A bold investment with lasting impact

THE FUTURE OF NURSING is being shaped now in the artificial intelligence (AI)–enabled systems entering clinical workflows, the standards guiding their use, and the decisions that will determine how technology affects patient care. Nurses must do more than adapt to that future. We must help lead it, shaping how AI is designed, evaluated, governed, and used. A new $5 million investment in the American Nurses Enterprise gives us an extraordinary opportunity to do just that. It also demonstrates what’s possible when the American Nurses Association (ANA), American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), and American Nurses Foundation (ANF) unite around a shared goal.

Co-funded by Google.org and the Johnson & Johnson Foundation, the 3-year Nurse AI Training in Rural and Underserved Communities initiative will strengthen nurses’ knowledge, skills, and confidence in using AI safely and effectively. This landmark investment will prioritize nurses in rural, remote, and underserved communities, where staffing shortages, limited infrastructure, and fewer training opportunities can make technological change especially challenging.

This initiative is about ensuring that nurses aren’t merely users of AI or recipients of AI education. Getting this right is crucial for the future of our profession and for the safety and well-being of our patients. Nurses bring a uniquely human perspective to patient care that must remain central as AI tools advance. Technology should enhance, and never diminish, clinical judgment and patient outcomes. We must have a meaningful voice wherever AI decisions are made, including serving as paid staff and board members of the technology companies developing, implementing, evaluating, and governing these tools. That is just one example of what becomes possible when we invest in nurses to lead AI.

The enterprise’s remarkable funding opportunity also offers a glimpse of what we can achieve across the organization. It reflects doors opened through collaboration, complementary expertise, and a clear vision for nursing’s future. It also demonstrates the reach and resonance that the enterprise can have. For potential donors and partners, it shows what nursing can accomplish when resources align with expertise and purpose. It’s a model for what can come next.
ANF is a national asset with the ability to galvanize resources for bold initiatives that no single nurse or organization could advance alone. For 130 years, ANA has championed nurses, helping to ensure that the profession’s voice, value, and vital role in healthcare and society are recognized. ANCC elevates patient-centric care standards and contributes to safer patient outcomes around the world. By matching philanthropic support with these capabilities, we can accelerate meaningful change: evidence that informs policy, tools that improve practice, educational resources that prepare nurses for the future, and innovations that strengthen care.

That is The Power of Nurses^®.

This investment gives us momentum, but the opportunity before us extends well beyond a single initiative. Every gift, large or small, helps turn promising ideas into practical solutions. Contributions can seed evidence-based projects, support emerging nurse leaders, and generate findings that grow into solutions with far-reaching impact.

When we invest in nurses, we strengthen the profession’s ability to lead change and improve care in every community.

Help advance nursing’s next chapter. Learn more about ANF’s work and make a gift at nursingworld.org/foundation/donate.

Jennifer Mensik Kennedy PhD, MBA, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN
President, American Nurses Association

Kathy Driscoll MSN, RN, NEA-BC, CCM
President, American Nurses Foundation