2020 began as a worldwide celebration of nurses for their accomplishments and contributions throughout history. By March, however, the COVID-19 pandemic arrived, and nurses from coast to coast and beyond faced the greatest public health crisis in modern times, giving new meaning and urgency to the “Year of the Nurse and Midwife.”
In recognition of nurses’ compassionate care, determination, and commitment to excellence, even under unprecedented circumstances, the ANA Enterprise refocused all efforts to advocate for and support nurses on the front lines in 2020 and as we extended the Year of the Nurse into 2021. ANA for the first time also expanded the traditional Nurses Week to Nurses Month to further highlight and honor nurses’ indispensable roles.
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“We are rethinking our roles as nurses after all we have experienced during COVID-19. The respect we gained during the pandemic has empowered us. Now we must build on this so that the value of nursing is better understood and remembered when the pandemic fades.”
Chief Executive Officer
ANA Enterprise
A YEAR OF CHALLENGES, A LIFETIME OF STORIES
As COVID-19 patients filled hospital beds, nurses shared more than a thousand stories and photos as part of ANA Enterprise’s “A Year of Stories” series. Their stories of courage, empathy, teamwork, and dedication gave us intimate and personal accounts of the pandemic not found anywhere else.
We compiled some of these accounts in the chapter On the Front Lines of our interactive digital storybook, To Be a Nurse.
We envision a healthy world through the power of nursing. During a tumultuous year characterized by the coronavirus pandemic and racial tensions, we innovated to meet the moment, acting alongside and on behalf of nurses everywhere, while maintaining the public trust that guides all our efforts. This enabled the ANA Enterprise — the American Nurses Association (ANA), the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), and the American Nurses Foundation (the Foundation) — to achieve our goals and meet our mission to lead the profession to shape the future of nursing and health care.
GREW BY
NEARLY 15,000
ADAPTING THE JOURNEY DURING A PANDEMIC
INCREASE IN ANCC NURSING CONTINUING PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT WORKSHOP REGISTRATIONS
ANCC CERTIFICATION EXAM TEST TAKERS, VIA LIVE REMOTE PROCTORING AND AT TEST CENTERS
ANCC MAGNET® VIRTUAL VISITS FOR 46 INITIAL AND 64 REDESIGNATIONS
ORGANIZATIONS ACHIEVED PATHWAY TO EXCELLENCE® DESIGNATION
(26 NEW) USING VIRTUAL RESOURCES
Go more in-depth with our 2020 milestones & accomplishments, and see how we…
