SD Nurses Association: Audiovisual - Box 30

The South Dakota Nurses’ Association was formed on July 11, 1916 as the South Dakota State Association of Graduate Nurses. At this first meeting in Rapid City, only seventeen nurses were present. The SDNA became the forty-third constituent group of the American Nurses Association, which had been created in 1901. The new members selected Mrs. Elizabeth Dryborough to be the first President.

In 1929, the organization’s name was changed to its present one of the South Dakota Nurses’ Association. At this time, the district system of organization was also introduced. The state was divided into three districts, one west of the Missouri River and two east. The divisions would remain this way until 1957, when the state was reorganized into the thirteen districts that are used today.

The South Dakota Nurses’ Association has worked to improve the quality of nursing care in South Dakota since its creation in 1916. The first project the organization worked on was the creation of a Nurse Practice Act for South Dakota which would set educational standards for nursing schools and create a state examining board to oversee the licensure of nurses. This act was passed by the 1917 legislature and created what became the present-day South Dakota Board of Nursing.

The SDNA has been involved in many other projects to improve nursing care. They have been very involved in the debates over what level of education should be required to become a nurse and over whether or not practicing nurses should be required to take continuing education classes. They have been very active in lobbying the legislature to try to get health care bills passed. Through the years they have given nurses in the state a chance to learn new techniques and share experiences through conventions, workshops, and classes. They also publish a periodical called the South Dakota Nurse, which provides another way for nurses to keep up with changes in the profession.