In 1929 the director of the Japan Red Cross nursing division, Take Hagiwara, founded the Nursing Association of the Japanese Empire (日本帝国看護婦協会, Nippon Teikoku Kangofu Kyokai).[1]
Associations of midwives and public health nurses later developed.[4] Historically, the members of the JNA were older, more educated nurses, and the organization was not seen as representing the needs of most nurses. As the organization grew into the largest nursing organization in the world, it became more representative of its members and serving their interests.[5]
Current organization
The current organization was established in 1946 to improve the quality of nursing, create positive working environments for nurses, and to develop a platform for expanding the field of nursing to meet individual and community needs.[6] The organization was created to merge the Japanese Midwife Society, Japanese Public Health Nurses Association and the Nursing Association of the Japanese Empire into one umbrella organization.[4] The organization is not a trade union, but rather, a professional organization and as such does not engage in collective bargaining.[5]
The organization maintains a policy research group to develop nursing policies, has established a Nursing Code of Ethics, and implements standards for nursing practice, including certification protocols. The Association works with state and national organizations, lobbying for improvements in the nursing field and has provided testimony to assist policymakers and governmental organizations and offices in the development of standards and programs for nursing. The JNA maintains a library and research center, and operated a publishing company, which produces nursing journals, texts, and books. Publications include a biannual newsletter in the English language, as well as articles produced in the Japanese language on nursing developments.[5]
"萩原タケ(ハギワラタケ)日本のナイチンゲール" [Bamboo Hagiwara (Take Hagiwara) The Japanese Nightingale]. IFSA (in Japanese). Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan: 国際留学生協会 (International Foreign Students Association). 2016. Archived from the original on 15 April 2016. Retrieved 4 September 2016.
"Japanese Nursing Association". International Midwives. The Hague, The Netherlands: International Confederation of Midwives. 2014. Archived from the original on 5 September 2015. Retrieved 5 September 2016.
"日本看護協会とは>あゆみ" [Japanese Nursing Association-History]. International Midwives (in Japanese). Shibuya-ku, Tokyo: International Confederation of Midwives. 2016. Archived from the original on 26 August 2016. Retrieved 5 September 2016.
Department of International Affairs of the Japanese Nursing Association (2016). Nursing in Japan(PDF). Shibuya-ku, Tokyo: Japanese Nursing Association.