVNO News to discuss how the Affordable Care Act will affect Nebraskans and the challenges associated with implementing the law. Judi Hilman, an RWJF Community Health Leader and executive director of the Utah Health Policy Project, spoke to the Salt Lake Tribune. RWJF Health & Society Scholars program co-director Jo Ivey Boufford, MD, president of the New York Academy of Medicine, gave comments to The Fiscal Times.

Medical News Today reports on the “Community Aging in Place, Advancing Better Living for Elders” (CAPABLE) initiative, led by RWJF Nurse Faculty Scholar Sarah Szanton, PhD, CRNP, MSN. It works to keep at-risk seniors who are on Medicare and Medicaid in their homes and improve their quality of life. Szanton’s project was recently awarded a $4 million Health Care Innovation Award from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Stephen Black, JD, MTS, a Community Health Leader, was the speaker at a Greater Shelby (Ala.) Chamber of Commerce luncheon, according to a story in the Shelby County Reporter. Black is founder and president of Impact Alabama, which develops and implements service-learning projects for college and graduate students, including an initiative that has provided free, technologically advanced vision screenings for more than 25,000 children in 60 counties throughout Alabama.

The following are among the honors received recently by Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) scholars, fellows and grantees.

Several RWJF scholars were named to the 2012 class of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences Fellows. They include: RWJF Investigator Awards in Health Policy Research recipients Amy Finkelstein, PhD, MPhil, and Joseph Fins, MD; RWJF Harold Amos Medical Faculty Development Program alumni Griffin Rodgers, MD, MACP, and Emery Brown, MD, PhD; and RWJF Scholars in Health Policy Research alumnus Vincent Hutchings, PhD.

Amy Finkelstein was also named the 2012 recipient of the John Bates Clark Medal in economics, regarded as economics’ most prestigious award. Read an RWJF Human Capital Blog post by Finkelstein.

Debra Ann Toney, PhD, MS, BSN, FAAN, an alumna of the RWJF Executive Nurse Fellows program, is one of 22 Americans selected by Coca-Cola to carry the Olympic Flame in the London 2012 Olympic Torch Relay. The torchbearers will carry the flame in and around Oxford, England, July 9 to 11 before the opening ceremony on July 27.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office on Women’s Health has designated May 13 to May 19 as National Women’s Health Week. It is designed to bring together communities, businesses, government, health organizations and others to promote women’s health. The goal in 2012 is to empower women to make their health a top priority. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) Human Capital Blog is launching an occasional series on women’s health in conjunction with the week. This post is by Elisa L. Patterson, MS, CNM, a fellow with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) Nursing and Health Policy Collaborative at the University of New Mexico.

I have been a certified nurse-midwife for almost 19 years. It is an ingrained part of who I am. I have served women of many different ethnic, socioeconomic, and cultural backgrounds. Being a nurse-midwife embraces my duality of being a nurse and a midwife. I am very proud of these credentials.

As I add to my education in a PhD program – through the RWJF Nursing and Health Policy Collaborative at the University of New Mexico College of Nursing – I have found it a challenge to express in my “elevator speech” how these two credentials enhance my abilities to do policy work. I tried starting with what I am doing as a PhD student at the University of New Mexico. But when I say, “I’m also a nurse–midwife,” listeners seem to tag onto that singular piece of information and forget the rest of the conversation. Then, they might share their personal birth story or one that is a fond memory from a close friend. Or, they might ask me if I deliver babies at home.

I have not been able to figure out how to combine the important and, to me, impressive fact that while, yes, I am a nurse-midwife, I am also very capable of conversing about, researching and representing many other issues.

The American College of Nurse-Midwives (ACNM) has a way to help me and other nurse-midwives who face this dilemma. Next month at their annual gathering, a public relations campaign will be presented to the membership. It will include a vision, mission statement, and core values. The ultimate goal is to describe the value of nurse-midwives and, in general, support the provision of high-quality maternity care and women’s health services by Certified Nurse-Midwives.