As America's young adults turn eighteen, they are reminded that it is their civic duty and responsibility to register to vote, vote be aware of current policies and make informed decisions in the voting booth. As some of these young adults become active in the nursing profession, they are taught that their ultimate responsibility is to advocate for their patients; they must ensure their safety and well-being. That being said, does that responsibility stop at the bedside? Should nurses take an active role in developing policies that directly affect their patients' health care? Conn and Armer (2012) stated that “nurses must be prepared to use multiple and varied strategies to influence public policy to achieve optimal health outcomes” (p. 296). This statement alone implies that nurses' responsibility extends beyond direct patient care. Unfortunately, today's nurses have not been trained to view themselves as “policy activists” (Wolf & Robinson, 2013, p. 16). In light of this statement, I took a “political astuteness inventory” and was quite surprised at my score, as I was honestly only able to check off 17 of the 34 statements. My 17 checkmarks focus primarily on my civic duty to register to vote, make decisions, and work collaboratively in my workplace. I do not actively participate in influencing the decisions of legislative decision makers. “Political astuteness is defined as awareness and understanding of legislative and political processes and political skills” (Primomo, 2007, p. 260). I'm obviously not politically savvy and have never been challenged to be until now. "Over the past decade, nurses have come to realize that the forces that shape... middle of article ......ichigan Nurse, 85(4), 3-19. Byrd, ME, Costello, J., Gremel, K., Schwager, J., Blanchette, L. and Malloy, TE (2012). The policy astuteness of baccalaureate nursing students following an active learning experience in health policy. Public Health Nursing, 29(5), 433-443. Conn, V. and Armer, J. (2012). Meta-analysis and public policy: opportunity for impact on nursing. Nursing Perspectives, 60(5), 297-302.Flyffe, T. (2009). Nursing shapes and influences health and social care policies. Journal of Nursing Management, 17(6), 698-706. Luparell, S. (2011). Incivility in nursing: the link between academia and the clinical environment. Intensive Care Nursing, 31(2), 92-95. Primomo, J. (2007). Changes in policy acumen after a health systems and policy course. Nurse Educator, 32(6), 260-264. Wolf, K.C. and Robinson, Z. (2013). Unrealized potential. Pennsylvania Nurse, 68(4), 16-21.