Nurses address the health needs of society with the goal of helping individuals, families, groups, and communities achieve their optimum state of wellness. This chapter differentiates among the principles of health equity, health disparities, social justice, and social determinants of health. It describes nursing’s social mandate as a guiding principle in providing ethical care to diverse populations. The chapter synthesizes principles important to understanding health equity, health disparities, and social justice in nursing education across classroom and clinical settings. It summarizes the interface between social justice and health equity in nursing education and synthesizes the tenets of health equity for nursing research, education, and practice. The future considerations for nursing students, clinicians, practitioners, and researchers are explored.
