About ICONS

Click here to download the new ICONS brochure

The Interagency Collaborative on Nursing Statistics (ICONS) promotes the generation and utilization of data, information, and research about nurses, nursing education, and nursing workforce. Such data, information and analyses serve as a foundation for evidence-based decision making. The definitions and formulas were compiled by representatives from organizations that participate in ICONS. These definitions and formulas represent current usage. However, it is strongly emphasized that they should not be interpreted as official statements in support of formal positions advocated by a specific organization or agency that participates in ICONS. This document will be reviewed and updated periodically to reflect currently used terminology and formulae.

Background and History

ICONS began in 1953 as the Interagency Conference on Nursing Statistics when statisticians from the American Nurses' Association and the Division of Nursing Resources of the Public Health Service began discussions about data collection issues. Today members of ICONS include representatives from numerous organizations and government agencies that have expressed a commitment to research about nurses, nursing education, and nursing workforce through their missions, goals, or strategic plans. ICONS changed its name to the Interagency Collaborative on Nursing Statistics in 2000 to reflect the alliance among the member organizations/agencies.

Today, ICONS includes representatives from each of the following organizations/ agencies:

• American Academy of Nurse Practitioners (AANP)
• American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN)
• American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN)
• American Association of Nurse Anesthetists (AANA)
• American College of Nurse-Midwives (ACNM)
• American Nurses Association (ANA)
• Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) of the Department of Labor (DOL)
• Commission on Graduates of Foreign Nursing Schools (CGFNS)
• Forum of State Nursing Workforce Centers
• National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists (NACNS)
• National Center for Health Workforce Analysis of the Bureau of Health Professions (BHPr), Human Resources Services Administration (HRSA), Public Health Service (PHS), Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS)
• National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) of the Public Health Service (PHS), Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS)
• National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN)
• National League for Nursing (NLN)
• National Organization of Nurse Practitioner Faculties (NONPF)