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In This Chapter
The Unexpected Power (and Joy) of Cross-Sector Collaborations
Going Together
Commitment to Advancing Health Equity With Hispanic/Latinx Communities Through Multi-Sector Collaboration
The School Nurses’ Collaborative Role in Health Equity for Students
Taking Advantage of a Crisis to Forge New Multi-Sector Collaborations
Addressing Health Equity Together
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Nurses work in many areas within and outside of healthcare, and this chapter addresses some of those multi-sector collaborations. We are passionate about our duties regarding those we support and serve and often personally take full responsibility for outcomes. Although this is noble, we must recognize that we cannot be everything to everyone, and some challenges require help from those who possess other talents. We are experts at interprofessional collaboration within the context of healthcare, but people’s lives extend far beyond the traditional healthcare setting. Acknowledging the contributions of those outside of healthcare and initiating, cultivating, and sustaining those collaborative relationships is imperative for successfully attaining health equity and building a cultural of health.
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Consider the following questions as you read the essays about health equity and multi-sector collaboration:
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In what ways can nurses collaborate with other sectors to promote health equity?
What are some examples of unlikely collaborations between nurses and other professions that have proven successful?
List steps to cultivating a diverse coalition of partners to support health equity efforts.
What nursing-specific challenges might benefit from multi-sector collaborations?
What non-nursing professions have the potential to advance health equity?
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THE UNEXPECTED POWER (AND JOY) OF CROSS-SECTOR COLLABORATIONS
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Linda A. McCauley, PhD, RN, FAAN, FAAOHN
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Dean and Professor, Emory University Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing
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I never knew what I wanted to be—as a first-generation college student, I was not even aware of how to be a college student. I quickly felt that I was an imposter in the college environment, where I believed the only thing of value I had to offer was my love for studying and learning. In high school, my role model was my mother, who was a diploma-educated nurse, and I learned to love work from her—an attribute that many nurses hold and that has influenced me for more than five decades. I followed in her path and began to work in the hospital at an early age, an experience that underscored for me the importance of respecting all people, regardless of race, age, education, or other factors. This early professional experience was invaluable, but I had limited options as a teenager: Women were expected to be nurses, secretaries, or teachers. No one ever talked to me about how to prepare for graduate school. Though I knew I loved medicine and healthcare, no one explained to me the many possible career paths in healthcare. I would sit for hours and study my mother’s old anatomy and physiology textbooks from nursing school. I loved chemistry ...