ANA WEB SITE: http://www.nursingworld.org/
HISTORICAL SKETCH OF ANA
September 2, 1896. Delegates from 10 alumnae associations met near New York City for the purpose of organizing a national professional association for nurses. 1897. Constitution and bylaws were completed and the Nurses Associated Alumnae of the United States and Canada was organized. 1899.
Name changed to Nurses Associated Alumnae of the United States. April 18, 1901. The incorporation of the Nurses Associated Alumnae of the United States completed and filed in Albany, New York. 1911.
Name changed to American Nurses Association. May 3, 1917. Incorporated in the District of Columbia. January 19, 1920. Incorporation in New York State annulled. July 1, 1982.
The American Nurses Association became a federation of constituent state nurses associations. March, 2000. Upon conferment of constituent member status on the Federal Nurses Association by the ANA Board of Directors, ANA became a federation of constituent member associations rather than a federation of constituent state nurses associations. Published by American Nurses Association Copyright © 2000
View the Centennial history of the association here: http://www.nursingworld.org/centenn/index.htm
CERTIFICATE OF INCORPORATION AMERICAN NURSES ASSOCIATION
We, the undersigned, a majority of whom are residents of the District of Columbia, desiring to avail ourselves of the provisions of Section 599, et sequitur, of the Code of Laws of the District of Columbia, do hereby certify as follows:
The name or title by which this Society shall be known is AMERICAN NURSES ASSOCIATION.
The term for which it is organized shall be perpetual.
The purposes of this corporation are and shall be to promote the professional and educational advancement of nurses in every proper way; to elevate the standard of nursing education; to establish and maintain a code of ethics among nurses; to distribute relief among such nurses as may become ill, disabled, or destitute; to disseminate information on the subject of nursing by publications in official periodicals or otherwise; to bring into communication with each other various nurses and associations and federations of nurses throughout the United States of America; and to succeed to all rights and property held by the American Nurses Association as a corporation duly incorporated under and by virtue of the laws of the District of Columbia.
The number of its trustees for the first year of its existence shall be thirteen.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned Jane A. Delano, a resident of the District of Columbia, and Georgia M. Nevins, a resident of the District of Columbia, and Clara D. Noyes, a resident of the District of Columbia, and Annie W. Goodrich, a resident of the City of New York, and Sara E. Sly, a resident of Birmingham, Michigan, have hereto set our hands and seals this 28th day of April, 1917.
JANE A. DELANO (Seal)
GEORGIA M. NEVINS (Seal)
CLARA D. NOYES (Seal)
ANNIE W. GOODRICH (Seal)
SARAH E. SLY (Seal)
STATE OF PENNSYLVANIA,PHILADELPHIA COUNTY SS:- Personally appeared before me, a Notary Public in and for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Jane A. Delano, Georgia M. Nevins, Annie W. Goodrich, Clara D. Noyes, and Sara E. Sly, who are personally well known to me to be the individuals who signed the foregoing and annexed certificate of incorporation and acknowledged the same to be their act and deed.Given under my hand and notarial seal this 28th day of April, 1917. ROSE MARIE KELLY
(Notarial Seal)
Notary Public
Commission expires 19 Jan., 1919
ARTICLE I Name, Purposes, and Functions
Section 1. Name
The name of this association shall be the American Nurses Association, hereinafter referred to as ANA.
Section 2. Purposes
The purposes of ANA shall be to--
work for the improvement of health standards and the availability of health care services for all people, and
foster high standards of nursing, and
stimulate and promote the professional development of nurses and advance their economic and general welfare.
These purposes shall be unrestricted by lifestyle, nationality, race, religion, or sexual orientation.
