Description/Overview: This symposium will focus on the current state of health care reforms throughout the world and the themes that have emerged that directly correlate with the expertise of the nursing community. How can nurses make a difference in the decisions that are being made regarding access to care, cost effective and high quality care delivery alternatives, utilization of self-care approaches, and overall distribution of health resources? Strategies are needed in educational and practice arenas that support nurses at all levels of the profession to acquire the tools needed to give voice to their knowledge, experience and skills as experts. Gaining the skill as well as the confidence needed to play an effective role as policy influencers in a rapidly changing health care environment is key to leveraging evidence based approaches to solving many of the health care challenges facing all countries. As knowledge workers in practice, education and research, there are abundant opportunities for nurses to fully utilize their expertise. Translating both evidence and “real world” experience for those in industry and government who are seeking solutions to complex health care issues for which there are legislative, regulatory, and consumer-oriented policy implications is needed and nurses can and must play a leadership role. What are the barriers to entry to such forums and how can nurses navigate to gain entrance in order to share valuable information that can make a persuasive case for advancing care based on this rich repository of information and expertise? What are the keys to a successful policy making encounter and how can we make strides on a global scale? How do we unite, starting with each nurse’s efforts, to make nursing’s collective voice a respected and sought out force in shaping health and social policy? Based on the “lessons learned” by those on the front lines of policy, what are the tips that can simplify this process and inspire all nurses to heed this call to action?