Diversity and Inclusivity in NAHN

Hello everyone! I am so happy to be writing my first “President’s Message.” I am humbled to be in this role and will work to promote the vision and mission of the National Association of Hispanic Nurses (NAHN). As president, it is my responsibility to promote a caring environment while providing oversight for NAHN, organizational finances, staffing, and long-term goal setting. With the fiduciary responsibility in my hands, I will make decisions that will continue to make NAHN prosperous and strong. I will represent NAHN at national meetings/events to increase our visibility. I will be transparent in our decisions at the Executive Board by posting minutes of our monthly meetings on our website. And more than anything, I will value our diversity as Latinos and be inclusive to all in the feedback we receive about the organization. We must recognize the diversity and inclusivity of our organization. While we all believe we are “culturally diverse,” we may have some bias of our own beliefs about diversity. I want our organization to be diverse. All subcultural groups of Latinos should feel accepted in NAHN. Diversity can also relate to age, race, gender preferences, where you work, and skill sets that you have. Diversity also includes other disciplines into our organization or non-Latinos. We are all very diverse and have much to learn from each other through our organization. While diversity is important, it means nothing if we do not include diverse groups in our organization. Feeling included goes hand in hand with diversity. Being included means that you participate in the organization, you are engaged, you participate in decisions made in the organization, you help the organization reach our strategic goals, and you strive to improve the outcomes of the organization. When we practice “inclusivity,” our organization will prosper. We will increase our attrition rate, there will be a sense of altruism, and you will want to be a part of our team. We need diversity and inclusivity to help solve the challenges that we will face as an organization. While everyone comes in with different personalities, it is important to recognize that each person has a unique perspective that makes the organization diverse and inclusive and thereby contributes to our greatness. As we examine how to continue to improve, we must examine ways to make our organization more inclusive to all. As we practice diversity and inclusivity, we always include caring as an underlying base. We all care tremendously about this organization. We care because we want to make a difference. We care because when we come to our conferences we feel like we are coming home. We care for our patients when we see we make a difference. We care because we see this organization involved in activities that affect health care outcomes of our Latino familias. We have decided to serve this organization with many who have dedicated many hours to our service. All of us have a passion to make NAHN better. It is our purpose. We have been guided to serve you, our members, and our Latino communities. We care about Latinos, the health of Latinos, and you as Latino nurses. Jean Watson refers a human being as “a valued person in and of himself or herself to be cared for, respected, nurtured, understood, and assisted.” Let us take this philosophy and science of caring into our lives, chapter membership, our leadership, and our communities. We have great things to do! Thank you!