Objective: To describe the solutions community health nurses (CHNs) identify to address health inequities during the COVID-19 pandemic and to explore what leadership competencies enable CHNs to enact these solutions.
Design: Online survey, distributed to all members of the Community Health Nurses of Canada and associated provincial and territorial networks.
Participants: Inclusion criteria included all nurses who were working during the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada. A total of 245 responses were included in the analysis.
Measurement: The survey included 25 open ended and fixed response questions. Descriptive statistics were used to describe the quantitative data. Framework Analysis was used to analyze the qualitative data.
Results: Solutions focused on advancing health equity and expanding community relationships and partnerships were identified as priorities. To enact these solutions system transformation, engaging others, and developing coalitions were identified as the main leadership competencies required by CHNs.
Conclusion: Participants in this study clearly articulated structural and process solutions to address health inequities among priority populations during the pandemic. CHNs described with practice knowledge and confidence that solutions enacted in system transformation with community partners are necessary to advance health equity.
Keywords: advocacy; community health nurses; health inequities; leadership competencies; policy solutions; social justice; system transformation.
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