• Shanita D Williams, Kristen Hansen, Marian Smithey, Josepha Burnley, Michelle Koplitz, Kirk Koyama, Janice Young, and Alexis Bakos.
• U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration, Bureau of Health Professions, Division of Nursing, Rockville, MD.
• Public Health Rep. 2014 Jan 1; 129 Suppl 2: 32-6.

AbstractIt is widely accepted that diversifying the nation's health-care workforce is a necessary strategy to increase access to quality health care for all populations, reduce health disparities, and achieve health equity. In this article, we present a conceptual model that utilizes the social determinants of health framework to link nursing workforce diversity and care quality and access to two critical population health indicators-health disparities and health equity. Our proposed model suggests that a diverse nursing workforce can provide increased access to quality health care and health resources for all populations, and is a necessary precursor to reduce health disparities and achieve health equity. With this conceptual model as a foundation, we aim to stimulate the conceptual and analytical work-both within and outside the nursing field-that is necessary to answer these important but largely unanswered questions.

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