22nd Annual Symposium
The 22nd Annual Symposium delivered another innovative program, including state-of-the-art keynote addresses, skill-building workshops, and concurrent sessions from nationally and internationally renowned faculty. We offered the popular Pharmacology Preconference, and the entire conference featured outstanding presentations designed to educate and inspire a renewed passion for the work we do each day.
The experts at Preventive Cardiovascular Nurses Association's (PCNA's) Annual Symposium are not just those on the stage-they are those in each and every seat in the meeting space. Several new initiatives were incorporated into this year's Annual Symposium to give attendees the chance to learn from one another. No matter where we are in our careers, we each bring a breadth of knowledge and experiences that can be valuable to our peers.
Attendees were encouraged to use the regular question and answer time to engage in a conversation about the presentation and share any questions, comments, burning issues, nagging doubts, and reflections with the audience. On Friday morning, the "Setting the Stage: Peer-to-Peer Learning" session provided time for attendees to discuss best practices and experiences with their colleagues. "Walk and Talks" were organized for Saturday and Sunday morning to allow attendees to digest and discuss the previous days' sessions in an informal setting. In addition, chapter meet-ups occurred throughout the symposium to help attendees connect and get to know people in their region.
Thank you to everyone who helped make the 22nd Annual Symposium a success!
Save the Date
Please plan to join us next year in Denver, Colorado, at the "Annual Symposium: Leading the Way in CVD Prevention and Management" on April 6 to 9, 2017. Stay tuned to pcna.net for program updates and announcement of sessions and speakers.
Recognizing 2016 Award Winners
PCNA recognized 3 top cardiovascular nursing leaders during the Member Celebration and Awards Ceremony on Sunday morning of the symposium.
The inaugural Advocacy Award for CVD Prevention was awarded to Alethea Hill, PhD, ACNP-BC, ANP-BC. This award recognizes a member's leadership in advocacy at the local, state, or federal level in the areas of cardiovascular disease (CVD) prevention or advancing the nursing profession. Ms Hill is an associate professor at the University of South Alabama College of Nursing and has spent equal amounts of time both in scholarship and community advocacy to help residents of Alabama and Mississippi better appraise their risk through diabetes and obesity programs from a CVD prevention perspective. Ms Hill succeeded in getting a resolution passed in the Alabama House of Delegates on raising obesity risk awareness and participated in the Call to Congress to Stop Diabetes.
Julie Chester Wood, RN, MSN, CNS, CHFN was awarded PCNA's Heart Failure Prevention Award, which recognizes a nurse who has demonstrated an innovative, successful model of preventive care for patients with heart failure. Ms Wood is a clinical nurse specialist at Sutter Medical Center Sacramento and leads a multidisciplinary heart failure team meeting that has worked relentlessly on improving quality measures of heart failure management. Ms Chester Wood was instrumental in helping Sutter Medical Center become the first program in the country to receive the Advanced Heart Failure Certification from the Joint Commission and has helped their program continue to achieve "Gold Status" in the Get With the Guideline Heart Failure measure through American Heart Association.
The Terry Thomas Clinical Practice Award was presented to Lisa Maher, DNP, ARNP, for her excellence in clinical practice of cardiovascular prevention. Ms Maher established the Center for Lifestyle Medicine Clinic, which uses a team-based approach to treating weight loss and reducing overall cardiac risks through lifestyle changes. She recently achieved a career goal of hers and is publishing a book titled Care of the Obese in Advanced Practice Nursing. Ms Maher has a heart of gold and has found a way to use her many strengths to help patients find their own qualities and improving their quality of life.
Preventive Cardiovascular Nurses Association Welcomes 2016 Fellows
PCNA was honored to induct the 2015 class of fellows during the Member Celebration and Awards Ceremony. These exceptional professionals from across the country represent the best in PCNA membership and have shown excellence in leadership and volunteer service. Four fellows were inducted this year, as well as three Honorary Fellows.
Emily Jones, BSN, PhD, RNC-OB
Ms Emily Jones is an assistant professor at the College of Nursing and Health Sciences at UMass Boston. She serves on the leadership team of the newly formed Boston PCNA chapter. Ms Jones' work is dedicated to reducing disparities in cardiometabolic disease in the most underserved of the underserved in our country: Native American women. She has received two PCNA awards for her data-based research presentations and has well demonstrated her ability to build a strong program of research and scholarship in an area of critical unmet cardiometabolic need.
Cheri Nichols, RN, BSN
Ms Cheri Nichols is a clinical nurse manager at the Health District of Northern Larimer County. Ms Nichols is heavily involved in CVD prevention efforts in her community. This role has helped her to identify the need for support from a professional organization such as PCNA to provide avenues for continued professional growth. She is a founding member of the Rocky Mountain Chapter leadership team and has provided many hours of volunteer service and leadership through her service on the PCNA's Membership Committee.
