Send a letter to Tom Joyner!

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Message:*	Dear Mr. Joyner and Ms. Woods: I am writing about the "Take a Loved One for a Checkup Day" campaign. Every September, the Tom Joyner show promotes the campaign with its former name of "Take a Loved One to the Doctor Day." Eight years ago, nurses convinced the Dept. of Health and Human Services Office of Minority Health (OMH) to change the name of its campaign to "Take a Loved One for a Checkup Day" because the "Doctor Day" name excludes the advanced practices registered nurses (APRNs) who are central to providing care to the minorities the campaign seeks to serve. Myriad research studies show that the care provided by APRNs is equal to or better than that provided by physicians. So we do not understand why you would continue to use the "Doctor Day" name at the expense of nurses who you exclude, when instead you should be thanking them. Often, in minority communities, APRNs provide one of the only, or even the only, practical option for primary health for many residents. The nation's 100,000+ APRNs provide high quality, cost-effective primary care to both adults and children. And the holistic, community-oriented approach of APRNs is an excellent fit for the target populations of this campaign. We are in the midst of a global nursing shortage so severe that data show we need five times the number of nurses than we have now. The shortage exists because there is abysmal funding for nursing education, research and clinical practice. Such lack of funding stems from the low level of public understanding of the real contributions of nurses. Today's nurses--though still subject to regressive stereotypes in most popular media--are highly skilled, life-saving professionals who are changing the future of health care through groundbreaking research and clinical innovation. Prominent recognition of the contributions of APRNs through a major public campaign like this one would remind the public that nurses are a vital part of the nation's health care team. And this is why former OMH director Garth Graham changed the name of the campaign to "Checkup Day" back in 2005. We recognize that the "Doctor Day" title is catchy. However, common decency calls for you to show respect to the nurses who save so many lives of the minorities you also serve, by using the "Take a Loved One for a Checkup Day." Your adherence to the Checkup Day name will make a big difference for nurses, their patients, and the world as a whole. Thank you.
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