President’s message

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• Business partners
  • HealthTech
    • Aim—improve acute care practice care environments through the use of technology
• Government and organization partners
  • American Association of Retired Persons (AARP)
    • Aim—support programs to shape policy and practice
  • The American Nurses Association
    • Aim—support national agenda to shape policy and practice
  • American Nurses Credentialing Center, Magnet Commission Advisory Board
    • Aim—shape practices and procedures
  • Institute of Medicine
    • Aim—engage in studies to inform policy and practice
  • Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO)—Nursing Advisory Council
    • Aim—shape practice
  • National Alliance for Health Information Technology (NAHIT)
    • Aim—shape policy and practice
  • National Health Council
    • Aim—shape policy and practice
  • National Institute of Nursing Research
    • Aim—support research to inform policy and practice
  • National Quality Forum
    • Aim—participate in national initiative to set national quality standards for practice
  • Research!America
    • Aim—engage with scientific community to promote research and scientists
• Philanthropic partners
  • Aim—work with philanthropic community to lead initiatives that provide evidence to improve policy and practice
  • The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
  • The W.K. Kellogg Foundation
  • The Gertrude E. Skelly Foundation
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• Linda Burnes Bolton, DrPH, RN, FAAN

The American Academy of Nursing has a rich history of working with strategic partners to achieve mutual goals of health quality and advocacy. In fact, our second strategic goal is to engage Fellows of the Academy, key partners and stakeholders in transforming our current health system. To date, we have joined forces with multiple organizations to promote healthy aging and human development; shape healthy behaviors and environments; enhance nursing and healthcare quality; and strengthen the nursing and healthcare delivery system. By virtue of our vital partnerships, as profiled below, we are creating a groundswell of voices for a sea change in health care delivery.

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Business partners 

HealthTech 

Founded in 2000 by Molly Coye, MD, MPH, HealthTech is a non-profit research and education organization that develops technology forecasts as well as innovative decision-making tools. The organization facilitates a learning network of experts and health system leaders for the benefit of its more than 40 partner organizations: healthcare systems, hospitals, safety-net providers, and government agencies. HealthTech is collaborating with the Academy to help disseminate findings from the Academy’s Technology Targets project that HealthTech’s partners would use to produce technologies that improve practice environments in acute care settings. HealthTech will convey the findings and recommendations through several webinars to their technology industry partners.

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Government and organization partners 

American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) 

Earlier this year, when the AARP launched its “Divided We Fail” campaign, the Academy quickly signed on; the goal is to ensure that all Americans achieve long-term financial security and get the health care they need. The campaign closely aligns with the Academy’s Raise the Voice campaign. Both the Academy and AARP will press policymakers and business leaders to find solutions that make the health care system affordable, accessible, and effective for all Americans.

The American Nurses Association 

As an organizational affiliate member of the American Nurses Association (ANA), the Academy pursues unique but related missions in parallel paths dedicated to the improvement of the nursing profession. We are partners with ANA in support of programs including, but not limited to, health quality initiatives with the National Quality Forum, the annual AAN/ANF (American Nurses Foundation) IOM (Institute of Medicine) Scholar-in-Residence Program and the Council for the Advancement of Nursing Science, the open membership of the AAN Council.

American Nurses Credentialing Center, Magnet Commission Advisory Board 

Through representation on the Magnet Commission Advisory Board, the Academy impacts criteria and procedures leading to Magnet status. The Magnet Commission’s aim is to implement a transparent, interactive, improvement oriented and effectives process. The overall aim is to have significant impact on practice environments for nursing and patient care throughout the nation and world.

Institute of Medicine 

Since 1992, the Academy and the American Nurses Foundation have supported an annual nurse scholar in residence at the Institute. According to Susanne A. Stoiber, Executive Director of the Institute, “The IOM has richly benefited from the contributions made by these talented individuals. The nurse leaders participate in the life and program of the Institute in many ways and contribute innovative ideas, expert knowledge, and a wealth of experience to our program.”

Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO)—Nursing Advisory Council 

Academy representation on JCAHO’s Nursing Advisory Council strengthens the collective voice of nursing, which advocates for initiatives that affect the nursing profession and advances solutions to the nursing staffing crisis.

National Alliance for Health Information Technology (NAHIT) 

In 2005, the Academy joined NAHIT in support of the group’s efforts to shape the policy environment. The purpose of NAHIT is to “expand and challenge the technology industry thinking” and encourage industry leaders and policy-makers to explore critical issues. By sharing consensus reports, NAHIT shapes the policy environment. Focus areas for 2007 include patient privacy and confidentiality and demystifying information technology for clinicians.

