Question
Your writing assignment will be a report on a professional organization in your field.
You will conduct research on your field of study in order to become more aware of the professional contacts, organizations, employment opportunities, and trends in the field.
Answer
Report on the Nursing Profession
Introduction
The nursing profession is regarded as one of the most noble and rewarding professions in the world (Mark, Salyer, & Wan, 2003). This is primarily due to the level of selflessness that nurses are expected to demonstrate as they care for patients (Mark, Salyer, & Wan, 2003). In the U.S the, history of modern nursing can be traced back to the early 1700’s with the establishment of the almshouse in Philadelphia (The History of Nursing. 2016). The nursing profession in the country has developed drastically since then with significant advancements being made after the Second World War. Most of the advancements within the nursing profession have been made possible due to the establishment of professional organizations. This report provides a discussion on one of the biggest professional nursing organizations in the U.S, the American Nurses Association (ANA).
Professional Organization
The ANA was established in the year 1896 as the Nurses Associated Alumnae (Purdy, 2015). The organization was later renamed to the American Nurses Association in the year 1911 after establishing its headquarters in Silver Spring, Maryland (Purdy, 2015). The ANA styles itself as the voice of nurses and seeks to protect and advance the nursing profession. It defines nursing as the optimization, promotion, and protection of patients and societal health, alleviation of pain and suffering through ailment diagnosis and suitable treatment of patient (What is Nursing?, 2016). The organization continues to define nursing as the prevention of any form of injury and illness and practicing advocacy in caring for patients (What is Nursing?, 2016).
The ANA is the only full-service professional organization in the U.S that represents the interest of 3.6 million registered nurses across its 54 constituent member associations (American Nurses Association-Members and Affiliates, 2015). It strives to enhance and protect nurse’s welfare in their respective work places, give a favorable perception of nursing as a profession to the public and champion on affairs that concern members of the public and nurses.
The foremost goals of the organization during its formation were to establish a code of ethics for nurses, get licensure for nurses, promote the image of the nursing profession and attend to the nurse’s financial needs. Due to its advocating for nurse’s licensure, only nurses who fulfill qualifications defined by the Nurse Practice Act of their state are legible to utilize the title of a Registered Nurse and join the organization (American Nurses' Association. Ad Hoc Advisory Committee for Implementation of the Standards of Nursing Practice, & Congress for Nursing Practice ( U.S) 1975).
Since its formation, the ANA has championed for sufficient professional education and training of nurses. It started acting on its goals by undertaking significant projects that sought to make changes to the 1960s standards for nurse-training. In the year1965, the ANA published its first position paper which was called the "Educational Preparation for Nurse Practitioners and Assistants to Nurses.” The position paper held that nursing education must be conducted in University institutions and not hospitals (American Nurses' Association, & American Nurses Association).
Unlike most of the other professional nursing organizations in the country, the ANA is managed by the House of Delegates which consists of a board of directors and representatives drawn from the 54 constituency associations (American Nurses Association-Members and Affiliates, 2015). Other than the individual members, the organization has two organizational members namely United American Nurses ( UAN) and the Center for American Nurses (CAN). Some of its organizational affiliates include the (AAN) American Association of Nurses and different groups that are dedicated to various nursing subfields like the Association of Nurses in AIDS Care (ANAC) and the American Association of Critical-Care Nursing ( AACCN) (American Nurses Association-Members and Affiliates, 2015). One way through which the ANA can achieve its objectives is through its Quality and Innovation Conference.
Description of Conference
The ANA Quality and Innovation conference is an annual conference held by the organization where members get the opportunity to discuss new nursing quality strategies and nursing innovations. The 2018 ANA Quality and Innovation Conference will be held from March 21st to March 23rd, 2018 in Orlando Florida (2018 Call for Abstracts, 2017). The Call for Abstracts for the conference will be open from the 17th of April 2017 to 30th of May 2017, and all ANA members are welcomed to submit their Abstracts (2018 Call for Abstracts, 2017). The primary contact for all the submitted abstracts shall be contacted through the mail on the status of their acceptance.
The goals of the conference align with the theme which is, “safety, quality, and staffing” (2018 Call for Abstracts, 2017). The 2018 conference seeks to align safety and quality through attributes of high-performing organizations to enhance nursing and patient outcomes. The second goal of the conference will be to demonstrate how technology and data can be effectively used to improve patient outcome and nursing practice. The third goal of the conference will be the maximization of the use of innovative, safe and quality strategies in driving patient-centered care (2018 Call for Abstracts, 2017).
The 2018 conference will focus on five key areas namely, the implementation of evidence-based practice, utilization of quality improvement mechanisms, use of informatics, working with interdisciplinary teams and provision of patient-centered care. The conference will focus on four tracks namely research, technology and innovation, practice (nurse and patient) and working environment (2018 Call for Abstracts, 2017).
Personal Application
From the conference, it is evident that technology and innovation plays a very significant role in the nursing profession (Poreddi, Konduru, & Math, 2012). Through the research work done in developing this report, I have learned that professional organizations have played an integral role in advancing the nursing practice. Therefore it is important for one to be part of a nursing organization so that he/she can be able to benefit from the numerous benefits afforded by these organizations. Through the information, I have learned that by belonging to a professional nursing organization, I would be exposed to new data that might be able to enhance my practice.
I have also learned that obtaining knowledge on information technology is essential for securing employment opportunity as a nurse. This is because technological innovations are significantly shaping the manner in which nursing practice is conducted (American Nurses Association, 2016). It is also evident from the report that the professional organizations help nurses to know their rights and be able to advocate for improved welfare and conditions as they execute their work. The information obtained from the report also makes it evident that one of the major drivers of innovation within the nursing profession is the interaction between nurses from different regions and for one to be effective as a nurse he/she needs to engage in this exchange of ideas.
References
2018 Call for Abstracts. (2017). Retrieved September 29, 2017, from https://ana.confex.com/ana/anaconf18/cfp.cgi
American Nurses' Association, & American Nurses Association. Committee on Education. (2000). Educational preparation for nurse practitioners and assistants to nurses: A position paper. The Association.
American Nurses Association. (2016). Nursing: Scope and standards of practice. Nursesbooks. org.
American Nurses' Association. Ad Hoc Advisory Committee for Implementation of the Standards of Nursing Practice, & Congress for Nursing Practice (US). (1975). A plan for implementation of the standards of nursing practice: a report of the Congress for Nursing Practice of the American Nurses' Association. The Association.
American Nurses Association-Members and Affiliates. (2015). Retrieved September 29, 2017, from https://www.nursingworld.org/affiliates.html
Mark, B. A., Salyer, J., & Wan, T. T. (2003). Professional nursing practice. J Nurs Adm, 33(4), 224-234.
Poreddi, V., Konduru, R., & Math, S. B. (2012). Assessing the attitudes and perceptions towards nursing profession among nursing students. Nursing Journal of India, 103(1), B15.
Purdy, E. R. (2015, August 21). American Nurses Association (ANA). Retrieved September 29, 2017, from https://www.britannica.com/topic/American-Nurses-Association
The History of Nursing. (2016, April 11). Retrieved September 29, 2017, from https://www.nursingschoolhub.com/history-nursing/
What is Nursing? (2016). Retrieved September 29, 2017, from https://www.nursingworld.org/EspeciallyForYou/What-is-Nursing
