The project is led by a Campaign Board of nurses and interested parties from 16 countries.

The following is the vision of Nursing Now (2018a):

• Nursing Now aims to improve health globally by raising the profile and status of nurses worldwide – influencing policymakers and supporting nurses themselves to lead, learn and build a global movement.
  
• The changing needs of the 21st Century mean nurses have an even greater role to play in the future. New and innovative types of services are needed – more community and home-based, more holistic and people-centered, with increased focus on prevention and making better use of technology. These are all areas where nurses can play a leading role. However, maximizing nurses' contributions will require that they are properly deployed, valued and included in policy and decision-making.
  
• Nursing Now will work with partners around the world to advocate for more nurses in leadership positions – to help nurses achieve the influence they deserve. It will also help nurses access better education and training, while supporting them to share research and evidence of effective practice
  
• Nursing Now will encourage health leaders to invest in nursing and introduce new models of care that maximize nurses' contributions to achieving Universal Health Coverage which would guarantee everyone the right to quality health care without financial hardship.
  

Why is Nursing Now needed? As you know from your own work in home healthcare, the population is aging. Thanks to new and more effective therapies, people with chronic diseases are living longer. In developing countries, infectious diseases such as malaria and HIV/AIDS have drained struggling health systems. These factors have placed burdens on healthcare systems around the world at a time when there is a global shortage of healthcare workers. There is great potential for nurses to have additional influence on healthcare through policy development, but we haven't always been included in decision making. As the health professionals closest to patients, we should be an integral part of disease prevention and wellness. We need to maximize our impact through advanced education and by increasing our numbers worldwide. Nine million nurses and midwives are needed by the year 2013 *2030 (Nursing Now, 2018a).

What can you do to get involved? First sign up for their newsletters (Nursing Now, 2018b). Add your signature to pledge your support at http://www.nursingnow.org/join-the-campaign/. Follow Nursing Now on Facebook or Twitter. Finally start your own Nursing Now group as nurses have done in 40 countries (Nursing Now, 2018c)

There are case studies from countries around the world on the Nursing Now website that exemplify the contributions nurses are making as a result of this initiative. You will be particularly interested in a program in the United States for home care for low income seniors. Community Aging in Place, Advancing Better Living for Elders (CAPABLE) was developed by nurses at Johns Hopkins (Nursing Now, 2018d). The goal is to assist low income, older adults with disabilities to age in place. An inter-professional team consisting of a nurse, an occupational therapist and a "handy man" make visits and modify the environment for maximum safety. At this writing, an impressive 75% of the first 281 enrollees have seen improvement in activities of daily living.

Be the next nurse to add a case study to the Nursing Now website. You're already doing wonderful things for your patients – now it's time to tell the world about it.

Sincerely,

Maureen Anthony

Nursing Now (2018a). Vision. Retrieved from http://www.nursingnow.org/vision/

Nursing Now (2018b). Sign up for e-newsletters.  Retrieved from http://www.nursingnow.org/sign-up-for-updates/

Nursing Now (2018c). Nursing Now Groups. Retrieved from http://www.nursingnow.org/list-of-groups/

Nursing Now (2018d). Home care for low income seniors in the USA. Retrieved from http://www.nursingnow.org/case-studies-usa/