US Nursing Leaders Call for Profession to Amplify Impact

As the United States approaches its 250th anniversary, leaders from the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing (Penn Nursing) have issued a joint call to action, urging the nursing profession to reaffirm its historical significance and leverage its legacy to advance social justice and equity. In separate commentaries published in the July 2026 issue of the *American Journal of Nursing* (AJN), Antonia M. Villarruel, PhD, RN, FAAN, and J. Margo Brooks Carthon, PhD, RN, FAAN, emphasize the need for nurses to recognize their foundational role in shaping American healthcare and societal progress.

The leaders highlight nursing’s deep roots in addressing public health crises, advocating for marginalized communities, and driving policy reforms, from the Civil War to modern public health challenges. Villarruel and Brooks Carthon argue that this legacy must inform contemporary efforts to combat systemic inequities in healthcare access, workforce disparities, and professional recognition. They stress that nurses, as the largest healthcare profession, are uniquely positioned to influence equitable solutions by drawing on historical precedents of resilience and advocacy.

By centering nursing’s historical contributions, the call to action seeks to mobilize the profession toward renewed leadership in public health and policy. The authors underscore that honoring the past can strengthen nursing’s capacity to address present-day challenges, ensuring the profession remains a catalyst for justice and innovation in the nation’s evolving healthcare landscape.