About Us

Healthcare is about more than fighting disease and performing surgery. With an aging population and an overburdened healthcare system, the power of nursing is needed more than ever. It’s time for the nation to recognize the dedication of the more than 5 million registered nurses and the lives they touch.

Our mission

As the philanthropic arm of the American Nurses Association (ANA), our vision is to achieve 'a healthy world through the power of nursing’, and this is more relevant today than ever. With the future of healthcare changing so dramatically, nurses can revolutionize the approach to care for the better. The Foundation pursues this mission through the following:

• Elevating the Profession of Nursing Globally;
• Engaging All Nurses to Ensure Professional Success;
• Evolving the Practice of Nursing to Transform Health and healthcare.

With gifts and grants from generous donors, the Foundation invests in the well-being and success of individual nurses while championing the nursing cause throughout the healthcare system.

Our History

The American Nurses Foundation was founded in 1956 as the research, education, and charitable affiliate of ANA. Since then, it has fought tirelessly to advance the nursing profession through raising funds for advances in research, education, and clinical practice to the benefit of the whole healthcare system.

The Foundation relies on the continued generosity of its donors to achieve and expand on it mission. Individuals, corporations, government agencies, and private foundations make it possible to for us to undertake potentially life-changing research, support nurses, and improve healthcare for all.