My 2 Cents

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?

Major Changes with the ANA and You Know Change is Never Easy

Below is a message from the ANA regarding the UAN disaffiliation: See http://www.ohnurses.org/displaycommon.cfm?an=1&subarticlenbr=259.

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"As you know, the ANA Board is committed to transparency in all its dealings on behalf of the association's members. To that end, attached are copies of letters ANA has sent to our two major workforce-related Associate Organizational Members (AOMs): United American Nurses (UAN) and the Center for American Nurses (The Center).

These letters make clear that the ANA is poised to explore new and potentially promising business relationships with UAN and The Center.  In taking this action, the Board reaffirms its avid support for and belief in ANA’s diverse membership having the freedom to choose collective bargaining or other approaches to workforce advocacy.

The ANA Board strongly believes the association and Constituent Member Associations (CMAs) would be better served and strengthened if the relationships between the CMAs and the UAN and the CMAs and the Center were made by the state associations, without unneeded references to Associate Organizational Members in ANA’s bylaws, agreements or policies.  Further, the ANA Board has trust and confidence in the CMAs being best positioned to evaluate the value of their relationships with the UAN or the Center. Lastly, further potential bylaw changes regarding our structure have been submitted to the Committee on Bylaws by the board with the desired outcome to strengthen the ANA and CMA’s. 

If you have any questions, please contact me at (301) 628-5011 or ANA CEO Linda J. Stierle, MSN, RN, CNAA,BC, at (301) 628-5012."

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State nursing associations (which may be strictly a state nursing association or a state nursing association and a union) are being given the power and authority to decide what's best for its membership. Major things are happening in nursing professional associations; this promises to be a lively year in nursing yet again! I pondered several posts ago what would 2008 hold for the nursing profession and its unfolding now!

I am an Ohio Nurses Association delegate to the ANA House of Delegates, which takes place in June 2008 in Washington, D.C. I am looking forward to the discussions that will take place at the House this summer regarding the structure of the American Nurses Association.

ANA terminates its affiliation with the UAN

The American Nurses Association is terminating its affiliation agreement with the United American Nurses effective June 30, 2008. See the attached correspondence. Download 01020820uan20letter20.pdf

Four state nurses associations affliated with the ANA disaffiliated from the United American Nurses last month. The Ohio, Washington, New York, and Oregon state nurses association union are no longer affiliated with the UAN. See http://www.uannurse.org/media/hot_issues.html?view=press_release&press_id=302

The American Association of Nurse Attorneys (TAANA) Board of Directors

TAANA Welcomes 2008 Board of Directors

TAANA elected its 2008 Board of Directors. For additional information about TAANA, see its website at www.taana.org. The 2008 officers and board members are:

President	Daneil McAuliffe
President Elect	Rosemary McCarthy
Treasurer	Kathleen McCormac
Recording Secretary	Randi Kopf
Corresponding Secretary	Suzanne Collins
Immediate Past President	Janet Feldkamp
Directors	Tonia Aiken
	Elizabeth Beall
	Edie Brous
	Diane Warlick
	Bridget Neuson
	Lara Engelking