Istep into the role of NAON's 32nd President with eagerness and excitement! Serving NAON and you, the members, in this capacity, has been a dream of mine for 10 years. Soon after hearing I was elected President-Elect, I began thinking of what I hope to accomplish over the next year. How could I inspire NAON members to take up the banner and continue NAON's work? I hope my theme this year, "ENVISION-ENERGIZE-ENGAGE!" will inspire you as a NAON member!
Webster's Dictionary defines envision as "to imagine something not yet in existence, to picture in the mind." What that means to me is to dream big and think inside and outside the box! What might be some awesome headlines NAON could achieve?
* "NAON welcomes 10,000th member!"
* "NAON President invited to White House for Summit on Improving Musculoskeletal Health in America"
Last fall, members of the Executive Board and other volunteer leaders of NAON and the community met in Chicago to articulate our vision of the future by updating our strategic plan. The Executive Board continued working on this living document to develop NAON's Strategic Initiatives for 2011-2013:
* Education
* Goal: NAON will develop, implement, and evaluate educational programs about bone and joint health and safe patient handling.
* Visibility
* Goal: NAON will be viewed globally as the knowledge leaders of orthopaedic nursing.
* Research and Outcomes
* Goal: NAON will work to decrease the incidence of fragility fractures.
* Technology
* Goal: NAON will embrace technology to educate nurses and the public on bone and joint health and facilitate communication to, from, and among NAON members.
At about the same time we were working on the Strategic Plan, a consensus report, "The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health" was released by the Institute of Medicine. This action-oriented blueprint for the future of nursing was discussed in Immediate Past President Brigitte Failner's ONJ President's Message in the January/February 2011 issue. NAON's Strategic Initiatives dovetail with the key messages in the report, especially as they relate to nurses practicing to the full extent of their education and training and lifelong continuing education.
I encourage each one of you to do some personal strategic planning of your own. Using your powers of imagination, visualize your future, including your place in NAON. For example, imagine you are at your retirement party. What contributions and achievements will you want to have made to your profession and to NAON?
I refer to Webster's Dictionary again for a definition of energize, that is, "to activate, invigorate." In his book, The Seven Habits of Highly Successful People, Steven Covey talks about the "miracle of synergy." This concept is based on the belief that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. Synergy catalyzes, unifies, and unleashes the greatest powers within people. NAON has tremendous power and energy within its members.
One of the best ways to find energy within NAON is to value our differences. We each bring something different to the table. Understanding different points of view and talents adds to our knowledge and allows us to build on our strengths and compensate for our weaknesses. We gain more insight as we respectfully share our differences. That excitement of mutual learning and insight creates a momentum toward more insights, learning, and growth.
The logical flow of the theme then, once you have envisioned what can be and have the energy to carry out that dream, is to engage. Webster gives several definitions of engage, including "to draw into; involve; to attract and hold." But the definitions I really identify with are: "to take part, be active" and "mesh together, as in 'engage the gears.'" NAON offers many opportunities for involvement! Remember valuing our differences? Here is your opportunity-look at the work that needs to be done and see where your interests and talents lie:
* Committees: Chapter Advisory Team (CAT), Bylaw and Policy Committee, Leadership Search Committee
* NAON Education Committee, with three components: Congress, AAOS, and Products
* Approver Unit
* NAON Evidence-Based Practice and Research Committee
* Special Interest Groups (SIG)
* Congress Local Affairs Task Force
* Executive Board
* Podium presentation at Congress or AAOS Allied Health Programs
* Poster presentation at Congress
* Chapter-level involvement: chapter officer, chapter workshop
Involvement is all about collaboration and communication. I encourage each one of you to consider completing a Willingness to Serve Form on the NAON Web site. Post a question, or answer a post, on the Discussion Forums. Contribute to the Research Discussion Forum to get connected to the Scientific Journal Club. As your president, I encourage you to contact me. I am more than happy to discuss how your talents can be used in NAON. Yes, I have a dream for NAON. It is bigger than anything I can accomplish on my own-won't you join me?