NC Nurse Creates Advocacy Group for State Reproductive Rights

• In the United States, people are entitled to certain reproductive rights such as emergency care, birth control, medication, abortion access, and other preventative health services regardless of insurance status.​
• North Carolina’s government is currently divided on reproductive rights. In May 2023, Gov. Cooper vetoed SB 20, which restricted access to abortion. This veto was later overturned.
• This led Jill Sergison, a midwife at Duke University Medical Center to start an organization of North Carolinian nurses who wanted to become advocates for reproductive rights.

In response to North Carolina’s push to restrict abortion access and gender-affirming care, nurses like Jill Sergison have come together to form a collective advocacy group called NC Nurses for Reproductive Rights. The organization is open to all North Carolinian nurses. So far 50 nurses have joined since the group’s inception in May.

NC Nurses for Reproductive Rights wants to elevate the voices of nurses and their unique perspective on reproductive rights.

What are Reproductive Rights?

Reproductive rights are generally considered to be the right to control whether and when to have children. It also includes access to things like prenatal services and safe childbirth.

In the U.S., people are entitled to several reproductive rights: emergency care, birth control, medication, abortion access, and other preventative health services regardless of insurance status.

• Emergency Care: For pregnant patients, emergency care may involve care during “ectopic pregnancy, complications of a pregnancy loss, or emergent hypertensive disorders, such as preeclampsia with severe features.”
• Birth Control: Patients are to have access to a variety of birth control options, including hormonal methods (birth control pills), implanted devices (IUDs), emergency contraception (Plan B), barrier methods (sponges), sterilization, etc.
• Medication: Pharmacies are legally prohibited from discrimination by denying medication, determining the suitability of prescribed medication, or advising patients on how to take their medications.
• Abortion Access: Since the overturning of Roe v. Wade, access to abortion is now a state-by-state right. Currently, 21 states have protected the right to abortion access, while the following 14 states have banned or restricted abortion in some way: Alabama, Arkansas, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, Mississippi, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, and West Virginia.
• Preventive Health Services: Patients are entitled to other reproductive wellness services such as regular pap smears, breast cancer screenings, cervical cancer screenings, prenatal care, breastfeeding services, and HIV/STI testing.

Jill Sergison, Founder of NC Nurses for Reproductive Rights

Jill Sergison is a certified nurse midwife at Duke University Medical Center with 16 years of experience. She received her master’s degree in nursing from New York University.

Sergison has published five peer-reviewed studies relating to reproductive health. She’s also volunteered as a Sexual Health educator at Duke Memorial United Methodist and is a board chair for NARAL Pro-Choice North Carolina.

NC Nurses for Reproductive Rights is not Sergison’s first foray into advocacy. In February of 2022, she founded Points True North Consulting, a for-profit organization that facilities a coalition between non-profits and policy groups, businesses, and foundations to advocate for policy advancement relating to critical health and social justice. 

Sergison came up with the idea for NC Nurses for Reproductive Rights in May while attending a rally hosted by NC Gov. Roy Cooper where he vetoed abortion restrictions in SB 20. This veto would later be overturned.

During this rally, Sergison noted that Gov. Cooper had invited several medical professionals to the stage, all of whom were physicians. She considered how much bigger the healthcare team is and how the entire system is affected by reproductive rights legislation.

Nurses are often the first person a patient talks to when in need, which gives them a unique perspective. Sergison and fellow nurse Maria Ellis were both frustrated that the current NC nursing groups failed to release a statement in opposition to these reproductive rights restrictions, while physician’s groups like NC Medical Society realized a statement condemning the changes.

Sergison originally created the organization to bring together the “million different people in a million different conversations” she was having. She realized that there needed to be a nursing group advocating for reproductive rights.

NC Nurses for Reproductive Rights seeks to improve “access to contraception, gender-affirming care, expanded birth options, abortion, and equitable access to infertility treatments” by elevating the voices of nurses in policy advocacy. Their website directs to contraception and abortion access resources, with social services resources coming soon.

Nurses’ Place in Policy

NC Nurses for Reproductive Rights bridges the gap between a nurse’s role in a reproductive care team and healthcare’s role in political advocacy. Health policy nurses fill a similar role by specializing in the intersection between nursing and policy.

These nurses often seek additional education in healthcare policy and public health to supplement their hands-on clinical experience with a deep understanding of the healthcare system and the government’s role in regulating it.

Health policy nurses may also gain advocacy experience outside of the healthcare setting by volunteering their time to established advocacy organizations or relevant non-profits. This experience can then be used to advance the nurse into managerial or research roles that combine nursing with policy.

There are many different advocacy groups for nurses who wish to pursue a role in policy. One study reviewed five examples of nurses taking on advocacy roles such as championing health equity in national nursing organizations, establishing a school nurse program in Saudi Arabia, and utilizing Social Media as an advocacy tool.

When in a patient care setting, nurses advocate on behalf of their patients and support their patient’s care decisions. Policy advocacy allows nurses to ensure that regardless of personal beliefs, patients will have all the tools and resources to make the best decisions regarding their health.

The Bottom Line

Advocacy can often be an important avenue for nurses who already advocate for their patients at an individual level. Joining coalitions can help broaden a nurse’s reach by allowing them to advocate for systematic change to better care for all patients.

NC Nurses for Reproductive Rights is a grass-roots organization dedicated to reproductive rights for patients in North Carolina and the advancement of the state’s nurses in political advocacy. These nurses are building a community to better serve their patients and their communities. 

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