100 Most Influential People in Healthcare - 2023

Mensik Kennedy took the helm of the organization, which works to advance the interests of all 5 million of the country’s registered nurses, at the beginning of 2023. In June, she challenged a new American Medical Association policy amendment recommending advanced practice registered nurses be licensed and regulated by both state medical and nursing boards, saying it would entail unnecessary administrative burdens on advanced practice nurses. In September, the ANA under her leadership formally recognized cannabis nursing as a nursing specialty, with Mensik Kennedy saying the move would promote advanced integration of cannabis therapies for patients. Mensik Kennedy previously was division director of care management at Oregon Health and Science University.