The Council on Cardiovascular Nursing (CVN) wishes to invite all of you to get involved in CVN and to join us in the many activities our Council has to offer. From advocacy to prevention, from leadership to education, the CVN has many venues where nurses can involve themselves. Our mission is to support the American Heart Association's (AHA) mission of reducing death and disability due to cardiovascular disease and stroke and includes sharing and dissemination of information, promoting the role of nurses as leaders in cardiovascular medicine, and supporting prevention as a strategy for disease management. The upcoming AHA Scientific Sessions this year to be held in Chicago, Ill, November 12 to 15. We look forward to networking with many of our cardiovascular nurses attending from all parts of the world and from all medical areas and practice venues. The CVN page this fall is dedicated to promoting the efforts of our nurse scientists and nurse clinicians; from pediatrics to gerontology, from universities to health departments, cardiovascular nurses impact each and every arena of healthcare. Many exciting new programs and activities are underway involving CVN this year with outcomes to be measured for years to come. One of these involves advocacy and CVN's new "Advocacy Ambassador" is Ms Marsha Elixson. See below for additional information related to CVN's activities related to advocacy. It is our hope that you will consider joining our Council, attending the Scientific Sessions, and taking part in one of the many committees that the CVN council has. The following is a list of the committees and their respective contacts.
The Council on Cardiovascular Nursing Committees
The CVN has a number of important committees that you can join. These include Communications and Membership Committee, Chairperson, Dr Mary Caldwell; Program Committee, Chairperson, Dr Christi Deaton; Advocacy Committee, Chairperson, Dr Dorothy Lanuza; Development Committee, Chairperson, Ms Sandra Kreul, MSN, ARNP; International Committee, Co-chairpersons, Drs Anna Stromberg and Erika Froelicher; Pediatric Cardiovascular Nursing Committee, Chairperson, Dr Karen Uzark; Stroke Nursing Committee, Co-chairpersons, Ms Anne Leonard and Dr Elaine Miller; and Prevention Subcommittee, Chairperson, Ms Suzy Hughes. If you are interested in learning more about these committees, please visit us at http://www.americanheart.org/presenter/jhtml?idenitifier=1139.
The Prevention Subcommittee
According to the Prevention Subcommittee's chair, Nancy T. Artinian, "Nurses make an important contribution to the AHA through the Prevention Subcommittee of the CVN. This committee serves as AHA's panel of experts on prevention as it relates to CVD and stroke." The Prevention subcommittee is chaired by Nancy T. Artinian, PhD, RN, BC, FAHA, and, at present, has 8 members: Suzy Hughes, Immediate Past Chairperson, Lynne T. Braun, Lora Burke, Barbara Fletcher, Janet Meininger, Nancy Redecker, and Eileen M. Stuart Shor. Staff scientist is Gayle R. Whitman and Sabrina Simmons represents AHA staff. The committee's missions are as follows:
* To update the AHA on prevention activities and proposed initiatives
* To propose prevention-related programs for AHA Scientific Sessions
* To develop scientific statements and/or conferences centered around preventing cardiovascular disease and stroke
* To assist nurses to develop skill sets and knowledge needed to facilitate cardiovascular disease prevention activities
If you are interested in learning more about the Prevention Subcommittee and its activities, please contact Nancy T. Artinian at [email protected].
