Reflecting its commitment to nurse leaders at all stages of their careers, the organization will become the American Organization of Nursing Leadership.
SAN DIEGO — "The times they are a changin'." For the nursing profession, these words are as true today as they were when Bob Dylan first sang them in the 1960s. Issues like value-based care, changing care models, and new reimbursement methods are challenging nurse leaders to develop new skill sets, to create new roles, and to find new solutions to deliver care across the continuum.
Just as the profession is evolving so too is the American Organization of Nurse Executives. On April 11, at its annual meeting in San Diego, the organization announced it is changing its name.
"Throughout my involvement in AONE, one of the recurring questions that I've heard is whether AONE is exclusively for nurse executives. Our name can sometimes get in the way of demonstrating that we are an organization for all of nursing leadership," 2019 AONE President Mary Beth Kingston, MSN, RN, NEA-BC, chief nursing officer at Advocate Aurora Health in Milwaukee, said during the conference's opening keynote session.
Kingston then announced AONE will become the American Organization for Nursing Leadership.The change will take effect in May.
"It reflects what [the organization] is about and what nursing leadership has become," Kingston said.
The name change will better reflect that the organization serves nurse leaders at all stages of their careers and across the entire care continuum.
AONL will continue with the mission of shaping healthcare through innovative and expert nursing leadership through professional development programs, advocacy initiatives and research.
Jennifer Thew, RN, is the senior nursing editor at HealthLeaders.