Overview
When COVID-19 disrupted every sector of healthcare, the American Nurses Association faced an urgent need to support and re-engage more than 4 million nurses nationwide. The goal was to strengthen ANA's national presence, increase program funding, and restore trust among a workforce overwhelmed with burnout and emotional exhaustion.
Challenge
Revenue dashboards revealed alarming trends: education and professional development programs had dropped by more than 40%. Member sentiment data showed frustration, burnout, and a weakening connection to the association. The challenge was rebuilding engagement and funding simultaneously.
Market Research Phases
I directed two waves of research that informed the entire rebuilding strategy.
- Phase 1: Workforce Sentiment — Revealed high levels of fatigue and disillusionment, with many nurses expressing intent to leave the profession. These insights informed ANA's wellness and re-engagement communications strategy.
- Phase 2: Vaccine Confidence — Led data interpretation for a survey of 22,000 nurses, finding 70% vaccinated by March 2021, but higher hesitancy among Black (46%) and Hispanic (29%) respondents. Guided development of the culturally sensitive COVID Vaccine Facts for Nurses campaign.
Funding & Brand Strategy
- Secured initial $3 million sponsorship from Johnson & Johnson, growing to $10 million total within 12 months through partnerships with Aetna, Rite Aid Foundation, Aveda Institute, and the American Nurses Foundation.
- Rebuilt ANA's messaging framework connecting purpose with measurable impact using Power BI data.
- Repositioned the Healthy Nurse, Healthy Nation platform under a unified wellness narrative.
- Designed sponsorship decks and data narratives demonstrating ROI to corporate partners.
Results
- $10 million total in sponsorship and funding secured within 12 months.
- Culturally relevant vaccine confidence campaign reaching nurses across Black and Hispanic communities.
- Rebuilt brand narrative uniting wellness, advocacy, and professional purpose.
- Reversed the 40% decline in program engagement through repositioned content and partnerships.