National Health Council 

As one of 115 National Health Council members, the Academy works to achieve an important objective: improving the health of all people, particularly those with chronic diseases and/or disabilities. The National Health Council serves as a discussion and meeting forum for its members and promotes quality health care and the importance of healthcare research through congressional briefings, position papers, and advocacy initiatives.

National Institute of Nursing Research 

The National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR) has the unique mission of establishing the scientific basis of care for all people, regardless of age, and without respect to disease or health status. While the NINR remains dedicated to its mission, due to federal budget cuts, they must do so with fewer and fewer resources. The Academy has been working with the NINR to change the historical pattern of consistently making up only one half of 1% of the National Institutes of Health’s overall budget. Increased funding will lead to additional support to investigators who conduct clinical research, develop and test interventions to improve patient care, treat diseases, manage chronic conditions, and address public health problems, which affect the well-being of a diverse American population.

National Quality Forum 

The National Quality Forum (NQF) is the leading organization developing and implementing a national strategy for health care quality measurement and reporting. Since 2004, the Academy has been an active member of NQF, providing nurse experts who comment on diverse quality performance measures and vote on voluntary consensus standards. Moreover, the Academy allies with 7 other nursing organizations to recommend nurse experts for a variety of technical advisory panels and steering committees. Some of the more prominent committees with nurse representation include: the Steering Committee to Establish National Goals and an Accountability Framework for Public Reporting, and the Steering Committee for National Voluntary Consensus Standards for Hospital Care.

Research!America 

The Academy recently joined Research!America, a non-profit public education and advocacy alliance, to help make health improvement research a higher priority. Over the past several years, funding for the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has failed to keep pace with biomedical inflation, which has impacted the research community. Research!America and its members have made it a top priority to increase funding for the NIH, and preserve our investment in biomedical research. In 2006, Research!America launched the Paul G. Rogers Society for Global Health Research. Four Academy Fellows were selected in the inaugural class.

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Philanthropic partners 

Aim—work with philanthropic community to lead initiatives that provide evidence to improve policy and practice 

The John A. Hartford Foundation Board of Trustees recognizes the centrality of nurses to the care of older adults. In 2000, in partnership with the American Academy of Nursing, the Foundation launched the multi-million dollar Building Academic Geriatric Nursing Capacity Program (BAGNC) to produce expert researchers, academicians and practitioners who will lead the field of gerontology nursing and, ultimately, improve the care of the elderly. The program includes 5 Hartford Centers of Geriatric Nursing Excellence and the distinguished Scholar & Fellow Awards Program. To date, a total of 155 awards (60 fellowships and 95 scholarships) have supported the development of academic geriatric nurses from 33 states and the District of Columbia. The BAGNC program has attracted additional partners. Atlantic Philanthropies infused support into the Postdoctoral Fellowship Awards and now supports 50% of all selected Fellows. At the same time, the Mayday Fund provided additional funding for selected Scholars and Fellows who focus on the study of pain in the elderly.

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation 

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation seeks to improve the health and health care of all Americans. The Foundation is the recipient of our Civitas Award for their work in valuing nursing’s contribution to improving the health of America. The work of the Academy’s Workforce Commission— to improve the practice environment as a key strategy to preventing errors and improving patient care outcomes— has been supported by the Foundation.

The W.K. Kellogg Foundation 

Several highly influential federal government reports have identified stark differences in the quality of health care provided to America’s racial and ethnic minorities as contrasted to care provided to non-minorities. With support from the Kellogg Foundation, the Academy’s Health Disparities Task Force has established a national program office that will work with 8 communities to reduce disparities associated with childhood asthma and diabetes, and encourage more minority families to participate in State Children’s Health Insurance Programs.

The Gertrude E. Skelly Foundation 

Major support for the Academy’s Annual Meeting and Conference is provided through the Gertrude E. Skelly Charitable Foundation. The Foundation’s support allows the Academy to host keynote, plenary, and special sessions that foster idea exchange, critical analysis, and action plans.

The Academy has formed many partnerships, including participation on boards of health professional, consumer, and regulatory organizations. We believe that engaging in rich dialogue with diverse partners regarding what should be done to assure optimal health for all is an essential strategy to achieving our goals. It is our intent to reach out and invite others to participate in the design and implementation of initiatives to transform health policy and practice to benefit the American public.