The National Commission to Address Racism in Nursing Awards $200,000 to Efforts Committed to Dismantling Racism in Nursing in 2024

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SILVER SPRING, MD – The National Commission to Address Racism in Nursing (the Commission) has awarded $200,000 in funding provided by the American Nurses Association (ANA) to ten extraordinary nursing programs and organizations committed to eliminating racism in nursing. The winning programs were selected from over 130 submissions following a request for proposals (RFP) at the end of 2023 and were selected by a diverse group of nurses from across the U.S. who served as reviewers from the Commission and ANA to determine the winners.

The selected recipients and their respective evidence-based initiatives range anywhere from student education to patient care to workplace training. The ten recipients will work with the Commission throughout the year to optimize their program work and to regularly report on project status.

The 2024 winning proposals are:

• American Association of Colleges of Nursing will add an antiracism component as the fifth component of the Inclusive Excellence Ecosystem for Academic Nursing that assists nursing schools with organizing and guiding diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts.
• Carle Health will provide anti-racism education and training in the form of a one-hour event followed by 20 weeks of ongoing microlearnings directed at patient care nursing leaders and their staff.
• Children’s National Hospital will create a national practice standard that supports proper hair care for hospitalized adolescents and children of every ethnicity so that all children and adolescents receive equitable care.
• East Carolina University College of Nursing will address the lack of African American (AA) males choosing nursing as a major by understanding perceptions and creating a mentorship pipeline program.
• International Academy of Nurse Editors (INANE) will develop a set of questions to detect biases, micro/macroaggressions, incorrect analyses or discussions in writing that might perpetuate stereotypes and racism, foster attribution biases, or incorrectly generalize research findings to underrepresented or marginalized populations.
• Mercy University School of Nursing will be working to improve the quality of nursing education through the development of a nurse faculty residency program with the express purpose of facilitating the transition of nurse educators into the role of health equity influencers.
• North Carolina Nurses Association will partner with two other southern state nurses associations to increase the number of nurses of color prepared and willing to pursue and accept positions of leadership in professional organizations and professional nursing positions.
• Norton Sound Health Corporation will work to increase the number of Native Alaskan children who are fully vaccinated and attending well child visits by community education, a novel incentive program, and culturally competent staff training.
• University of Illinois Chicago will create innovative virtual reality (VR) simulations tailored for nursing faculty and students to provide a fully immersive and experiential platform to deliver diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) training.
• University of Portland School of Nursing & Health Innovation will establish the psychometric properties of the Curriculum Evaluation Tool for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (CET-DEI) and develop a baseline aggregate measurement of curricular DEI.

“These progressive nurse leaders represent the collective work at the systemic level that is necessary to address racism in nursing. Nursing is building a path forward in pursuit of becoming an antiracist profession. The overwhelming response by nursing programs and organizations across the United States validates the profound work that nurses are doing every day in complex systems to bring justice to structural and social determinants of health that impact where nurses learn, practice and serve the communities they partner with daily,” said Commission co-lead Daniela Vargas, MSN, MPH, MA-Bioethics, RN, PHN. “This is a pivotal step in building kinship and ensuring equity among all nurses, and it demonstrates a readiness to embark on transformative work that creates institutional, structural, and systemic changes needed in nursing and our communities right now. The Commission is committed to guiding true inclusion, diversity, and equity by moving into accountability with action.”

A national survey of over 5,600 nurses conducted by the Commission show that racism is an insidious problem within the profession. Nearly half of nurses agree there is 'a lot' of racism in nursing. The selected organizations will soon begin to develop and work to implement evidence-informed strategies, programs, and interventions aimed at dismantling institutional, structural, and systemic racism in nursing.

“The American Nurses Association is honored to present these funds to these inspiring programs who are taking deliberate action to truly dismantle racism within their respective initiatives and organizations,” said American Nurses Association President Jennifer Mensik Kennedy, PhD, MBA, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN. “Racism has inflicted damage on nurses of color and continues to mar the nursing profession. We have evidence of this through our research, surveys, and through the shared stories and experiences from nurses of color. These projects are a shining example of efforts to make incremental but meaningful progress for all nurses, and we are ready to see what progress is to unfold in the year ahead.”

For more information on the winners and to stay updated on regular program updates please visit Addressing Racism in the Nursing Profession | ANA (nursingworld.org).

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The American Nurses Association (ANA) is the premier organization representing the interests of the nation's more than 5 million registered nurses. ANA advances the profession by fostering high standards of nursing practice, promoting a safe and ethical work environment, bolstering the health and wellness of nurses, and advocating on health care issues that affect nurses and the public. ANA is at the forefront of improving the quality of health care for all. For more information, visit www.nursingworld.org.

The National Commission to Address Racism in Nursing (the Commission) examines the persistent problem of racism within nursing and describes the impact on nurses, patients, communities, and health care systems to motivate all nurses to confront systemic racism. The work is urgent to create safe and liberating environments for all nurses as well as profession that exemplifies inclusivity, diversity, and equity. The Commission is comprised of leading nursing organizations that represent a broad continuum of nursing practice, ethnically diverse groups, nationally and in regions across the country and who have for years raised their individual voices to condemn all forms of racism within our society.