2006 Scientific Sessions: Let's Plan to Attend Together!
For those of you who are still undecided or for those who are new to cardiovascular nursing, we encourage you to join us for this year's exciting national symposium. The AHA 2006 Scientific Sessions will be held in Chicago, Ill, November 12 to 15. The CVN Council dinner will be held Tuesday evening, November 14th. Again this year for CVN, Scientific Sessions will begin with a half-day presession. This year the program is entitled "Advances in the Care of the Hospitalized Cardiac Patient" and will be held on Saturday, November 11, 2006. This program should be of particular interest to advance practice nurses, although researchers, staff nurses, administrators, and physicians should also find it relevant. The CVN will be pilot testing a new format in which invited sessions that are clinically focused will be combined with research abstract sessions. The purpose of this format change is to enhance the transitional aspects of our research and the evidence base of our invited sessions and to bring clinicians and researchers together. Other programs during the conference will cover topics from prevention to acute cardiovascular care, the obesity epidemic, heart failure, and management of anticoagulation therapy. In addition, special sessions will cover such topics as the cardiovascular consequences of natural and unnatural disasters, improving cardiovascular risk prediction in women, nonpharmacologic management of cardiovascular disease risk, and joint programs on AHA and Asian-Pacific Society of Cardiology heart failure. To learn more about topics scheduled and/or to register, call 888-242-2453 (within the United States) or 214-570-5935 (outside the United States). For housing and registration, call 800-650-6839 or send e-mail to [email protected]. To learn more about professional membership, call 800-787-8984 (within the United States) or 847-940-2155 (outside the United States) or send e-mail to [email protected].
Excellence in Clinical Practice Award
The CVN congratulates Janet Long, MSN, NP, for receiving the Excellence in Clinical Practice Award for 2005 at the annual Scientific Sessions in November 2005. This honor was bestowed on Ms Long for her excellence in many years of clinical service in cardiovascular medicine, her leadership qualities, and her dedication not only to her patients but to her community and country. Ms Long is a cardiovascular nurse practitioner in a busy cardiology practice in Providence, RI, where she practices general cardiology and preventive cardiology and manages patients with heart failure, hypertension, dyslipidemia, and chronic angina. In her community, she is a dedicated volunteer for the AHA and a supporter of women's heart health issues. This award recognizes the importance of the cardiovascular nurse's active involvement in the AHA and cardiovascular nursing, encourages the dissemination of cardiovascular science, and applauds the established career as a cardiovascular nurse clinician.
If you are interested in nominating someone for this prestigious award, the eligibility criteria can be found at http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=11122. Electronic submission through the AHA Submission Site is mandatory for all awards associated with Scientific Sessions.
CCVN Supports Advocacy
The CVN council supports advocacy for public policy that advances the fight against heart disease and stroke. E. Marsha Elixson serves as the CVN lead on advocacy-related issues such as Congressional Heart Disease and Stroke Lobby Day. The CVN Leadership committee will hold its spring meeting at Lobby Day in 2007 allowing for increased member participation. This is a time when volunteers go to Capitol Hill to urge Congress to support policies that help fight heart disease and stroke. The walk on the "hill" is to urge Congress to support policies that help fight heart disease and stroke urging Congress to provide funding to maintain National Institutes of Health momentum and to allocate sufficient resources for the National Institutes of Health and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention chart heart disease and stroke research. The Advocacy Coordinating Committee works to develop the association's public policy agenda and to implement proactive strategies with Congress. Come join your members in getting the message to policy makers on important life-saving issues that affect you and your patients. "You're the Cure" is one such effort. When you speak out for research funding for heart disease and stroke, "you're the cure." When you advocate for your patients, "you're the cure." As a "You're the Cure" advocate, you will receive timely updates on this issue and be asked to continue to take action form time to time, as the funding measure works its way through the congressional appropriations process. For additional information, go to http://www.capitolconnect.com to register and join the "You're the Cure" network. For information related to advocacy and how you can get involved, go to the CVN Web site.
Membership Update
As of April 2006, our Council membership was 1,748, which represents an upward trend. In addition, 114 members were Fellows in the AHA. If you are interested in nominating someone for Fellowship, the deadline for submission is early May each year.
Dates to Remember
American Heart Association Annual Scientific Sessions, November 11-15, 2006 Chicago, Ill. (Book your hotel now if you have not done so because space fills up early).
* Read Council Connections Newsletter on the Web
* Stay current with Council news on the CCVN home page
* Become a CCVN member (http://www.americanheart.org/pesenter.jhtml?identifier=634)
Important AHA and CCVN Web Links
* CCVN home page: http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier_1148
* CCVN newsletter: http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=3004026
* AHA home page: http://www.americanheart.org
* AHA membership: log on at http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=634 or call 1-800-787-8984.
* AHA advocacy: http://www.americanheart.org/presenter,jhtml?identifier=3004026