Hola, mi nombre es Angie Pearce y soy una enfermera especialista en ortopedia en Parkland Hospital en Dallas, Texas.
Soy su nuevo presidente entrante de NAON, numero trenta ocho.
In English that translates to, "Hello, my name is Angie Pearce and I am a nurse practitioner in orthopaedics at Parkland Hospital in Dallas, Texas. I am your incoming 38th president of NAON." I am honored and humbled to have been elected to this position and will do everything in my power to fulfill this commitment.
NAON is 5,000 members strong, and every single member is valued. Your voice can and will be heard as we fulfill the mission of NAON through excellence in research, education, and clinical practice.
By now, you will realize that American is my second language!! And thankfully, English is my first! I came to the United States after finishing my nurse training in England in 1978, where I completed a degree in nursing, which was rare at that time. I knew when I came to America that I would need to take the registered nurse examination and did so a few months after my arrival. I initially worked nights for 6 months on the urology and rehabilitation floor until an opening on the 3-11 shift in orthopaedics became available. I was a sponge for learning, and my passion for orthopaedics was emerging.
Culturally, it was challenging but exciting. I really thought I was seeing a giant when I saw someone 6 ft 10 in. tall whose feet were hanging over the end of the bed. I had NEVER seen anyone remotely near that tall. It's true that everything is bigger and better in Texas!
Perhaps the most important thing I learned was that the nurses' training I received in England would help me handle many difficult situations. Patients will get worse at times, and quick critical thinking can help the patient improve. How many of you can say that you have saved a life or limb?
Never be afraid to ask for help.
Never be afraid to speak up.
Your voice counts.
If you see something that does not look right, say something.
No one can ever take away your integrity.
My introduction to an orthopaedic chapter meeting was when I was taken by a Hispanic LVN who encouraged me to go. It was very interesting, and I was again hooked on orthopaedics. The first NAON Congress I attended was in 1981, in Dallas. I met many of my orthopaedic friends who presented at that Congress and belonged to DONI, Dallas Orthopaedic Nurses Inc. I have attended many congresses and have really enjoyed the continuing education and of course visiting new places and people. I met one NAON member, Jane Roehrig from Houston, at Congress in Reno, NV, on a bus in 1983 going to Carson City, for a gunfight at the OK Corral and barbecue dinner. We became friends and have spent many congresses as roommates catching up on our careers and families-all thanks to NAON.
At one time, there was a consistent group of international nurse attendees at Congress. This group represented the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, and Barbados, to name a few. NAON also encouraged representatives to attend the reciprocal international meetings. I was lucky to attend and present at the Society of Orthopaedic and Trauma Nurses in Cardiff, Wales, in September last year.
Although we have come a long way as nurses and as an association, I think it is important to remember our history, including Florence Nightingale, who believed in order, light, cleanliness, and compassion, as she pursued her career in nursing as the "Lady with the Lamp" and as a social policy change agent.
We must also remember Dame Agnes Hunt. She was a little younger than Florence Nightingale but had every bit as much influence on orthopaedic nursing and the care of the physically handicapped. At the age of 9 years, she contracted septic arthritis, which fueled her passion to work with orthopaedic patients for the rest of her life. She is the only nurse to have a hospital named after her-The Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital in Gobowen, England.
History is the foundation that pushes us to new frontiers. This brings me to this year's Congress theme, "Fueling the Future of Orthopaedic Nursing." I chose this theme to encourage you to be a part of NAON's future. This year we are pleased to be adding two new directors to the NAON board who plan to bring a new youthful dimension. As a board, we will address current issues with our position statements. We will continue to market to industry for program sponsorship. We will hope to attract new partnerships to keep on the cutting edge of information technology and educational programs. We will remain fiscally responsible in the ever-changing healthcare field and let our strategic plan guide us to attain new heights. However, this can only be done when we have engaged members such as yourselves; I encourage you to invest yourselves and be innovative in your approach to orthopaedic nursing.
Although it is important to be grateful for past presidents who have helped move NAON to 2017 and remember that they are the backbone of NAON, it is even more important to look forward to find new leaders and encourage them to serve.
The Leadership Search Committee (LSC) and AIM (activating interesting members committee) assists NAON in finding future leaders so that we can continue active leadership succession. Their work is invaluable, and we are thankful for their dedication. Maybe one of you listening will consider reaching out to the LSC and completing a willingness to serve form.
NAON's ACORN committee is for new nurses within 5 years of graduation and stands for "Advancing the Career of the Orthopaedic Registered Nurse." This group has worked tirelessly at Congress, hosting family feud, jeopardy, and the orthopaedic octathlon. I hope you had as much fun as I did at the Joint Connection.
The research committee has identified a research program for this year, and we look forward to studying the outcomes that lead to best practices.
NAON is supported by our management company, Smith Bucklin, and we have a new Executive Director this year. Her name is Kristin Dee, and she has been instrumental in our 2017-2019 strategic plan development. I would like to thank the staff at Smith Bucklin who work behind the scenes to make Congress such an excellent educational activity and opportunity for networking.
As we look forward to this next year, we must remember that the patient population is aging and we have many opportunities to excel in caring for our orthopaedic patients. Changes in bundled payments for total joint arthroplasty and health insurance changes that are not completed force us to be vigilant with our teaching to prevent the revolving door of readmission to the hospital. Programs such as safe patient handling with fall prevention and healthy strong bones are tools provided by NAON to the members.
As you may know, nurse navigation is the newest hot topic and NAON wants to be at the forefront of developing a program to enhance this new position. A blog and team of Nurse Navigators has been started to discuss the various nuances of nurse navigation. These phone calls are open to all members.
We need to remember to embrace technology and evidence-based practice and continue to make videos such as "neurovascular assessment," which has been highly successful as a teaching tool. Other pertinent topics to consider might be orthopaedic complications. NAON is in the planning stages of increasing its technological focus.
NAON works closely with ONCB to promote certification both for nurses and for nurse practitioners. Because patients are becoming more involved in their care, there are more patients who will request certified nurses to take care of them. Let's increase certification by 10%, and I hope that you will be one of those people who help NAON rise to a new level of orthopaedic success and promote excellence in clinical nursing care by certification.
Successful leaders are not born, but rather they are nurtured. They surround themselves with people who can fill in the gaps in their knowledge. I encourage you to find a mentor and to be a mentor to kick-start a challenging and stimulating career.
Before we go, please remember to greet the person sitting next to you. Human connection is the difference between us and robots, and a warm smile and sincere greeting can make a person's day. I will end with a quote from Maya Angelou: "People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will NEVER forget how you made them feel!!"