Here at the American Nursing Association — Illinois, our overarching goal is to improve nursing, whether it be the profession as a whole or by helping individual nurses to improve themselves. How we execute improvement can be done in two ways: by saying things that push for improvement in nursing and by doing things that lead to improvement in nursing. With regards to what ANA-Illinois says, we have a number of specific goals, including:
- Promote a safe, ethical environment as well as the health and wellness of nurses in all settings.
- Educate registered nurses to assume new roles that transform the nurse-to-consumer relationship.
- Increase consumers’ awareness of the value of nurses to improve health and well-being.
While what we say is important in helping us to shape our actions, it is the actions themselves that are critical to improving nursing in Illinois. Read on for some of the ways that ANA-Illinois works to improve nursing.
How ANA-Illinois Has Improved Nursing
ANA-Illinois has already taken a number of steps to help improve the lives of nurses in Illinois. One of our members, Dr. Karen Kelly, Associate Professor and Continuing Education Coordinator at Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville, had this to say about the ways that our organization has improved life for nurses:
“ANA-Illinois has taken leadership in creating a consortium of nursing organizations in Illinois to enable nursing to speak with a united voice in Springfield. It has influenced legislators and other policy makers, as well as lobbied, educated, and “awakened” legislators and other policy makers with information on health care and nursing issues and the ways in which they affect the citizens of Illinois. Overall, ANA-Illinois has impacted issues that affect the citizens of Illinois, the healthcare delivery system, and the quality of life in Illinois.”
How ANA-Illinois Continues to Improve Nursing
In addition to the work that ANA-Illinois has already done, we continue to work towards making life better for nurses in Illinois. Member Susana Gonzalez highlighted some of our work, saying, “ANA-Illinois has always been a voice for nurses. This can be seen most clearly in our support for nurse safety at the bedside, as well as our push to get the Nurse Licensure Compact enacted.”
Pam Brown, Founding Director of the Nursing Program at Illinois College added that, “The information that ANA-Illinois provides to nurses, the educational conferences that the organization holds, and the political action that we take all contributes to making nurses’ lives better.”
Making Nursing Better
While the work that nurses perform can often be complicated and confusing, ANA-Illinois’ goals are not. Our goals have been and continue to be to improve both the profession of nursing, as well as the lives’ of nurses in Illinois. Whether you are a member of ANA-Illinois or not, if you have any thoughts as to how our organization can improve nursing, please reach out and let us know. You can do so here.