Angela Nannini

Nurse practitioner, health policy researcher

Nurses are the front line of care. They are directly affected by infectious disease risks. They have firsthand knowledge of the day-to-day details of caring for an ill patient, a process that affects the health of both patients and nurses.

Although many hospitals and states are gearing up for a response to Ebola, there is still little evidence that direct care nurses and other clinical staff members have a seat at the table when it comes to developing specific practices and policies.

As U. S. Hospitals Prepare Ebola Response, Nurses Must Have A Seat At The Table

Angela Nannini: "In times of crisis, nurses are often excluded from decision-making conversations at every level of health care organizations, from patient care decisions to hospital policy and protocols." Pictured: Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas staff line the drive that exits the emergency room as they wait for an ambulance carrying Nina Pham to depart, Thursday, Oct. 16, 2014, in Dallas. Pham, a nurse at the hospital, was diagnosed with the Ebola virus after caring for Thomas Eric Duncan, who died of the same virus. Amber Vinson, another nurse diagnosed, was taken to a similar location in Atlanta. Both nurses have since been declared Ebola free and have been released from care. (Tony Gutierrez/AP)