ANA Terminating its Affiliation with the Center and the UAN

Its official, the American Nurses Association is terminating its affiliation agreements with the Center for American Nurses and the United American Nurses.

An email on behalf of the President and the CEO of American Nurses Association to the members of its House of Delegates today. I am a ANA-Delegate from the Ohio Nurses Association. The ANA House of Delegates will be hot this year with debate!

Absent affiliation agreement between ANA and the Center and the UAN, CMAs (state nursing associations) can 1. continue with direct relationships with the Center for American Nurses or the United American Nurses or 2. initiate their own labor and workforce advocacy programs. The CMAs may receive a grant from the ANA and these funds can be used to 1. pay for memberships with the Center and the UAN or 2. initiate state specific labor and workforce advocacy program.

WOW! The majority of RNs don't belong to professional associations or unions. Is this the reason why we as a profession don't support our professional associations?

Change is never easy and some of the changes that we will see coming in the next few years with national and state nursing associations, some will argue should have been made years or decades ago. You can compare and contrast the pull and tug between the federal government and individual state governments with the current issues involving national and state nursing associations/unions.

The demographics of nursing is changing and nursing professional associations should adapt and evolve as the profession does.

Which model do you prefer for professional association goverance? Should it be driven at the national, state, or local level? How do you strike a balance between these three levels with the goal being to advocate for individual nurses and patients in the healthcare system?