Advocacy

• May 23, 2022 
  New Surgeon General Advisory Sounds Alarm on Health Worker Burnout and Resignation
  The Surgeon General’s Advisory Addressing Health Worker Burnout lays out recommendations that the whole-of-society can take to address the factors underpinning burnout, improve health worker well-being, and strengthen the nation’s public health infrastructure. View  advisory video.

Congressional Conversations on Mental Health

AACN attended multiple Congressional hearings on rising mental health concerns throughout the nation, including:

• April 5, 2022
  House Energy and Commerce Committee held a hearing titled, Communities in Need: Legislation to Support Mental Health and Well-Being. This hearing focused on how current legislation can help support the mental health crisis faced by children, adolescents, and adults across the country. Witnesses addressed the ongoing mental health crisis, including how social determinants of health disproportionately impact different populations. View the hearing.
   
• March 30, 2022
  Senate Finance Committee held a hearing titled, Behavioral Health Care When Americans Need It: Ensuring Parity and Care Integration. Panelists highlighted the importance and need of accessing timely, high-quality care and creating innovative solutions for mental health care for all. View the hearing.
   
• March 29, 2022
  Senate Finance Committee released a bipartisan report on mental health care in America. The report highlights current issues, such as accessing quality mental health care, and outlines crucial next steps in ending the mental health crisis in the United States. View the full report.
   
• March 23, 2022
  Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee held a hearing titled, Strengthening Federal Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Programs: Opportunities, Challenges, and Emerging Issues. Panelists highlighted the importance of funding for federal programs that support mental health for patients and providers. View the hearing.

Engagement

In May 2021, AACN was invited by the Johnson & Johnson Center on Health Worker Innovation to serve as a collaborator on a national campaign to promote resilience and wellness in the healthcare workforce called All-In WellBeing First for Healthcare. The All-In campaign is bringing leading organizations together – including the American Hospital Association, American Medical Association, American Nurses Foundation, American Organization for Nursing Leadership, the Schwartz Center for Compassionate Healthcare, and AACN – to identify a future state where the healthcare workforce feels valued and can sustain a sense of purpose and meaning in their work. The campaign is working to identify and promote strategies, resources, and policies that champion mental health and resilience.

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