Message From the Editor in Chief.

Abstract

This issue features four articles and a guest editorial on extremely timely issues in nursing and health policy. We start with a guest editorial, Blockchain and Heath Care, written by Francis Hughes (one of our editorial board members) and Monique J. Morrow (2019). They elegantly explain Blockchain, its role in health care, and its importance for nursing. Regardless of what you do or do not know about Blockchain, this guest editorial will give you a solid foundation and get you started. Frances and Monique give compelling reasons why all nurses must make learning about Blockchain a priority, now. Francis and Monique each have incredible expertise. Frances has had many prestigious global and nursing leadership positions. She is a director of Global Strategic Initiatives at the Commission on Graduates of Foreign Nursing Schools International. She has been the chief nurse for New Zealand, chief executive officer of the International Council of Nurses, and held the role of chief nursing and midwifery officer, Queensland, Australia. We are honored that Francis invited Monique to coauthor the guest editorial. Monique is a president and cofounder of the Humanized Internet, a nonprofit organization focused on providing digital identity for those individuals most underserved and on protecting all of our identities on the internet. She has been the chief technology officer at Cisco Systems, Inc. Her accolades include being recognized by Digital Switzerland as one of the Switzerland’s top 100 Digital Shapers for 2018 and being receiving one of the Top Women in Cloud Innovations Award 2016 (CloudNow). Monique’s coauthored book, The Humanized Internet: Dignity, Digital Identity, and Democracy, was published earlier in 2019. A major global and nursing priority is the surge in antibiotic resistant infections. This is an acute care, community health, and global concern. Hence, as Wiley and Villamizar (2019) explain in their article in this issue, nurses have pivotal stewardship roles in preventing and treating these infections. Many readers are familiar with the Nurse-Family Partnership Program, one of many effective early home visiting programs in the United States funded by the Department of Health and Human Services. Condon (2019) in her article, notes that the same few programs tend to receive federal funds. She cogently calls for a paradigm shift that would give states more flexibility in developing a choice of home visiting programs that best meet the specific needs of their vulnerable communities and populations. Governments, organizations, and individuals interact, either implicitly or explicitly, according to principles and concepts of political philosophy. Martsolf and Thomas (2019) explain how these ideas can be integrated into health policy education. We tend to focus on nursing theorists and concept development, but if we want to effectively engage in and analyze health policies, then we need to also be proficient in the political philosophies that undergird our government and society. Finally, Kim and Aronowitz (2019) discuss how Asian Americans are often overlooked in health policy scholarship on HIV, sexual risk, and disparities. In their provocative article, they suggest potential historical and political factors that contribute to this gap in policy and propose potential policy solutions. I hope you enjoy reading and learning from these articles as much as I did. Our aim is to publish articles that are relevant to our global audience, enhance nursing scholarship and practice, and prompt discussion. We welcome letters to the editor and other ideas as to how we can widen the conversations our articles prompt. Look to the next issue for other articles that will enrich your practice, teaching, and scholarship and enhance your political savvy.