2016 NANN MEMBERSHIP AND AWARDS
At the 32nd Annual Educational Conference in Palm Springs, the National Association of Neonatal Nurses (NANN) and the National Association of Neonatal Nurse Practitioners (NANNP) recognized a just a few of our respective 7400 and 1300 members for their commitment to neonatal nursing:
Small Grant Recipients: Melinda Colleen Brand, PhD, NNP-BC, APRN; Britt Frisk Pados, PhD, RN, NNP-BC; and Milena Frazer, RN
Research Abstract Award: Danilyn M. Angeles, PhD, RN
Clinical Abstract Award: Kelsey Bristow, BSN
NNP Excellence Award: Susan Reinarz, DNP, NNP-BC, APRN
Distinguished Service Award: Cheryl Carlson, PhD, NNP-BC, APRN
Navigator Award: Amelia Bieda, PhD, NNP-BC, PNP-BC, APRN
Robyn Main Award: Rebecca South, BSN, RNC-NIC
Lifetime Achievement Award: Diane L. Spatz, PhD, RN-BC, FAAN, and Frances Strodtbeck, PhD, RN, NNP-BC, FAAN
In addition to these spectacular members, NANN also recognizes our chapters each year. Approximately 45% of our members belong to a chapter, and many go above and beyond to be the voice of neonatal nursing. Individual chapter awards are given for membership recruitment and retention, community service, fund-raising efforts, chapter communication, advocacy, educational offerings, and chapter of the year. The following chapters were recognized for their 2016 contributions:
Chapter Communications Award: Delaware Valley Chapter
Advocacy, Community Service, Educational Offerings, Fund-raising, and Membership Recruitment and Retention Awards: Central California Chapter
Chapter of the Year: State of Michigan Chapter
At each Annual Educational Conference, NANN holds a Chapter Challenge, which rewards the chapter that has the most members in attendance. This year's winner was the Inland County Chapter, which had 20 members at conference. Congratulations to all of our chapters and our members!
32ND ANNUAL EDUCATIONAL CONFERENCE OVERVIEW
The Annual Educational Conference in Palm Springs last October had an amazing turnout with 825 attendees. NANN members were met with not only warm weather and sunshine but also a lot of fun! We kicked off conference with the NANNP business meeting and leadership summit, where NANNP members reviewed data from the neonatal nurse practitioner (NNP) workforce survey, identified potential solutions for neonatal advanced practice registered nurses surrounding education programs, and focused on supporting the novice NNP.
NANN partnered with the Vermont Oxford Network (VON) to highlight the opioid epidemic our country is facing with our Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome Preconference. The preconference was led by Madge E. Buus-Frank, DNP, APRN-BS, FAAN, who spearheaded a 3-year VON-sponsored, Internet-based quality improvement collaborative that focused on improving the quality, safety, and value of care for the neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS) patient population. Attendees participated in short lectures, engaging discussions, and exercises that provided them with the information and skills needed to care for this vulnerable population.
NANN's welcome reception in the exhibit hall included giant games, a henna artist, a fortune teller, a caricaturist, and an interactive coloring mural. Members met with exhibitors, who shared their latest product advancements. After the welcome reception, NANN hosted NANN After Dark, complete with music and dancing, offering attendees a great way to meet other members and relax with friends.
Concurrent sessions included topics ranging from palliative care to human milk, the surgical neonate, and skin care, as well as paper sessions. The conference also included phenomenal general sessions that inspired us to change how we lead and how we practice. In the opening session, Lorraine Dickey, MD, MBA, FAAP, shared the importance and cornerstones of patient- and family-centered care, the care we provide in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).
Dr. Buus-Frank presented the second general session, which focused on improving outcomes for substance-exposed infants, highlighting the 6-fold increase in NAS; the 3-year VON quality improvement initiative; and innovative, improved practices for the care of this patient population.
During a late-breaking sunrise general session, attendees heard from Pulitzer-nominated author and micro-preemie mom Kelley French. French's presentation was both poignant and funny, sharing her family's journey from the NICU to home. Attendees were moved by her emotional story and the gratitude she shared for the many neonatal nurses who impacted her family's and her daughter's lives. To learn more about the French family's experience, read Juniper: The Girl Who Was Born Too Soon.
The 32nd Annual Educational Conference closed with a parent panel that featured Jennifer Degl, Natalie Gordon, and Kara Wahlin, MFT. Jennifer Degl is the author of From Hope to Joy: A Memoir of a Mother's Determination and Her Micro Preemie's Struggle to Beat the Odds. Natalie Gordon is the program facilitator for NICU Helping Hands, a nonprofit organization that develops hospital- and community-based programs that provide education and support for families of NICU babies. Kara Wahlin is a licensed marriage and family therapist who developed NICU Healing, which provides parents with tools for coping and thriving with a medically fragile or premature baby. These mothers shared their stories and experiences surrounding the discharge process, describing practices that were helpful-and some that were not helpful-in their preparation to go home, as well as the importance of communication between healthcare providers and parents. It was a great discussion and provided insight into the stressful world of the NICU parent.
The NANN Board of Directors would like to thank the conference planning committee, our speakers, and our vendors for another successful conference!