THE AMERICAN NURSES' ASSOCIATION INFLUENCE ON FEDERAL FUNDING FOR NURSING EDUCATION (1941-1984) (HISTORY).
Contributors: University of Iowa.
Published: 1985
Number of pages: 425
Subjects: Education, Finance.; Health Sciences, Nursing.
Description: Nursing education has increasingly moved from its beginnings in hospital programs based on apprenticeship training models into institutions of higher education. One factor contributing to this change was the enactment of federal legislation beginning in 1941 that provided funding for nursing education. The American Nurses' Association (ANA), the leading professional organization of registered nurses and the largest proponent of nursing interests in the United States, has continuously attempted to influence the policies surrounding enactment and appropriations for federal funding for nurse manpower education.

The purpose of this study is to describe the influence of the ANA legislative program upon enactment of the twelve federal statutes and accompanying appropriations enacted between 1941 and 1984 which have provided broad-based financial support for nursing education. This is accomplished through an analysis of the interaction between ANA organizational structure, lobbying goals and strategies and resulting federal legislation. Data has been gathered on the statutes under study, the lobbying activities and positions of ANA regarding the statutes, changes in the structure and function of the ANA legislative program and the key social, political and health care factors influencing funding enactment. Data sources include ANA publications and records, government documents, private papers, recorded nursing history and political analyses. ANA's objectives are compared with the legislative outcome within the context of ANA's lobbying efforts. Although no statement of direct cause and effect can be made, a description of the ANA's varying approaches and contributions to the outcome is presented.

Uncertainty over continued funding in light of increasingly diminished federal appropriations for nurse manpower education funding makes this study timely. It is important to understand the pressures and rationales to which Congress has responded in the past and how ANA structure leaders and activity has contributed to shaping legislative outcomes. Such information can be used to guide further efforts to shape legislation affecting nursing education funding.
Notes: Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 46-10, Section: A, page: 2921.

Thesis (PH.D.)--THE UNIVERSITY OF IOWA, 1985.

School code: 0096.