National Association of Hispanic Nurses

The National Association of Hispanic Nurses (NAHN) is a non-profit professional association in the United States, committed to the promotion of the professionalism and dedication of Hispanic nurses by providing equal access to educational, professional, and economic opportunities for Hispanic nurses.

History

The National Association of Hispanic Nurses (NAHN) was founded in 1975 by Ildaura Murillo-Rohde. The year before, at an American Nurses Association meeting, a group of Hispanic nurses had met regarding the feasibility of establishing an ANA Hispanic caucus. Though they did not affiliate with ANA, the group established the National Association of Spanish-Speaking Spanish-Surnamed Nurses (NASSSN) in 1976. Murillo-Rohde incorporated NASSSN in Washington State in 1977 where, at that time, she was employed as Associate Dean of the School of Nursing at the University of Washington at Seattle.

The group was renamed as the National Association of Hispanic Nurses in 1979. NAHN launched its official professional peer reviewed publication, Hispanic Health Care International (HHCI) at the 27th Annual Conference held July 2002 in Miami, Florida. HHCI is a bilingual journal (English and Spanish) and is published four times a year.

Leadership

National

Leadership at the National Association of Hispanic Nurses consists of: an Executive Board including a President, President-Elect, Immediate Past-President, Treasurer, and Secretary, the Board of Directors including the Executive Board plus five Board Members, and an Executive Director.

Local chapters

Leadership at the local level has shifted to mirror the national model. Instead of a Vice President, there is a President-Elect as well as the Immediate Past-President. This serves the function to maintain continuity and order as well as to ensure a smooth transition when electing new officials.

Annual conference

Each summer, NAHN hosts a conference in which hundreds of nurses attend to discuss issues concerning the Hispanic community, share best evidence-based practices, and view exhibits from Nurse Researchers, Nursing Students, recruiters, Nursing Schools, non-governmental organizations such as the American Heart Association, and many research institutions from across the nation. Members in attendance participate in a community service project which during the 2015 conference was a rally to create over 10,000 meals to end world hunger through a partnership with Stop Hunger Now.

References

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