Section 3.Functions
The functions of ANA shall be to-
establish standards of nursing practice, nursing education, and nursing services.
establish a code of ethical conduct for nurses.
ensure a system of credentialing in nursing.
initiate and influence legislation, governmental programs, national health policy, and international health policy.
support systematic study, evaluation, and research in nursing.
serve as the central agency for the collection, analysis, and dissemination of information relevant to nursing.
promote and protect the economic and general welfare of nurses.
provide leadership in national and international nursing.
provide for the professional development of nurses.
conduct an affirmative action program.
ensure a collective bargaining program for nurses.
provide services to constituent members.
maintain communication with constituent members through official publications.
assume an active role as consumer advocate.
represent and speak for the nursing profession with allied health groups, national and international organizations, governmental bodies, and the public.
protect and promote the advancement of human rights related to health care and nursing
ARTICLE II Membership
Section 1.Composition
ANA shall be composed of state nurses associations, multi-state nurses associations, United States of America nurses overseas associations, and a federal nurses association composed of registered nurses whose employers are members of the Federal Nursing Services Council, limited to membership of the active component of the U.S. Army, Navy and Air Force, and uniformed Public Health Service nurses, hereinafter referred to as constituent members
Section 2. Qualifications
A constituent member is an association that-
is composed of individual members and may include organizational members has articles of incorporation and bylaws that govern its individual members and regulate its affairs.
has stated and demonstrated purposes and functions congruent with those of ANA.
provides that each of its individual members has been granted a license to practice as a registered nurse in at least one state, territory, or possession of the United States and does not have a license under suspension or revocation in any state, or has completed a nursing education program qualifying the individual to take the state-recognized examination for registered nurse licensure as a first-time writer.
may, in accord with its policies and procedures, include in its membership the impaired nurse, in recovery, who has surrendered a license to practice.
provides that each of its organizational members or affiliates-
has a mission and purpose harmonious with the constituent member.
has a governing body composed of a majority of registered nurses. This shall not preclude the participation of organizations of associate nurses. The rights and privileges of the organizational members or affiliates shall be determined by and limited to participation in the constituent member.
with the exception of a federal nurses association, serves a geographic area such as a state, territory, or possession of the United States, any combination thereof, foreign country, or region of the world, where there is no other recognized constituent member.
maintains a membership that meets the qualifications in these bylaws, unrestricted by consideration of age, color, creed, disability, gender, health status, lifestyle, nationality, race, religion, or sexual orientation.
is not delinquent in paying dues to ANA.
Section 3. Responsibilities
The bylaws of each constituent member shall--
provide for the obligation of the constituent member to pay dues to ANA in accordance with policies adopted by the ANA House of Delegates.
provide for individual members of the constituent to elect delegates and alternates to the ANA House of Delegates according to provisions of these bylaws.
protect individual members' right to participate in the constituent member.
specify the obligations of individual members.
provide for disciplinary action and an appeal procedure for individual members pursuant to common parliamentary and statutory law.
provide for the recognition of disciplinary action taken by any constituent member against its individual member.
provide for official recognition of constituent associations of the constituent member.
provide that additional dues shall not be required from nor refunded to individual members transferring from another constituent member if the individual member has made full payment of dues.
Each constituent member shall-- apprise individual members of the constituent of their right to--
receive a membership card and The American Nurse.
be a candidate for ANA elective and appointive positions in accordance with these bylaws.
participate in the election of constituent member delegates to the ANA House of Delegates in accordance with these bylaws.
attend the meetings of the ANA House of Delegates, the convention, and other unrestricted ANA activities.
attend the congress of the International Council of Nurses.
Require that individual members of the constituent member abide by the Code for Nurses.
submit current bylaws and proposed amendments for review by ANA.
comply with contractual agreements and statements of understanding between the constituent member and ANA.
Section 4. Rights
Each constituent member shall be entitled to:
display a certificate of membership in ANA.
distribution of The American Nurse to its individual members.
hold voting seats in the ANA House of Delegates.
submit proposals for consideration by ANA.
submit the names of nominees for ANA elective and appointive positions in accordance with provisions of these bylaws.
a fair hearing before any disciplinary action is taken.
hold a voting seat in the Constituent Assembly.
other rights as provided under common parliamentary and statutory law.
Further Bylaws can be viewed at: http://www.nursingworld.org/member2.htm
Summary of the activities at the 2000 Biennial convention:
The ANA 2000 House of Delegates agreed to:
1.Promote the use of ANA Principles for Nurse Staffing in health care agencies and educational institutions.
