Join us in celebrating the 50th anniversary of the American Nurses Foundation (ANF). In 1950, the American Nurses Association (ANA) began two 5-year studies focusing on nursing procedures and the scope of nursing practice that collectively were known as the "function" studies. To accomplish this work, the ANA provided 27 grants to 19 nursing associations, hospitals, and educational institutions. This work led to the ANA Board of Directors' decision to establish the ANF in 1955. The original purpose was to "increase public knowledge and understanding of professional and practical nursing and of the sciences upon which the health of the American people depends" (Hyde, 1977).
The mission of the ANF has evolved over the years to support the work of the ANA, by promoting the public's health and advancing the nursing profession through the development and support of programs of excellence. As a 501c3 foundation, the ANF supports the continued growth and development of nursing and serves to advance the work of the nursing profession and protect the health of the public.
Over the last 50 years, the ANF has provided through competitive review over $3 million dollars to more than 900 beginning and experienced nurse researchers to conduct studies that contribute to the advancement of nursing and patient care. Funding has been provided for research in most clinical specialties from a variety of settings and also has included research related to nursing education, health policy, and nursing administration. Information about ANF and the current grants program is available at http://www.nursingworld.org/an. We are very pleased that the ANF now administers the small research grants program in collaboration with all four regional nursing research societies (Eastern Nursing Research Society, Midwest Nursing Research Society, Southern Nursing Research Society, and Western Institute of Nursing) and Sigma Theta Tau, International. Funding has been provided also by the American Organization of Nurse Executives, the American Association of Critical Care Nurses, and the Association of periOperative Registered Nurses. The ANF also collaborates with the Council for the Advancement of Nursing Science, the Commission on Graduates of Foreign Nursing Schools, the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), and foundations and corporations. In addition, funding has been provided from individuals through gifts and bequests to advance ANF's mission.
The listing of ANF scholars over these past 50 years is very impressive. The goal of the ANF grants program is to provide start-up funds for junior faculty or more experienced faculty who are changing the focus of their research. One early grant recipient, Frances Reiter, credited with coining the term nurse clinician and advocating for advanced preparation for clinicians, was inducted into the ANA Hall of Fame in 1984. A second grant recipient, Florence S. Wald, credited with pioneering the hospice movement in the United States, was inducted in 1996. In 1980, the ANF trustees created the Distinguished Contribution to Nursing Science Award, which is given biannually. Three ANF scholars, Nancy Fugate Woods, Cornelia Beck, and Dorothy Brooten have gone on to receive this prestigious award. Past ANF scholar Angela Barron McBride, recently completed a year as the Institute of Medicine/American Academy of Nursing/ANF Scholar. American Nurses Foundation scholars have created a legacy of leadership and have paved the way for a new generation of researchers and leaders.
Over the years, the ANF has partnered with various organizations to bring together researchers and leaders to address specific concerns of the profession. Two recent examples are the Nurse Competence in Aging (NCA) grant and the Leadership Enhancement and Development Project (LEAD). The NCA, funded through ANF by The Atlantic Philanthropies, Inc. is an alliance between the ANA, ANF, ANCC, and the John A. Hartford Foundation Institute for Geriatric Nursing at New York University. The NCA program, designed to maximize geriatric competence among nurses who are members of specialty organizations, has provided grants and technical assistance to 38 national specialty nursing organizations and three organizations providing resources to nurses, impacting over 287,000 nurses. The LEAD, funded through ANF by the W. K. Kellogg Foundation, is designed to heighten the leadership competencies in an increasing racially and ethnically diverse healthcare environment by providing opportunities to enhance nursing leadership training at historically Black colleges and universities and help minority nurses contribute to the improvement of nursing and healthcare.
The ANF has partnered to promote the public's health through its (a) Tobacco Free Nurses Initiative with ANA, the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, and the National Coalition of Ethnic Minority Nurses Association, with funding from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation for the first national program designed to help nurses stop smoking; (b) the Partners in Program Planning for Adolescent Health: A Nursing Initiative, a collaborative endeavor of ANF and ANA funded by the Office of Adolescent Health in the Maternal and Child Health Bureau in the Health Resources and Services Administration which promotes adolescent health; and (c) the Food-Safe Schools Project, a cooperative endeavor of the National Center for School Health Nursing, the ANF and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Division of Adolescent and School Health, designed to enhance the role of the school nurse in preventing and managing school-based, food-borne illness outbreaks through partnerships with specialty associations and government agencies.
The ANF has partnered with more than 60 of the nation's leading nursing organizations on Nursing's Agenda for the Future-a national strategic plan for nursing. With the collaboration of nursing organizations, including ANA's constituents, the ANF is funding a study on nursing's economic value.
The ANF is focused on providing national leadership in healthcare philanthropy, developing nurse scientists and their research, growing its resources, and infusing cultural and ethnic diversity into its work in support of nursing.
Let us be proud of our 50-year history of contributing to the work of the profession. Thank you!! Thank you to each of you who contribute your time and financial support to the ongoing work of the ANF. Please contact us if you would like additional information about the Foundation.
American Nurses Foundation Board of Trustees
William L. Holzemer, PhD, RN, FAAN, President ([email protected])
Rose E. Constantino, PhD, JD, RN, FAAN, FACFE, Vice-President
Margarete Lieb Zalon, PhD, RN, APRN, BC, Treasurer
Mary A. Maryland, PhD, RN, APRN, BC, Secretary
Mary L. Behrens, MSN, RN, FNP-C
Nancy Bergstrom, PhD, RN, FAAN
Janis Biermann, MS, BS
Janice E. Bussert, BSN, RN
Linda Gobis, JD, RN, FNP
Patricia Messmer, PhD, RN, BC, FAAN
Barbara Reck, BS
Patricia W. Underwood, PhD, RN, FAAN
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