Jennifer Tennant, MEd, RN
Ms Jennifer Tennant is the quintessential cardiac rehabilitation nurse who lives and breathes interdisciplinary care and the inclusion of lifestyle therapies for patients with CVD or who are at risk for CVD. She has created, implemented, and now directs a health coaching program at the West Virginia University Health System. She served as Project Director for an National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) study on "A Couples Approach to Cardiac Risk Reduction," which resulted in one publication and three poster presentations. She is the former coleader of the PCNA Chicago chapter and has successfully formed a new chapter in North-Central West Virginia.
Melanie Turner, BSN, RN-BC
Ms Melanie Turner is an original member of the Central Virginia chapter of PCNA. Since the inception of the chapter in 2005, Ms Turner has served on the board in a variety of positions, from education chair, to secretary and now president. She regularly mentors new colleagues serving on the chapter leadership team. Ms Turner is committed to the field of cardiovascular nursing, having spent many years in the coronary care unit and ambulatory cardiology clinic settings. She serves as a cardiology nurse care coordinator, Heart Center faculty, and research mentor at the University of Virginia Health System.
Preventive Cardiovascular Nurses Association Inducts Honorary Fellows
The PCNA recognized three honorary fellows for their long-time acknowledgement of the importance of nursing and the role nurses play in the prevention and management of CVD. All three individuals have spent their careers communicating this to critical stakeholders and have been great friends of the organization. PCNA was pleased to recognize the following individuals for their contributions to nursing and CVD prevention:
Meg Heim, RN, MAS
Meg Heim currently serves as Global Lead, Public Affairs & Advocacy for Cardiovascular for Sanofi. She has consistently communicated the important role that nurses play in preventing and managing CVD to all she comes in contact with and has been able to convince leadership at the highest level to focus on nursing in their overall company strategies. As the saying goes, "once a nurse, always a nurse." Throughout her career, she has been a champion for nurses both in the United States and internationally-and PCNA is proud to work with her.
Martha Hill, PhD, ACNP-BC, ANP-BC
Dr Martha Hill served as dean of the Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing for many years. As an educator, she is known for her mentorship of students and junior faculty members; as a researcher, for her investigations in preventing and treating hypertension and its complications. Dr Hill served as president of the American Heart Association (AHA), the first of two nonphysicians to be named to that position. She has demonstrated her dedication to PCNA by serving on our scientific advisory committee for over 20 years. We especially appreciate her assistance in helping to develop PCNA's international nursing outreach strategies.
Sidney Smith Jr, MD
Dr Sidney Smith is a past president of AHA and the World Heart Federation. Among his many honors include the AHA Physician of the Year Award, AHA Distinguished National Leadership Award, AHA Gold Heart Award, AHA Eugene Drake Award, and the NHLBI/NIH Award of Special Recognition. Each year since 1998, he has been elected to Best Doctors in America. Dr Smith has also demonstrated his dedication to PCNA through his service on our scientific advisory committee for over 20 years and through his assistance in helping to develop PCNA's international nursing outreach strategies.
Thank You to Our 2016 Supporters
PCNA would like to thank our generous supporters, with whom we achieve the following mutual goals:
* Achieve better patient compliance and improve health outcomes
* Create newer and better patient care systems
* Develop expertise in cardiovascular nursing
* Promote national leadership in cardiovascular risk reduction and disease management
* Improve health and quality of life for those at risk for myocardial infarction and stroke
* Reduce death and disability from CVD
Platinum
AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals
Daiichi Sankyo, Inc
Gilead Sciences, Inc
Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc
Sanofi/Regeneron
Gold
Abbott Vascular
Amarin Pharma, Inc
Amgen, Inc
Bristol-Myers Squibb/Pfizer
Eli Lilly
Kowa Pharmaceuticals America, Inc
Novartis Pharmaceuticals
Merck & Co, Inc
Pfizer, Inc
Silver
Akcea Therapeutics
Allergan
Boehringer Ingelheim
Bronze
Egg Nutrition Center
2016 Annual Symposium Supporters
Abbott Vascular
Akcea Therapeutics
Amarin Pharma, Inc
AHA Scientific Councils
Stroke
CV nursing and stroke
Clinical cardiology
Epidemiology and prevention
Lifestyle and cardiometabolic health
Amgen, Inc
AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals
Bristol-Myer Squibb/Pfizer
Gilead Sciences, Inc
Institute for Clinical Excellence, Education, and Research
Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc
Journal of Cardiovascular Nursing
Kowa Pharmaceuticals America, Inc
Merck & Co, Inc
Novartis Pharmaceuticals
Sanofi/Regeneron
Pfizer, Inc
Pritikin Intensive Cardiac Rehab
ZS Pharma