Vision, Mission & Values
Core Ideology
- Core Purpose: AWHONN is an organization of nurses committed to the health of women and newborns.
- Core Values (as expressed in the acronym "CARING")
- Commitment to professional and social responsibility
- Accountability for personal and professional contributions
- Respect for diversity of and among colleagues and clients
- Integrity in exemplifying the highest standards in personal and professional behavior
- Nursing Excellence for quality outcomes in practice, education, research, advocacy and management
- Generation of Knowledge to enhance the science and practice of nursing to improve the health of women and newborns
Mission
The Association of Women's Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses promotes the health of women and newborns.
Through its resources, support and education AWHONN empowers its members to excel as professionals and to provide superior
care.
Vision-Level Goal
AWHONN will be essential to the health of women and newborns. AWHONN will be recognized for its commitment to promoting the health of women and newborns. AWHONN will be a culturally and ethnically diverse nursing association that is an integral part of an international network delivering innovative, evidence-based, and affordable quality programs, products and services with interested world partners.
Professionals and consumers will consider AWHONN the leading nursing authority, advocate and source for the latest in nursing research trends and nursing care related to the health of women and newborns. AWHONN will be one of the most influential health care organizations in the public policy arena.
Diversity
The AWHONN Board of Directors adopted a definition and a set of principles for diversity in 2004 based on recommendations by the AWHONN Advisory Panel on Diversity. Both the definition and the principles are integrated into AWHONN planning, products and services since 2005.
- Definition:
Diversity is a set of evolving attributes that encompasses but is not limited to age, class, culture, people with special health care needs, education level, ethnicity, family structure, gender, ideologies, political beliefs, race, religion, sexual orientation, style and values. Cultural consciousness is the acceptance and respect of the attributes of diversity and includes the acknowledgment of both similarities and differences. Culturally competent care must recognize and be aware of the cultural perspective of those who are served. Providers must be willing to modify their treatment approach in order to provide care that is culturally acceptable to the client. - Principles of Diversity:
Since diversity is an essential component in the provision of quality health care, AWHONN has a responsibility to recruit, retain and mentor a diverse workforce of Women's Health and Maternal-Child nurses into all levels of the organization. AWHONN should integrate cultural diversity in all aspects of its work. AWHONN has a responsibility to promote knowledge and skills of cultural competence in the nursing workforce that serves women and newborns.
Legislative