Dear Action Coalition colleagues:

As 2017 comes to a close we send season’s greetings, and a thank you for a year to celebrate.

You, our Action Coalitions, are the true heart and engine of our campaign. Over the years, you have partnered in some way with more than 2,200 organizations from all fields. You have raised more than $37 million outside of RWJF funds. You are the ones turning the Institute of Medicine recommendations into reality, and our communities are healthier as a result.

A few happy holiday notes on the year in review:

• States change laws to allow consumers better access to care, including South Dakota, which became the 22nd state with fully modernized scope of practice laws; Illinois, where APRNs who work outside of hospital settings and meet certain conditions to practice without a written agreement with a physician; and Michigan and Ohio, where changes in laws free nurses of several restrictions.
• The Campaign launched COACH, a program in which Campaign Outreach Advocates for a Culture of Health have been meeting with local organizations to encourage them to support their state Action Coalition in the name of better health.
• In addition, Action Coalitions in three states worked with the Campaign to co-host two-day workshops: In Boise, Idaho, Madison, Wisconsin, and Albuquerque, many of you were energized by speakers, hands-on exercises, and conversation about how your work on the Institute of Medicine recommendations is leading to a Culture of Health.
• Nursing Education Perspectives published a special edition focused on 12 Action Coalitions’ efforts on education. Great accomplishments, all, and wonderful coverage.
• The RWJF Public Health Nurse Leaders working with Action Coalitions capped their two-year program with a gathering to announce the strides they have made in leading programs that are creating better health. The program is over but the 25 nurses from 23 states will continue coordinating ideas and action with Action Coalitions to build healthier communities in innovative ways.
• We note with pride that 10 of the 100 most influential people in health care named by Modern Healthcare are Campaign advisers, serving on our Champion Nursing Coalition or Champion Nursing Council.
• The Campaign and the Colorado Center for Nursing Excellence co-hosted a fall workshop, bringing together people from Rocky Mountain states who work to increase diversity in the nursing workforce and reduce health care disparities.
• The Center to Champion Nursing in America also co-hosted a training with the American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP) in Dallas to discuss winning strategies in conservative states to build coalitions and promote legislation to allow nurse practitioners to practice to the full extent of their education and training.

From the states there are many bright spots to cheer—here are just a few:

• More than a dozen Action Coalitions hosted statewide Culture of Health summits.
• Washington state’s Action Coalition helped found Action Now!, a movement coordinating its efforts to address four specific aspects of nursing education. (That Action Coalition also gave a present to nurses in a video that reminds them how much they do to improve the community’s overall health.)
• The Pennsylvania Action Coalition showcased the ingenuity of nurses with its nursing innovation video contest. Those whose short clips showed the best ideas for helping the elderly became part of the inaugural Nursing Innovation Corps, a networking and mentorship program.
• The Oregon Action Coalition is behind a six-part podcast that tackles the ins and outs of board leadership for nurses with wit and wisdom.
• Missouri’s and Arkansas’ Action Coalitions joined forces to train 44 nurses from those states how to best use their leadership skills as members of boards contributing to community health.

In closing, we share our two new ways that celebrate your successes, and also help you tell our story.

One is our new Campaign video, Partnering for Better Health, which highlights our goals and achievements, and is an excellent introduction to the Campaign and its work. We suggest you show it to new partners and others you hope to bring into your work.

The other is a compendium, Nursing Education and the Decade of Change: Strategies to Meet America’s Health. The RWJF State Implementation Program and Academic Progress in Nursing programs ended this year, but this booklet shows how collaborations among many of you have transformed education, and includes tips to carry on the work. Those of you who had SIP and APIN grants will be receiving a few copies of this publication in the mail by early 2018.

We thank you for all, and hope your holiday season is bright.