<Tr> <Th> Country </Th> <Td> United States of America </Td> </Tr> <P> The American Nurses Association (ANA) is a professional organization to advance and protect the profession of nursing . It started in 1896 as the Nurses Associated Alumnae and was renamed the American Nurses Association in 1911 . It is based in Silver Spring, Maryland and Pamela F. Cipriano is the current president . </P> <P> The ANA states nursing is the protection, promotion, and optimization of health and abilities, prevention of illness and injury, alleviation of suffering through the diagnosis and treatment of human response, and advocacy in the care of individuals, families, communities, and populations . </P> <P> Initial organizational plans were made for the Nurses Associated Alumnae of the United States of America on September 2, 1896 at Manhattan Beach Hotel near New York City . On February 11--12, 1897 those plans were ratified in Baltimore, Maryland at a meeting that coincided with the annual conference of the American Society of Superintendents of Training Schools for Nurses . Isabel Hampton Robb served as the first president . A major early goal of the organization was the enhancement of nursing care for American soldiers . </P>

What is the purpose of the american nursing association
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