2.Develop and disseminate a public position paper which clearly and unequivocally states that the status of nurse staffing in the U.S. represents a public health crisis.
3.Develop a comprehensive strategy that positions registered nurses to safeguard quality care based on the recommendations of the ANA Principles for Nurse Staffing which calls for:
a.Involvement of direct care registered nurses in the decision making on staffing levels
b.Development of a product that addresses the definitions, assumptions, and methodologies of staffing and reaffirms that safe staffing is inherent in the judgement of the individual nurse.
4.Develop workplace advocacy and collective bargaining strategies that help registered nurses to address concerns about inappropriate staffing and unsafe care.
5.Promote the establishment and use of upwardly adjustable, minimal nurse-patient levels based on nursing assessment of patients' acuity, which may serve as a safety net when staffing tools are misused and /or ineffective.
6.Promote the development of a logical system for assigning severity level or risk category based on nursing assessment by the direct care Registered Nurse, current expert knowledge and recommendations from specialty nursing organizations.
7.Seek funding and promote research on the relationship between staffing and patient outcomes in collaboration with other organizations.
8.Advocate for mandatory reporting of nursing-sensitive structure, process and outcome indicators in order to monitor the adequacy of staffing in all health care facilities.
9.Advocate for federal and state legislation and regulatory guidelines that address the sufficiency of nurse staffing.
10.Identify limits, criteria and conditions to guide the appropriate utilization of registered nurses caring for their primary population or in floating off their primary unit.
11.Promote the wide dissemination and use of Assignment Despite Objection (ADO) forms as a tool to assist staff nurses.
12.Opposing the Use of Mandatory Overtime as a Staffing Solution
Link to complete HOD activity: http://www.nursingworld.org/about/summary/00hodact.htm
Next Convention June 27 - July 2, 2002, Philadelphia,PA
(Yes,I will be there and help PSNA host the event.)
ANA Member Benefits Guide & Membership application link: http://www.nursingworld.org/member2.htm
American Nurses Association Political Action Committee (ANA-PAC)
The American Nurses Association Political Action Committee (ANA-PAC) is working to ensure that nurses have the best representation possible in the United States Congress. ANA had significant legislative and political gains in the 105th Congress. Legislation was enacted to provide direct Medicare reimbursement to all nurse practitioners and clinical nurse specialists, the Community Nursing Organization demonstration project was reauthorized, and we achieved significant increases in funding for the Nurse Education Act programs and the National Institute of Nursing Research.
Through the commitment of ANA-PAC and the PAC Board of Trustees, all three nurses were reelected to the United States House of Representatives. Those nurses are Representatives Lois Capps, RN (D-CA), Carolyn McCarthy, LPN (D-NY) and Eddie Bernice Johnson, RN (D-TX). ANA-PAC also endorsed 252 candidates for Federal office in the 1998 general election (204 Democrats and 47 Republicans). An extraordinary 88 percent of those endorsed candidates were elected to the 106th Congress. This success rate is the best in ANA-PAC's 26-year history.
WHO CAN CONTRIBUTE TO ANA-PAC?
Only members of the State Nurses Associations and their families may be solicited for contributions.
WHAT IS THE AVERAGE CONTRIBUTION TO ANA-PAC?
While we have many high donors to the ANA-PAC, the average contribution is $42/year.
DOES ANA-PAC ENDORSE BOTH DEMOCRATS AND REPUBLICANS?
ANA-PAC endorses Democrats and Republicans. We are a bi-partisan PAC and work directly with both national parities to recruit and support candidates. It's not about Republicans and Democrats, but who will advocate for nurses and nursing's issues on Capitol Hill as we go into the New Millennium.
HOW DOES THE PAC DECIDE WHO TO ENDORSE?
The ANA-PAC considers input from several sources when making the decision to endorse a Member of Congress, a challenger, or a candidate in an open seat race.
Full info can be found at: http://www.nursingworld.org/gova/federal/anapac/gpacfaq.htm
Any specific questions, just post & I'll respond.
[This message has been edited by NRSKarenRN (edited April 17, 2001).]
