Leaders from Ohio professional nursing organizations gathered on April 17, 2026, at the 2026 Spring Ohio Nursing Organization Summit. The summit featured a range of distinguished speakers addressing various topics, all dedicated to advancing nursing and improving patient outcomes. Nurse leaders discussed the power of education which enables nurses to influence change throughout Ohio, strategies to improve practice readiness for future ways nurses can help remove barriers to patient voting, and updates from the Ohio Board of Nursing (OBN).
Rebecca M. Patton, DNP, RN, CNOR, FAAN, President of ANA-Ohio, and Tiffany Bukoffsky, MHA, BSN, RN, Executive Director of ANA-Ohio, opened the summit with their presentation, The Power of Nursing in Ohio: Collaborating to Advance Nursing and Recognition. This presentation highlighted the power of nurses, beginning with education, and its impact on nurses’ voting and voter registration. With more than 200,000 licensed nurses in Ohio (OBN, 2023), the profession represents a significant and influential voice at the polls and within the State House. Therefore, when nurses across Ohio align their efforts and advocate collectively, it can serve as a catalyst for statewide impact. Opportunities, such as Nurses Week, create natural moments for nurses to join forces for change (Patton & Bukoffsky, 2026).
At the 2025 Fall Nursing Organizations Leadership Summit. Mary Cook, DNP, RN, CNE (2025) presented Emerging Strategies to Strengthen Nursing Education and Practice Readiness. Amy Tootle, DNP, RN, CNML, Student Nursing Assistant Program Manager at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center (OSUWMC), continued the conversation. She presented Reimagining the Nursing Career Pipeline, highlighting the partnership between OSUWMC and The Ohio State University College of Nursing (Tootle, 2026). This program is designed to create early and sustained pathways into the nursing profession. Key initiatives include the Nursing Career Pipelines Program, the Summer Institute for Future Nurses, and the Student Nurse Externship Program, all of which provide valuable exposure and hands-on experience for high school students.
OSUWMC has also implemented an Academic Practice Partnership model to strengthen collaboration between academic institutions and clinical practice settings. This approach supports evidence-based strategies to improve student retention at clinical sites following graduation. Additional innovations include a tiered system for Student Nursing Assistants (SNAs) aligned with their level of education and a Transition to Practice residency program at The James for nurses with less than 1 year of experience, supporting their successful transition into professional practice (Tootle, 2026).
As nurses, empowering patients and promoting civic engagement are priorities. Sophia Lombardo, M.Ed., Executive Director of the League of Women Voters of Metro Columbus, and Lara K. Palay, MSW, LISW-S, a League of Women Voters (LWV) volunteer, highlighted this in their presentation Empowering Voters in Healthcare Settings: A Nonpartisan Guide for Ohio Nurses (2026). The League of Women Voters is a nonpartisan organization dedicated to promoting informed and active participation in government. The speakers emphasized that voting is a social determinant of health. Civic participation is associated with better self-reported health outcomes, and communities with reduced access to voting often experience poorer health outcomes and greater health disparities. The speakers indicated that barriers to voting include hospitalization during elections, limited mobility, lack of awareness of absentee voting options, complex and changing voting rules, and time-sensitive deadlines. Voting requirements and considerations for individuals who are hospitalized or residing in long-term care facilities were also discussed.
Erin Keels, DNP, APRN-CNP, President of the Ohio Board of Nursing, and Jack Brubaker, Legislative Liaison at the Ohio Board of Nursing (OBN), provided updates on several key initiatives and developments. These included highlights from the National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN) 2024 National Workforce Survey, findings from the Ohio Workforce Survey, updates to the NCLEX, and recent legislative activity impacting nursing practice in Ohio.
Tiffany Bukoffsky concluded the summit by announcing the launch of a dedicated workspace for organizational leaders on the ANA-Ohio website. All association leadership participants have been granted access, and attendees should have received an email with login instructions and details. The workspace serves as a central hub for collaboration and resource sharing, featuring discussion boards, shared files contributed by association members, and a record of workspace activity. A directory of summit attendees is also available to support ongoing communication and connection among participants.
References
Cook, M. (2025, December 5). Emerging strategies to strengthen nursing education and practice readiness [Conference presentation]. ANA-Ohio Fall Ohio Nursing Organizations Leadership Summit, Columbus, OH, United States.
Lombardo, S. & Palau, L. K. (2026, April 17). Empowering nurses in healthcare settings: A nonpartisan guide for Ohio nurses {Conference presentation]. ANA-Ohio Fall Ohio Nursing Organizations Leadership Summit, Columbus, OH, United States.
Ohio Board of Nursing (2023). Registered Nurse 2023 Ohio Workforce Data Summary Report. https://dam.assets.ohio.gov/image/upload/nursing.ohio.gov/uploads/2023_RN_Workforce_Report_Final.pdf
Patton, R. & Bukoffsky, T. (2026, April 17). The power of nursing in Ohio: Collaborating to advance nursing and recognition [Conference presentation]. ANA-Ohio Spring Ohio Nursing Organizations Leadership Summit, Columbus, OH, United States.
Tootle, A. (2026, April 17). Reimagining the nursing career pipeline [Conference presentation]. ANA-Ohio Fall Ohio Nursing Organizations Leadership Summit, Columbus, OH, United States.
