Recognizing National Nurses Week.

Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 1261) recognizing National Nurses Week, as amended.

Madam Speaker, I request 5 legislative days in which Members may revise and extend their remarks and insert extraneous material on H. Res. 1261 into the Record.

Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

I rise today in support of H. Res. 1261, which recognizes National Nurses Week and the significant contributions that nurses make to our Nation's health care system. National Nurses Week also stresses the importance of quality higher education in nursing to meet the needs of one of the fastest growing professions.

National Nurses Week began on May 6, a day also known as National Recognition Day for Nurses. Today marks the end of the week of recognition as we celebrate the birthday of Florence Nightingale, the founder of modern nursing.

All across the Nation, communities have spent this week recognizing our Nation's 3.1 million nurses for their heroic acts, years of service to the community, and commitment to the nursing profession. Today's health care system requires nurses to be present at every stage of patient care, including partnering with physicians, pharmacists and other health care professionals to direct and manage patient needs. We thank them for their hard work and dedication.

The number of nurses in the United States is expected to grow rapidly in the near future. The Bureau of Labor Statistics anticipates that the employment of registered nurses will grow by 22 percent from 2008 to 2018. The growth in nursing job openings, along with an increasing number of nurses retiring or leaving the profession, is likely to lead to a continued demand for nursing professionals. In fact, it is estimated that there could be a shortage of more than 1 million nurses by the end of this decade.

Madam Speaker, while we honor America's nurses, we know we must do more to expand and sustain the profession. According to the National League for Nursing's most recent survey of all prelicensure nursing programs, thousands of qualified applicants have been rejected from nursing programs nationwide in the last few years. According to the League, the lack of capacity in nursing programs is due in part to a continuing shortage of nursing educators. It is vital that we support efforts to enhance existing education programs at both the baccalaureate and graduate level.

Madam Speaker, once again I express my support for National Nurses Week and the focus on the contributions of our Nation's many nurses to our health care system. We honor the excellent work done by nurses and encourage them to continue making a difference each and every day.

I thank the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Eddie Bernice Johnson) for introducing this resolution, and I urge my colleagues to support this bill.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I am pleased to recognize for such time as she may consume the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Eddie Bernice Johnson), the author of H. Res. 1261.

Madam Speaker, I am pleased to recognize the gentlewoman from California (Mrs. Capps), who is also a nurse, for such time as she may consume.

Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support H. Res. 1261, recognizing National Nurses Week and recognizing the significant contributions that nurses make to our Nation's health care system.

I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I rise in support of H. Res. 1261, recognizing National Nurses Week, and I thank the leadership in the Congress for bringing this bill to the floor and acknowledge the close personal ties that many of us have with nurses.

I am very honored and pleased to be cosponsoring this resolution with my House colleagues and fellow nurses, Ms. Eddie Bernice Johnson and also Carolyn McCarthy.

The recent debate in Congress on health care reform and the passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act have provided us an opportunity to highlight the importance of nurses to our health care system. Nurses are the backbone of health care delivery, and I know that because occasionally I will be approached by a colleague who wants to tell me about a recent medical event in their life, some situation, procedure, or surgery or some hospital stay. And inevitably it isn't the kind of doctor care they had; it is the nurses that they want to tell me about, especially the outstanding ones who made all of the difference in their recovery. I know because it is nurses who spend countless hours at patient bedsides. It is nurses who are in all walks of life, educating their communities about public health, and that is what I did for most of my career as a nurse, caring for the children and their families in our public school system in my community.

Nurses are also case managers. They are health system administrators. They are educators. They are members of the military. They are primary providers, and this list goes on and on. So I am proud to see our House of Representatives recognizing the immeasurable contributions that nurses make to the daily health and well-being of all Americans.

Madam Speaker, I know as individuals we each recognize the important roles nurses play. Of course, too often this recognition and appreciation doesn't come until after we have had our own adverse health experiences, as I have been relating to you. As I said, many of my colleagues come up to me after a hospitalization or that of a family member, and again they say, Wow, if it hadn't been for the care of the nurses.

Today, we have an opportunity to collectively thank and show appreciation to the nurses in our lives and all of the nurses that serve our country every day in the armed services and in our communities, the nurses who are our constituents and our family members and our friends, and to renew our commitment to supporting the profession by providing greater opportunities for scholarship and loan repayment, just as we did in our newly enacted health reform law. We have a shortage of nurses and other health providers, and we want to do what we can to increase their numbers so that better patient care can be delivered.

We need to also increase funding for existing programs to improve the training and recruitment of our next generation of nurses. I urge all of my colleagues to support this resolution. I am pleased to be standing on the floor in its favor.

Madam Speaker, I thank Ms. Woolsey for yielding me this time. It is a privilege to offer this resolution celebrating this resolution recognizing National Nurses Week, which ends today.

