ANA affiliation/disaffiliation: MNA debates its future

As reported in the last two issues of the Massachusetts Nurse, a change in the MNA bylaws has been proposed that would call for MNA to disaffiliate from the American Nurses Association. Because this is such an important decision to be voted on by the MNA membership, the Board of Directors recently convened a task force to "organize on behalf of the membership a process for collection and dissemination of information related to the issue of MNA's relationship with ANA." The Task Force completed its work and the Board in June approved a comprehensive process to provide information to the membership, as well as ample opportunity for the membership to communicate with the MNA about its questions, concerns and opinions on this matter. Below is a summary of that process.

This issue of the Massachusetts Nurse is designed to provide a grounding for the ensuing debate and discussion among the membership about the issue of MNA affiliation/disaffiliation. Each of the next three issues of the publication will continue this dialogue. In this month's issue you will find an article by MNA President Karen Daley providing an explanation of the current MNA structure and how it intersects with the American Nurses Association. To provide a historical context to the discussion, Mary Ellen Doona, chair of the Lucy Lincoln Drown Nursing History Society, has drafted an article describing the history of how the MNA and the ANA came to be affiliated.

Click here for a summary of the intent of the proposed bylaw .

Review the two position statements on this issue: one by a group of members who are supporting disaffiliation; and another by a group of those supporting continued affiliation with ANA.

Click here for information on how your dues money is allocated under ANA affiliation.

We invite you to call or e-mail the Affiliation/Disaffiliation Task Force with your questions regarding this issue, so that we may provide you with the answers you need. 800.882.2056. Future issues of the Massachusetts Nurse will feature a listing of frequently asked questions and their answers.

The MNA web site

In addition to the Massachusetts Nurse, the MNA web site, will be utilized to communicate information about this issue. All information included in the Massachusetts Nurse will be duplicated on our web site, with additional information included on the web site to supplement the membership discussion.

There will be a question and answer section on the web site, where members may email questions they have about this issue. Answers to your questions will be provided by email, as well as posted on this site for the benefit of other members who may have the same concerns. A committee of members representing both view points (pro-affiliation and pro-disaffiliation) has been convened to review and answer all questions that come into the Massachusetts Nurse and the web site to ensure that members receive full and accurate answers to their questions.

If you want to submit a question to the web site and click on the heading, "Questions I Would Like Answered About this Issue." An email message box will appear for you to communicate with the MNA.

Letters to the editor/web site/statments

We want to hear your views and opinions, both about what you read about this issue and what you personally believe. Members are invited to submit letters to the editor for publication in Massachusetts Nurse. Letters must be 250 words or less, and we will attempt to print as many as space will allow.

Letters submitted that are not used in Massachusetts Nurse may be posted on the web site. Members who want to take more space to convey their viewpoint can submit letters to the web site of any length.

Town meetings throughout the state

Finally, a process for outreach to the membership has been developed to provide members with ample opportunities to come together with proponents of both positions in this debate to obtain information, ask questions and share concerns. These meetings will be moderated and feature presentations by representatives from each point of view, with an opportunity for members to ask questions and dialogue over the issue.

For a complete list of all town meetings, click here.