| 1 | 1 | | H.R. No. 459 |
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| 2 | 2 | | |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | R E S O L U T I O N |
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| 5 | 5 | | WHEREAS, The observance of Texas Black Nurses Day on |
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| 6 | 6 | | March 29, 2023, serves as an opportunity to highlight the |
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| 7 | 7 | | contributions of Black nurses and to raise awareness of the |
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| 8 | 8 | | importance of diversity in the nursing profession; and |
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| 9 | 9 | | WHEREAS, Although the nursing workforce in the state of Texas |
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| 10 | 10 | | remains predominately Caucasian, the number of Black nurses in |
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| 11 | 11 | | Texas has grown to more closely mirror statewide demographics; |
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| 12 | 12 | | according to statistics compiled by the Texas Board of Nursing in |
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| 13 | 13 | | 2019, Black nurses represent around 14 percent of the total number |
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| 14 | 14 | | of registered and licensed vocational nurses in Texas; Black |
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| 15 | 15 | | individuals also constitute over 11 percent of our state's |
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| 16 | 16 | | registered nurses, compared to 6.7 percent of registered nurses |
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| 17 | 17 | | nationwide, and further represent 17.8 percent of faculty in |
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| 18 | 18 | | registered nursing pre-licensure programs throughout the state; |
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| 19 | 19 | | and |
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| 20 | 20 | | WHEREAS, As Texas becomes increasingly more diverse, there is |
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| 21 | 21 | | a greater need for a diverse nursing workforce with the ability to |
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| 22 | 22 | | provide quality, culturally informed patient care to a variety of |
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| 23 | 23 | | populations; a growing body of research supports the benefits, |
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| 24 | 24 | | including improved patient care and cost savings, from having a |
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| 25 | 25 | | health care workforce that more closely resembles the population it |
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| 26 | 26 | | serves; compared to their White counterparts, Black nurses are more |
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| 27 | 27 | | likely to practice in underserved areas with a larger percentage of |
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| 28 | 28 | | Black families and are also more likely to accept patients who are |
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| 29 | 29 | | covered by Medicaid, thus helping to bring their communities closer |
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| 30 | 30 | | to achieving health equity; and |
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| 31 | 31 | | WHEREAS, The Black nurses of our state have earned our |
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| 32 | 32 | | deepest gratitude for the tremendous skill and passion they have |
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| 33 | 33 | | demonstrated and for their noble commitment to the health and |
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| 34 | 34 | | well-being of their patients, and it is indeed fitting that a |
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| 35 | 35 | | special day be set aside to honor them; now, therefore, be it |
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| 36 | 36 | | RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 88th Texas |
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| 37 | 37 | | Legislature hereby recognize March 29, 2023, as Texas Black Nurses |
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| 38 | 38 | | Day and commend Black nurses across the Lone Star State for the |
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| 39 | 39 | | compassion, expertise, and professionalism they bring to their |
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| 40 | 40 | | vocation. |
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| 41 | 41 | | Reynolds |
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| 42 | 42 | | ______________________________ |
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| 43 | 43 | | Speaker of the House |
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| 44 | 44 | | I certify that H.R. No. 459 was adopted by the House on March |
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| 45 | 45 | | 16, 2023, by a non-record vote. |
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| 46 | 46 | | ______________________________ |
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| 47 | 47 | | Chief Clerk of the House |
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