The National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists was founded in 1995 for the purpose enhancing and promotion the practice of clinical nursing in particular and the nursing profession in general. All nursing specialties have their own association or organisation which exists specifically to promote nursing in the particular subfield. The National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists is the voice for all clinical nurse specialists in the country.
According to its website, the association has the following mission and goals:
NACNS Mission
To enhance and promote the unique, high value contribution of the clinical nurse specialist to the health and well-being of individuals, families, groups, and communities, and to promote and advance the practice of nursing.
NACNS Goals
- Increase visibility and influence of CNSs
- Serve as the national authority for CNS practice and education.
- Promote CNS research in order to further define the benefit the CNS brings to quality, patient safety, and cost of healthcare delivery.
- Expand the influence of NACNS by enhancing professional leadership qualities among NACNS members.
Membership
There are two types of membership options available through the National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists, namely individual membership and institutional membership. Under individual membership there are several categories:
If you sign up for regular membership, the following fees apply: If you sign up for a 1 year membership package, you will pay $159.00. If you sign up for 2 years, you will pay $307.00, if you sign up for 3 years you will pay $448.00, and if you sign up for 4 years of membership, you will pay $576.00. If you take a 1 year membership four years in a row, you will pay $636.00. In other words, the more years you sign up for, the less money you pay for membership in the long run.
The other two categories of individual membership are student membership and retired membership. If you sign up for Student Membership you will be required to pay $102.00 a year while members with Retired Membership status only pay $80.00 a year.
The National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists also offers an Institutional Membership option. This is where a medical institute is allowed to join as a whole and the members of that institute are able to benefit from certain advantages offered by the association. There are different levels of institutional membership depending on the size and the number of individuals to be included from your agency. The benefits that institutional members are eligible for include:
- Discounts on NACNS web job postings and conference exhibits
- Print and electronic subscriptions to the CNS Journal
- A print copy of the NACNS Statement on CNS Practice and Education
- Acknowledgement in the NACNS Newsletter
Membership Benefits
Institutional members are not the only members with the National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists who are eligible for benefits. There are many benefits available to all members of this association.
One of the benefits you will be eligible to receive if you choose to become a member with this association is access to a subscription to Clinical Nurse Specialist: The Journal for Advanced Nursing Practice. In total you will receive 6 issues annually to the value of $97.91. In addition you will receive the NACNS Newsletter, which is published in the Journal, and which provides an update of the organization’s activities, as well as the CNS Communiqué, a cutting edge online newsletter delivered to your email box every other month. The National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists attempts to connect with its members in every way possible, as demonstrated by its efforts to use the internet to its advantage. In addition to the Communiqué you will receive an e-newsletter which provides updates on health policy and practice issues. These updates are invaluable to your progress in the field of nursing and the issues facing clinical nursing specifically.
All members of the National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists are eligible to receive a discount to attend the annual NACNS Conference. This is the largest gathering of CNSs in the nation and many interesting and informative talks and seminars that exist to improve your knowledge in the field and provide you with networking opportunities. In addition the association provides its members with opportunities to be involved in the profession and in the decision making processes directly related to the profession on a state and national level, as well as providing advocacy on the state and national levels.
The other benefits that you will be eligible for as a member of the National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists are as follows:
- You will receive discount fees for ANCC CNS exams. Exams are an essential part of becoming qualified, but not all nurses can afford the fees involved. Consequently the National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists makes a point of ensuring that all clinical nurses will be able to afford these exams.
- Assistance in the development of regional and local NACNS affiliates.
- Networking with CNS colleagues. Networking is well known as being one of the most valuable tools in building your career and advancing in a profession. Any association that does not provide these opportunities is failing its members.
- Representation in policy forums addressing your concerns about regulation, certification, reimbursement and other legislative and regulatory issues.
- Communication via the NACNS website. The website allows clinical nurses to communicate with each other thereby calling on the personal resources of other nurses who are experts in the same field.
- Discounts for liability insurance through NSO.
- Development, support and dissemination of CNS educational program criteria for evaluation.
The National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists is well aware that not all students interested in this line of study have the resources to become members of the organisation. As a result of this association gives students free access to the Member’s Only section of the website where they will be able to access the full ANA Position and Policy papers on important nursing issues, a chance to sign up for Smart Brief which is a news feed that brings together nursing and healthcare news from around the country every business day, access to the current electronic versions of The American Nurse and the ANA columns in American Nurse Today, access to the OJIN which is a peer reviewed electronic journal available to ANA members on the hot issues facing nursing, and last but not least, discount opportunities on a variety of personal and professional products. Students interested in clinical nursing can benefit greatly through membership with this organisation.
Resources for clinical researchers offered by the association include:
- National Guideline Clearinghouse
- Evidence-based practice – http://www.ahrq.gov/clinic/epcix.htm
- Registered Nurse Association of Ontario (RNAO)
- Lippincott’s Nursing Center Evidence-Based Practice Network
- Penn State University Libraries
- Virginia Commonwealth University Library
- Oncology Nursing Society
- Interagency Collaborative on Nursing Statistics (ICONS)
- Sigma Theta Tau International Nursing Honor Society (STTI)
- Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)
- Virginia Commonwealth University Library
- Office of Human Research Protection (OHRP)
- StatSoft
- Alan Reifman’s Collection of Practical Statistical Resources
- Statistics Calculators
- Creative Research Systems
- Martin Ryder, University of Colorado at Denver
- NACNS Research Award
- American Nurses Foundation
- Sigma Theta Tau International Nursing Honor Society
- National Institutes of Health (NIH)
- Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)
More information cab be found here.
Career Opportunities
The National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists has a number of job postings on its website for clinical nurse specialists who are looking for work. Because the job postings on the site are specifically aimed at clinical nurses, it is an excellent place to begin your search. In addition the job prospects are divided according to state making it easier for you to find a job in your area. You do not need to be a member in order to search through the jobs listed on the site.
In order to browse the job opportunities presented on the National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists’ website, please go to this link.
Contact Information
Please use the following information to contact the National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists:
National Office
100 North 20th Street, 4th Floor
Philadelphia, PA 19103
Phone: (215) 320-3881
Fax: (215) 564-2175
Email: info@nacns.org
Alternatively you can fill in the association’s contact form found at http://www.nacns.org/html/m-info.php.
Membership with the National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists will provide you with the opportunities you need to start or advance your career, whether you are a clinical nursing student or a current nurse with many years of experience in the field. Membership also boosts your resume in that it confirms that you are a qualified clinical nurse as well as telling potential employers that you are willing to go the extra mile for your profession. Once your career in the field is underway you will be able to advance as far as possible within that career as a result of your membership.
