Nurses Heal Environmental Injustice Through Community Partnerships.

Black, Indigenous, and people of color are disproportionately exposed to environmental hazards and are leading the charge toward environmental justice. Nurses have joined their call to action, supporting efforts to correct disparities, improve health, and enable just transitions toward resilient communities. Nurses are highly trusted and respected for honesty and high ethical standards. The profession has evolved from bedside patient care to include advocacy for environments that support health and well-being. The Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments (ANHE) promotes healthy people and healthy environments through professional education, leadership, research, evidence-based practice, and advocacy. In 2019, ANHE launched the first-of-its-kind Environmental Health Nurse Fellowship program to train nurses to work in partnership with communities tackling environmental threats and related health impacts. Funded by the Kresge Foundation, the program focused on environmental justice and health equity, and functioned as a tool for education, empowerment, and action. Thirty nurse fellows were matched with regional expert nurse mentors. They partnered with community-based organizations on projects involving community-identified environmental health needs and solutions. Fellows conducted educational sessions on environmental health and justice for other health professionals, thereby expanding awareness of opportunities to improve health and promote environmental justice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]