Some nurses are pushing for federal agencies to recognize the vocation as a STEM profession, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported April 30.
Marion Leary, PhD, RN, director of innovation at University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing in Philadelphia, and Rebecca Love, MSN, RN, commissioner of the Commission for Nurse Reimbursement, who co-chair the Nursing is STEM Coalition, are leading the efforts, which include a petition letter advocating for the inclusion of nursing as a STEM-designated field on the Department of Homeland Security STEM Designated Program List.
"Nursing integrates science, technology, engineering, and mathematics and…aligns with the Department of Homeland Security definition of a STEM field, one that 'engages students in research, innovation or development of new technologies using engineering, mathematics, computer science or natural sciences (including physical, biological, and agricultural sciences,'" the petition letter said.
The Labor Department and the Department of Veterans Affairs currently recognize nursing as a STEM field, but the Department of Homeland Security and other agencies such as the National Science Foundation do not, according to the coalition website.
Coalition members argue that amid a projected national nursing shortage, designating nursing as STEM would make available millions of dollars for Americans to pursue nursing as a career. This includes grants for STEM-specific research as well as opportunities such as the White House's $1.2 billion investment in STEM in 2022, according to the Inquirer.
Coalition members also argue that designating nursing a STEM field helps "rectify a long-standing perception that women are not pursuing rigorous math and science fields."
Additionally, Jennifer Mensik Kennedy, PhD, RN, president of the American Nurses Association, advocated for the designation in an interview with Becker's Erica Carbajal last year.
"I think that is a lost opportunity from a branding perspective because of the enormous amount of science that does go into nursing and care," she said.
The Department of Homeland Security is expected to announce a decision in late summer, according to the Inquirer. Dr. Leary and Ms. Love told the newspaper that more than 100 nursing organizations and leaders in the field signed the petition.
Read more about the coalition here.