Movement Is Life’s own Carla Harwell, MD, Jillian Rose, LCSW, MPH and Doreen Johnson, MSN, RN, ONC participated at the 2017 National Black Nurses Association (NBNA) Conference August 2nd in Las Vegas, Nevada.  Dr. Harwell’s breakfast presented the question, “Are You A Lemon Or A Cherry”, which aimed to help nurses gain a basic understanding of upcoming new government payment models that could impact access to and quality of care received by minority patients.  Insight and knowledge about the impact of upcoming payment models will help empower and educate patients on how to lessen the chances of landing in the “wrong basket” of healthcare.  Jillian Rose’s and Doreen Johnson’s workshop session discussed the importance of “Shared Decision Making”, a collaborative process that allows patients and their providers to make health care decisions together. It takes into account the best clinical evidence available, as well as the patient’s values and preferences with the goal of educating and involving the patient in their own healthcare. 

NBNA represents approximately 150,000 African American nurses from the USA, Canada, Eastern Caribbean and Africa, with 91 chartered chapters nationwide with the mission to provide a forum for collective action by African American nurses to represent and provide a forum for black nurses to advocate for and implement strategies to ensure access to the highest quality of healthcare for persons of color.  Thank you to Millicent Gorham, PhD (Hon), MBA, FAAN, Executive Director, NBNA and her entire team for including Movement Is Life during the conference!