The American Organization of Nurse Executives, often referred to simply as AONE, is an organization that exists to provide for the needs of nurses who are in positions of management in health care and who effectively design, facilitate and manage care. It is a subsidiary of the American Hospital Association and has been in existence since the year 1967. Through research, advocacy, educational opportunities and networking endeavors, the organization aims to provide nurse executives across the country with the tools and knowledge that they need in order to keep the profession going strong.
The American Organization of Nurse Executives may best be described by analyzing its mission, its vision, and its efforts to serve its members.
Mission Of The American Organization Of Nurse Executives
“To shape health care through innovative and expert nursing leadership”
This is a fairly obvious and self-explanatory mission statement on the art of the American Organization of Nurse Executives in that it emphasizes the ideal of expert leadership within the nursing profession. This is the type of mission we would expect from an organization dedicated to serving nurse executives, but it is nevertheless comforting to know that this ideal has been addressed.
Vision Of The American Organization Of Nurse Executives
“Global Nursing Leadership—One Voice Advancing Health”
This is very interesting in that it highlights the fact that the organization believes in collaboration between leaders within the profession of nursing, and this in turn will result in a more effective nursing system in general that is maintained at a high standard.
According to its website, the American Organization of Nurse Executives serves its members by:
- “Providing vision and actions for nursing leadership to meet the health care needs of society;
- Influencing legislation and public policy related to nursing and patient care issues;
- Offering member services that support and enhance the management, leadership, educational and professional development of nursing leaders; and
- Facilitating and supporting research and development efforts that advance nursing administration practice and quality patient care”.
This is what one would expect from a professional organization. There are clear structures in place to assist its members in serving the general public as well as their profession as effectively as possible. In addition the American Organization of Nurse Executives is dedicated to ensuring that public policies related to nursing are emended and changes in such a way that is directly beneficial to its members, the organization as a whole, the profession as a whole, and society as a whole. Members are also provided with a number of services put in place specifically for the purpose of ensuring that they perform as well as possible in their roles as nurse executives.
Member Benefits
As with any professional organization of this caliber there are a number of members events that you will have access to when you join. These include a number of news resources and publications highly relevant to your particular field of nursing. These are the Voice of Nursing Leadership, The Nurse Leader, AONE e-News, AONE Working for You, The Journal of Nursing Administration (JONA), and numerous AONE and AHA publications. The American Organization of Nurse Executives is also dedicated to carer and staff development as is clearly illustrated by the existence of a Career Center on the association’s website. This career Center exists for the specific purpose of ensuring that you stand the best chance possible of finding the best job for you in your capacity as a nurse executive. There is also Group Membership. Through Group Membership you can receive significant discounts. AONE offers a discounted membership rate for organizations that have multiple employees who are members. AONE group membership is a great way to recognize staff members for stellar performances and to groom the leaders of tomorrow.
There is also a very strong move within the organization towards Transforming Care at the Bedside (TCAB) with its program Center for Care Innovation and Transformation (CCIT). Essentially this is a program through which you will be given the guidance and skills necessary for transforming and revolutionizing the care offered in your institute as well as with the overall attitude in the establishment. Another source of career and staff development is the AONE Foundation for Nursing Leadership Research & Education (AONE Foundation). The AONE Foundation was established in 2010 to support the research and educational priorities of AONE in order to meet the needs and consider the best interests of its members. Activities and programs include annual seed grants to fund nursing research projects and honoring nurse executives and researchers for their work to advance the field of nursing leadership.
Last but not least is the AONE Nurse Manager Fellowship, which is the first program of this kind to step up the level of existing education and development for nurse managers by providing a year-long professional development program designed to provide an in-depth environment of learning. The fellowship incorporates the Nurse Manager Learning Domain Framework, which is a well known and successful framework developed by AONE. Networking and Learning from others are well known as being top ways of advancing your career and making the most out of your profession. There are, naturally, a number of networking and information sharing opportunities provided by the American Organization of Nurse Executives.
There is:
- A membership directory
- Listservs
- Social networking via blog, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn
- Society involvement
- Local chapters
All of these tools are carefully aimed at ensuring that you have access as to as many other nurse executive experts as possible in order to improve your chances of making the most out of your career. By networking and sharing information you will not only be better equipp4ed for the job at hand, but you may also come into contact within individuals who can offer you career advancing opportunities.
Some of the more specific tools and resources that you will have access to include Guiding Principles and Toolkits which, according to the organization’s website, “provide members with a framework to implement the tenants AONE has identified as primary topic areas such as diversity, workforce, technology and future patient care. Guiding Principles provide the outline while Toolkits note case studies and real life examples of the guiding principles in action”. The AONE also heads a number of public policy initiatives and advocacy in an attempt to ensure that the best interests of its members are considered at a wider level. As a member you will have access to the members-only area of AONE and AHA websites, which means that, unlike a causal visitor to the site, you will have access to a variety of resources that would otherwise not have been available to you. Through the many studies and benchmarking surveys that the company provides you will be able to perform valuable research that will assist you in your role as a nurse executive and improve your efficacy within the profession. Last but not least you will have access to the Online Marketplace vendor directory as well as the AHA Resource center if you are a member of the organization.
Education is an extremely important aspect when it comes to furthering your career and maintaining high standards within a profession. As a result of this the AONE offers its members a number of educational opportunities, such as access to the AONE Annual Meeting and Exposition at a markedly discounted rate. You will also have access to the Emerging Nurse Leader Institute (ENLI) which “is designed for staff nurses, charge nurses, nurse coordinators and nurse managers who aspire to nurse leadership roles. ENLI is a 3.5 day interactive program that combines lecture, discussion, experiential learning and self-assessment. Continuing education credit is available”. Nurse executives who belong to AONE will be able to take advantage of valuable educational programs such as the Essentials of Nurse Manager Orientation (ENMO) and the AONE Nurse Manager Fellowship.
Membership with a professional organization clearly comes with a number of extremely practical and immediate benefits that you will have access to. These benefits give you a head start in terms of competitors for positions. In addition the mere fact of your membership may give you the upper hand when you are applying for a job as it implies that you have gone the extra mile and engaged in additional activities that have improved your management skills and abilities as a nurse executive. For many positions in nurse management you may, in fact, be required to have professional membership with and organization such as the American Organization of Nurse Executives before your resume will even be properly considered.
If you would like to find out more about this organization, please make use of the contact information provided below in order to do so:
Chicago (Operations/Membership)
155 N. Wacker Drive, Suite 400
Chicago, IL 60606
312.422.2800 | phone
312.422.4503 | fax
aone@aha.org email
Washington, DC (Executive Office)
Liberty Place – 325 Seventh Street, NW
Washington, DC 20004
202.626.2240 | phone
202.638.5499 | fax
