title: Nurses' policy influence: A concept analysis.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Nurses' influence on health policy protects the quality of care by access to required recourses and opportunities. This is a new and important concept for nursing; however, research studies on policy influence of nurses in health care sector are lacking a basic conceptual understanding of what this concept represents. The aim of this paper is to clarify the concept of nurses' policy influence and to propose the definition of this concept, considering the context of Iran.
  
  
  METHODS
  The eight stages of Walker and Avant approach was used to guide this concept analysis. Various databases and internet engines were searched to find all related information about the concept. Textbooks were also searched manually. English language literature reports published between 1990 and 2012 were reviewed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Based on the analysis undertaken, nurses' policy influence is nurses' ability in influencing decisions and affairs related to health through political knowledge, effective communication, and collaboration with other members of the health team, which results in the improvement of nurses' job environment and increases patient outcomes. This is a dynamic process situated on a spectrum and is accompanied with nurses' knowledge, competency, power, and advocacy, and also their ability to change.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Nurses have individual views on health care issues and influence health care policies in different ways. With a common understanding of nurses' policy influence as a concept, nurses will recognize the importance of policy making in the health sector and their influence on this process and also on patients' outcomes.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Surgical Nursing, Faculty of Nursing and Midwifery, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Akram
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Arabi
authors.affiliation: Center for Nursing Care Research, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Forough
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Rafii
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Surgical Nursing, Faculty of Nursing and Midwifery, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Mohammad Ali
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Cheraghi
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Surgical Nursing, Faculty of Nursing and Midwifery, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Shahrzad
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ghiyasvandian
keywords: Advocacy; Iran; concept analysis; health policy; influence; politics; power