Anita Stull

It is not hyperbole to say that Anita Stull, BSN, RN, helped improve the lives of tens of thousands of nurses in Washington over the course of her more than 40-year career.

Before Stull became the first signer on a grievance against the University of Washington Medical Center filed by WSNA in the 2000s, nurses did not get paid for breaks. WSNA won that grievance, a precedent that sparked grievances at other local units and eventually led to rest break legislation that benefited every nurse in our state.

Stull’s dedication to building and strengthening WSNA and nurses’ collective power is clearly reflected in her decades of courage and advocacy in WSNA, beginning when she first joined as a new BSN graduate from the University of Washington in 1979.

Stull’s leadership helped steer her local unit and WSNA through union raids in 1989, and her leadership helped create a smooth transition for nurses during the 2019 merger of UWMC and Northwest Hospital.

Stull has played a key role in shaping WSNA and the American Nurses Association. She has contributed immensely to the development of WSNA policy, nursing practice and legislative positions, and workforce and workplace policy. Drawing on her critical thinking and attention to detail, Stull has served on the WSNA Bylaws Committee for many years. She chaired the committee during a major organizational structure change and was instrumental in securing the support of the membership.

In addition to representing WSNA at ANA’s membership assembly numerous times, Stull served a two-year term on ANA’s Congress on Nursing Economics beginning in 1990 and, more recently, served on the ANA Bylaws Committee.

In her local unit at UWMC, she stood up for her colleagues in roles including Local Unit Chair and on the negotiating team. For decades, she was always there fighting for what her colleagues needed and deserved.

Stull worked as a dedicated bedside nurse for more than 40 years until her retirement in 2020. She worked in orthopedics, chronic pain, and psychiatry, where she fiercely advocated for mental health access.

Over the course of a long and storied career, Stull helped tens of thousands of patients with compassionate care. Her work as a nurse advocate has improved the lives of hundreds of thousands of nurses and the patients we serve.