Nurses have been called the patient's first advocate, but their work also encompasses a wide scope of scientific inquiry, including clinical research, health systems research, and nursing education research.

Every day, nurses make a commitment to providing quality patient care, growing and adapting to the new challenges that our changing health care system requires.

I began my career as a registered professional nurse where I provided hands-on patient care for 15 years as a psychiatric nurse at the Veterans Administration Hospital in Dallas, Texas. This is why I remain a strong nursing ally today, advocating on behalf of the nursing profession to ensure that they have the means necessary to perform their jobs safely, with the best resources possible.

I would like to thank my fellow colleagues, the gentlewoman from California (Mrs. Capps) and the gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. McCarthy), who are also nurses and champions of this resolution and the nursing profession. The Congressional Nursing Caucus was also helpful in promoting this legislation, and I appreciate all of the efforts to generate support for the resolution.

Nurses are a key component to our Nation's health care system and will become even more vital with the full implementation of health care reform. Nurses work in emergency rooms, school-based clinics, community health centers, skilled nursing facilities, hospitals, physician offices, and on the battlefield. Their roles take many shapes from staff nurse to nurse educator, all while remaining committed to patient safety and working to influence the broader health care policy for the benefit of the greater good. Nurses are extremely dedicated individuals who must be intelligent and detail oriented, ready to act at the spur of the moment. A caring and compassionate heart is required for the tough work that nurses perform, usually under duress.

As important as the nursing industry is, we still face a nursing shortage. Enrollment rose in 2009 for entry-level B.A. programs, but the annual increase in student capacity in 4-year nursing programs has declined sharply since 2003.

It is imperative that we expand capacity in B.A. and graduate programs to sustain a healthy nursing workforce and provide patients with the best care possible.

As we try to meet the demands of the nursing profession, we must also tackle the challenges related to the impact of faculty shortages on educational capacity.

Increased Federal and State support is needed to enhance existing programs and create new programs to educate nursing students at all levels, to increase the number of faculty members to educate nursing students, and to retain nurses in the profession.

Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of H. Res. 1261, a resolution to recognize National Nurses Week and acknowledge the importance of quality nurse education programs.

The crucial role of nurses in our health care system cannot be overstated. Across the country, dedicated nurses work tirelessly to ensure that their patients receive quality care. In addition to their countless clinical responsibilities, nurses are a source of medical knowledge and compassion for families and patients when they are going through difficult times.

Sadly, many talented nurses are forced from their profession because of injuries sustained while on the job. Every year, thousands of nurses and health care workers sustain back and neck injuries while lifting or transferring patients. Not only are these injuries very expensive for hospitals and providers because of costs that are associated with workers' compensation, retraining and replacement, but they are also often devastating to the personal and professional lives of nurses. Fortunately, the musculoskeletal injuries in facilities that use assistive patient handling have significantly decreased. That is why I have introduced H.R. 2381, the ``Nurse and Health Care Worker Protection Act of 2009.'' This legislation would require the Secretary of Labor to promulgate a rule creating a standard for safe patient handling to prevent more nurses from being injured while assisting patients. Additionally, health facilities would be required to purchase an adequate number of mechanical lifting devices. Senator Franken has introduced the companion bill, and just yesterday the Senate Subcommittee on Employment and Workplace Safety held a hearing on this critical issue.

I commend my friend Representative Eddie Bernice Johnson for introducing H. Res. 1261 which honors the necessary and valuable work that nurses do every day. I encourage my colleagues to support this resolution.

Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, I rise today in strong support of House Resolution 1261, recognizing National Nurses Week. The gentlewoman from California (Ms. Woolsey) explained in some detail the history of this week and the importance of nurses to our communities, to our States, and to our Nation. I strongly endorse and identify myself with her remarks.

I want to just take a personal moment. This is an especially important week in my house and my life. My wife, Vicky, has spent her entire adult life as a nurse, as a registered nurse. She did a career in the Army as an Army nurse and worked for years in emergency rooms and trauma centers literally around the country as I was transferred from duty station to duty station. And so I feel the importance that comes with this very noble and important profession.

I know the care and compassion that comes with this profession, the lifesaving skills and the dedication. In my family, literally in Vicky's family, the nursing profession has long been part of that family. Her mother was a nurse. I have a niece, her niece is serving as an Army nurse. I have a sister-in-law who spent her adult life as a nurse. This is a profession that is, indeed, lifesaving and so important to our families.

I want to extend my grateful congratulations to all those nurses, men and women, who have dedicated their lives to serving those in need here and around the world. I ask that my colleagues support this resolution.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I don't have any other speakers at this time, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I have no other speakers and I encourage my colleagues to support H. Res. 1261, and I yield back the balance of my time.