As I began to write my first President's Message after returning from WOCNext 2023, I heard the very sad news of Dr Barbara Braden's passing. I would be remiss if I did not dedicate my first message to this esteemed woman and colleague who exerted such a significant impact on the Wound, Ostomy, and Continence Nurses Society (WOCN Society). While Dr Braden is most widely known for her research and development into the Braden Risk Assessment Score, she has also left an indelible mark on nurses and their patients around the globe and the WOC nursing profession. The Braden Score is the staple and standard of our nursing practice used by thousands of nurses around the world to assess patients at risk for a pressure injury. As we reflect on Dr Braden's legacy, let us remember her not only for her professional accomplishments but also for the values she embodied. Her integrity, perseverance, and unwavering dedication to excellence serve as a guiding light for all of us. The WOCN Society is proud to continue to honor her tremendous contributions to our profession year after year with The Barbara Braden Future is Bright Award and our Barbara Braden Lecture presented at WOCNext. By carrying forward her vision and principles, we can ensure that her legacy continues to inspire generations to come.
As I embark on my Presidency of this remarkable Society, I also wish to reflect on WOCNext 2023. I am always truly amazed at the level of expert practitioners we have within the WOCN Society. We continue to embrace evidence-based practices, while changes are occurring in our health care systems, and we continue to be recognized as the leaders in our specialty practice, providing the highest level of care to our patients. One of the common themes I heard from colleagues during WOCNext is how busy you have all become at work, more and more daily patient consults, not enough WOC nurses to see all the patients, acuity of patients is higher, and of course leaving work tired and sometimes overwhelmed. Now that summer has passed, my hope is that you all had the opportunity to vacation, spend time with family and friends, and of course time for your own self-care. I had the opportunity to run into our closing Keynote Speaker, Laurie Smith, while eating lunch. She graciously sat with me, and we had a very engaging conversation. She reminded me how important self-care is for us. And as she shared in her session, "We all know self-care is important and yet as caregivers one of the hardest things to do. By nature, we are a caring giving group of folks, and we feel taking care of ourselves is selfish, however, not taking care ourselves may be selfish." Lastly, she shared how much she values the role of the WOC nurse and that we must act as our own advocates. With that in mind, I am asking you to please remember to go to the WOCN Society Web site and visit The Value of the WOC Nurse link and input your quality data. These data are essential as we take positive steps to prove to the C-suite the magnitude of our impact on quality outcomes and patient safety.
Traditionally, as fall approaches, the Society's Board of Directors as well as other WOC nurse experts gather to bring their "think tanks" together to strategically develop initiatives for the future of our Society. Some of ideas I ponder is how do we engage our younger nurse professionals to become interested in WOC nursing? How do we engage our new WOC nurse graduates to become active in our Society, or join a committee or taskforce? How do we move forward with a mentor-mentee program? And, lastly, how do we continue to outreach and collaborate with our colleagues globally? I think strategic planning is the time to continue to embrace growth and innovation, elevate our practice, advocate for our practice, and shape the future of WOC nursing. As we look into the future, the Society's Board of Directors is committed to building our new Chapters, increasing our membership, continuing to provide evidence-based practice research and education, and advocating for public policy. Lastly, to continue to remind ourselves each day to practice well-being and self-care. "Every one of us needs to show how much we care for each other and, in the process, care for ourselves" (Princess Diana).
Respectfully,
Vittoria (Vicky) Pontieri-Lewis, MS, RN, ACNS-BC, CWOCN
President
Wound, Ostomy, Continence Nurses Society