The Federal Nursing Service Council (FNSC) comprises the national nursing leaders of the Air Force, American Red Cross, Army, Department of Veterans Affairs, Navy, and Public Health Service. The Council represents over 125,000 nurses with a beneficiary population exceeding 8.5 million.

Organized in 1943 "to provide a means for easy exchange of information... to provide mutual assistance in the consideration of nursing problems... and to formulate recommendations concerning federal agency nursing problems..." (E. Vreeland, 1950), today the FNSC remains united to address tomorrow's health care challenges today. The Council seeks to enhance and strengthen its constituencies; to collaborate and enrich the environment for Federal nurses and those entrusted to their care; and to advance and explore professional issues and leadership. To accomplish this collective mission, the FNSC has developed a Strategic Plan with four priority areas.

VISION
United to Impact Tomorrow's Health Care Challenges Today

MISSION
The Council brings together its collective leadership and experience to advance and strengthen professional nursing practice among federal agencies and the American Red Cross

The Council is committed to:

FNSC Four Priorities

1.  Clinical Skills Sustainment Training
All the Federal services and the American Red Cross face the challenge of clinical competency and skills sustainment for their nurses, whether for battle deployment, back-fill, or disaster response. All the services have nursing resources in purely administrative positions that could participate in clinical deployments if current in clinical skill level to some degree.

• To identify common needs among the federal services in clinical skills sustainment
• Review the services’ current education/training programs and agreements in place
• Gather information on and identify possibilities for sharing resources and staff to maintain clinical readiness for deployment as well as for federal nurses in administrative positions removed from clinical practice.

2. Civilian Nursing Processes

• To identify major obstacles to implementation of congressionally approved programs (i.e., Title 38-like pay authority, Direct Hire authority)
• Discuss status/ updates/ success of Direct Hire Authority, VA’s efforts to improve retention, upgrade LPN salaries, PHS special pays, competitive edge for hiring RNs and leverage needed to be competitive with civilian agencies.

3. Advanced Practice Nurse (APN) licensure policies in Federal services
Recent DoD Instruction (DODI) mandated that all APN’s be licensed by a state to practice as an APN in military capacity. Variation in state’s nurse practice act requirements for licensure/recognition/certification including rules for supervision, prescriptive authority and course requirements compromise the service’s ability to comply with this directive. Furthermore, variations in application of compliance among agencies create conflicting practice issues among uniformed services as agencies attempt to share resources.

Define the legal issues (i.e., application of Federal Supremacy in federal service within the scope of practice.)
Literature review to outline states APN authorities and requirements
Determine which states requirements can be waived
Current APN licensure procedures utilized by the federal services
Recommend a plan to comply with DODI mandate

4.     Senior Clinical Experts
The purpose of this workgroup is to explore and develop a plan that will influence the development of senior clinical experts with the Federal Health Care System, and to increase the participation of senior nurses in clinical practice that will enhance their ability to meet the needs of the changing healthcare environment.

• Define Senior Clinical Expert
• Identify positions/billets for senior nurses within the Federal Nursing System
• Define clinical skills/expectations for Senior nurses in administrative roles
• Recommend an advanced clinical ladder that preserves the clinical skills, remain competitive for promotion and maintain financial equity with their administrative peers.
• Develop a marketing plan to advance the “Clinical Expert Nurse” and elevate the status and recognition

The Council includes the principal executives and deputies of the:

American Red Cross

American Red Cross Nursing Corps

Nancy McKelvey, MSN, RN
Chief Nurse
American Red Cross
NW4-131
2025 E Street, NW, Washington, DC 20006
Phone: 202-303-7664
Fax: 202-303-0205
E-mail: mckelveyn@usa.redcross.org

Department of Defense

United States Air Force Nurse Corps

MG Melissa Rank
HQ USAF/SGCN
110 Luke Ave., Rm. 400
Bolling AFB, DC 20032-7050
Phone: 202-767-4462
Fax: 202-404-7366/DSN: 754-7366
Email: melissa.rank@pentagon.af.mil

United States Army Nurse Corps

MG Gale S. Pollock Chief, Army Nurse Corps
Office of the Commanding General
MCHK-CG
Pacific Regional Medical Command/TAMC
1 Jarrett White Road
Honolulu, HI 96859-5000
Phone: (No DSN) Comm: 808-433-5716
Fax: 808-433-7861
Email: gale.pollock@us.army.mil

United States Navy Nurse Corps

RADM Christine Bruzek-Kohler
Director, Navy Nurse Corps and Navy Medical Inspector General
8901 Wisconsin Ave, Tower 1
Bethesda, MD 20889-5611
Phone: Phone: (301) 295 – 9010
Fax: Fax: (301) 295-9022
Email: cmbruzekkohler@us.med.navy.mil

Department of Health and Human Services

United States Public Health Service Nursing

RADM Carol A. Romano
Chief Nurse, United States Public Health Service
National Institutes of Health
Phone: 301-496-2641
Email: romano@cc.nih.gov

Department of Veterans Affairs

Cathy J. Rick, RN, CNAA, FACHE
Chief Nursing Officer
Department of Veterans Affairs
810 Vermont Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20420
Phone: 202-273-9237
Fax: 202-273-9119
Email: Cathy.Rick@hq.med.va.gov

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