We are Healthcare Defenders! 2026 NYSNA Convention Recap

On Oct. 26 and Oct. 27, NYSNA members from across the state gathered in New York City for the 2026 NYSNA Convention. Over the course of the two-day Convention, members celebrated NYSNA’s 125th anniversary, built nurse power, furthered their nursing education and voted on our union’s direction for the coming year. Every attendee lived out this year’s Convention theme: “NYSNA Healthcare Defenders: Nurses Unite to Protect Our Patients, Practice and Union.”  

Convention Day 1 

The 2026 NYSNA Convention was the largest convention thus far in NYSNA history—with over 1,000 NYSNA members in attendance and it kicked off with a bang! During the opening ceremony, NYSNA President Nancy Hagans, BSN, RN, CCRN, highlighted the incredible work members did this year — from our victories in the historic New York City nurse strike to securing stabilization funds to keep safety-net hospitals across the state open.  

Hagans also spoke on the work still left to be done, as we push back on cuts to federal healthcare funding and stand against greedy hospital systems that prioritize profits over patients: “Corporate power in healthcare is not going away soon enough. And it definitely won’t go away without a fight. It will take all of us uniting to protect our patients, our practice and our union to continue making real improvements in our work, our lives and our patients’ lives.” 

NYSNA members attended many educational workshops on Day 1 of the Convention, including a new stroke-themed escape room, which got rave reviews! Members kept learning through lunch with a panel on labors’ future fights and how to win featuring Murad Awawdeh, president and CEO of The New York Immigration Coalition; Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson; Juanita O. Lewis, executive director of Community Voices Heard; and Michael Kinnucan, Health Policy Director at the Fiscal Policy Institute. 

During Day 1, NYSNA members also watched a screening of “Takeover” a documentary about the 1970 takeover of Lincoln Hospital by the Young Lords, who were demanding increased access to safe, quality care for their community in the South Bronx. The screening included a tribute to Minerva Solla, who was a member of the Young Lords during that time, a life-long labor activist and community organizer, and former NYSNA Director of Cultural Affairs. View the documentary here. 

To cap off the day, members heard from two guest speakers, New York State Attorney General Letitia James and New York City Deputy Mayor for Economic Justice Julie Su. Both James and Su are huge allies to nurses and workers across the state, and both joined nurses on the picket lines this winter in the fight to protect patient care in New York City.   

Convention Day 2 

Day 2 of Convention started off strong with a special guest speaker during breakfast: New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani! Mamdani told members he admires their tenacity and determination to fight for what’s right, which he saw when he joined nurses on the picket lines during the New York City strike. 

During Day 2, member-observers continued with educational workshops, while NYSNA delegates engaged in a day of union democracy, introducing and voting on resolutions to guide the union’s direction in the coming year. In Hagans’ last Convention as NYSNA president and Voting Body chair, she guided delegates through a record 33 resolutions. Check out the list of approved resolutions here. 

Nurses built skills in organizing, communications, and advocacy at the 2026 NYSNA Convention, while creating lasting relationships with their fellow NYSNA siblings. They left refreshed and energized to continue fighting to protect our patients, practice and union! 

Check out photos from Convention on the NYSNA Facebook page and in this slideshow, and be sure to save the date for the 2027 NYSNA Convention, Oct. 13-14, in Saratoga Springs!