FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. -- Lauren Haggard-Duff represented the Eleanor Mann School of Nursing last month at a national summit in Washington, D.C. focused on the role of nursing in building a healthier America.

Haggard-Duff, a University of Arkansas instructor of nursing, serves as the co-lead of the leadership pillar, one of four pillars on which the "Future of Nursing: Campaign for Action" is founded. It's a national initiative to guide implementation of the recommendations outlined in "The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health," a report issued by the Institute of Medicine in 2010.

Speakers at the summit introduced and discussed the Culture of Health Action Framework, which includes four action areas: making health a shared value, fostering cross-sector collaboration to improve well-being, creating healthier and more equitable communities, and strengthening integration of health services and systems. The overall outcome desired for these action areas is improved population health, well-being and equity.

"At this summit, we were able to hear from nationally renowned speakers, including the president and CEO of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, regarding building shared values within a culture of health," Haggard-Duff said. "The Arkansas action members who attended worked to establish goals for how we can carry out the new Culture of Health Framework in our state. We will continue to meet throughout the year and work toward implementing the Culture of Health Framework for Arkansas."

Haggard-Duff is in her second year of teaching in the nursing school's RN to BSN program delivered online. She earned a Master of Science in nursing from the University of Missouri-Columbia and a doctorate from Capella University, and she has 15 years of experience working as a registered nurse in critical care and postpartum care and 13 years of experience teaching.

The other three pillars of the campaign are education, workforce data and practice.

Each pillar has a unique focus toward the Future of Nursing campaign. For example, the education pillar has focused on increasing the number of bachelor's degree-prepared nurses in Arkansas. The practice pillar advocates for all levels of nurses to practice at the full scope of their education, especially including the advanced practice nurse.

The campaign this year will focus on the new Framework: Culture of Health.

"Our goal is to advance health," Haggard-Duff said. "We look at the question: 'What do we need in our state to empower nurses to further nursing in our state?'"

Last year there was a push for a more simple and quick way for nurses to advance their education, she said. Research shows that the quality of care increases for patients when nurses have at least a bachelor's degree. This year and in the next several years, there is a new focus to enhance collaboration with non-health-care stakeholders toward building healthier communities.

In addition to the RN to BSN program, the Eleanor Mann School of Nursing at the University of Arkansas offers both a Master of Science in Nursing and a Doctor of Nursing Practice, also delivered online.

Haggard-Duff also was involved last year in a young leaders mentoring program available at nursing colleges in Arkansas. Any student in a baccalaureate nursing program could apply with references. A grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation helped fund the program.

"Students were paired with a nurse from March through May, during which they met a minimum of eight times," Haggard-Duff said.

Six nursing students across the state, including one from the Eleanor Mann School of Nursing, have been accepted into the Arkansas Action Coalition Young Leaders program for 2016.