Nursing Professional Associations Are Struggling for Members: Nursing Associations of the Past Should not be the Nursing Associations of the Future

I supported the Licensed Practical Nurse Association of Ohio (LPNAO) in the past by purchasing a booth, donating products, or buying advertisement in program meeting brochures. LPNAO like many other nursing professional associations is struggling financial because membership is decreasing. See the President's message at http://www.lpnao.org/.

Why are nursing professional associations struggling for membership? Why don't nurses support the very professional associations which purportedly represent them and the profession? Do you feel that the nursing professional associations adequately represent the profession of nursing? Are there too many nursing professional associations? There are national, state, local, and specialty nursing associations around the country and the majority of RNs, some three million, yes 3 million, do not belong to ANY nursing professional association whether its a national, local, state, or specialty association.

I must add in fairness to nursing associations/organizations that membership in all professional associations across the spectrum are down because of the economy.

http://www.asaecenter.org/PublicationsResources/ANowDetail.cfm?ItemNumber=44103

http://www.issociate.com/issociate-101/Postings/Association-Help/How-social-networking-could-end-professional-associations/default.aspx

http://www.canadianmarketingblog.com/archives/2009/05/professional_associations_repo.html

http://www.ammr.com/PayingTheirDues.pdf

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/12/14/AR2008121401638.html

http://meetingsnet.com/associationmeetings/mag/meetings_associations_aim_generation/

http://blogs.capella.edu/askdoctoraladvising/2009/10/07/professional-associations-do-i-have-to/

http://www.publicrelationsprincess.com/2009/10/are-professional-associations-obligated-to-help-job-seekers.html

http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/114080275/abstract?CRETRY=1&SRETRY=0

http://www.dcardillo.com/articles/assoc.html

http://allnurses.com/nursing-activism-healthcare/ana-membership-388073.html

See

http://www.nursingworld.org/EspeciallyForYou/Links/SpecialtyNursing.aspx

What does that say to you as a nurse? How many nursing professional association do you belong to at this point? Are you planning to continue your membership?

I belong to the American Nurses Association, the Center for American Nurses, the Ohio Nurses Association, and the Southwestern Ohio Nurses Associations. I pay close to $36.00 a month to belong to all four of these organizations. I also belong to The American Association of Nurse Attorneys (TAANA) and I pay $170.00 a year.

I can tell you as one who has been active in nursing professional associations that those who participate in the associations, run the committees, and do the work of the association, don't understand why the majority of nurses don't join. Its almost like "oh those nurses who don't join don't know any better" and "we who do join, belong, and actively participate are doing so because other won't." I have been told that "somone must do the work of the profession even if the majority of nurses don't belong to the association."

Its easy to fall into this self-defeating train of logic and thinking but honestly after participating in several nursing professional associations on the national, state, and local levels for years, I can see why the majority of nurses don't belong to some of these organizations. I don't say this as a slap in the face to any one organization or association but I don't think the powers that be in some associations "get it" or understand what needs to be done or want to do what needs to be done to be appealing to the vast majority of nurses.

What got a small percentage of nurses to join these association twenty or thirty years ago (hell even 10 years ago) is not working. Case in point. Alot of nursing students support the National Student Nurses Association but then don't transition into membership in a nursing professional association. Why?

What do these organizations/associations need to do to get the majority of nurses in the United States to belong to an association/organization?

I look at the American Bar Association. I belong to the American Bar Association and the Ohio Bar Association. There are also a number of specialty bar association like nursing associations. A large percentage of attorneys join the American Bar Association. Don't say its because attorneys have more money because some attorneys make less than what some nurses earn in a year.

I wouldn't part with my ABA membership of the value of the products I receive from the Bar Association and the ABA is involved in everything legal and advocating for attorneys on every topic here in the US and overseas.

With Web 2.0 and online communities and training of a new and the next generation of nurses, the demands of nursing practice and balancing a life outside of your role, the nursing associations of the past should not be the nursing associations of the future.