Communication Dynamics Between Professional Nursing Organisations and Their Stakeholders: A Scoping Review.
Edgardo Álvarez-Muñoz, Hildegart González Luis, Zuleyma Orellana and 1 others
PMID 40488707WHAT IT FOUND
Nursing organisations rarely communicate health advice to the public, focusing instead on labour issues and member news.
When they do provide patient education, it is limited to topics like catheter care and pressure ulcers, leaving a gap in their public health role.
Key findings
01The most frequent content communicated by nursing organisations concerns labour conditions, such as staffing shortages and workplace violence, rather than patient care.
02Very few studies identified health-related content aimed at the general public, with only three articles showing evidence of this, covering topics like chronic diseases and catheter management.
03Most communications are directed inward to nurses or outward to journalists and politicians, with limited direct engagement with patients and the general public.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The review excluded articles in languages other than English, Spanish, Portuguese, and Italian, potentially missing relevant global data. Most included studies (29 of 47) were 'grey literature' (e.g., editorials, letters) without formal methodological designs. The review did not assess the quality or rigour of the included studies. Data on the actual impact of communications on public health or patient outcomes is largely absent because organisations rarely evaluate or publish these results.
Declared interests
The authors declare no conflicts of interest. Funding was provided by the School of Nursing at the University of Navarra and Clinica Universidad de Navarra.
The easy way to misread this
Do not interpret the lack of published health content as evidence that nurses do not provide patient education. This review only maps what professional organisations communicate publicly or in journals; it does not capture the vast amount of direct patient education provided by nurses in clinical settings.