Chicago is known for many things-deep dish pizza, soulful blues music, and baseball ranking paramount among the rest. However, quickly climbing the "must do" list is Congress2007, Nursing Management's annual conference. Replete with several thorough, hands-on workshops and a multitude of sessions led by some of the top management experts in healthcare, Congress2007 promises to influence, inspire, and invigorate all in attendance. In light of the diversity of this year's schedule, Nursing Management highlights this closer look at some select sessions.
Confidence boosters
Patti Fralix, MSN, president, The Fralix Group, Inc., believes that the very qualities, skills, and behaviors that made us successful in an Industrial Age will ensure our failure in a service, communication, and creative age. To prevent this from occurring, her session "It's in the SAUCE: Getting Gourmet Results in a Fast Food World" will examine how to understand and manage one's own behavior and work cooperatively with others to be most effective.
"Could it benefit you to integrate the necessary behaviors and skills to be effective in the present and future economy?" she asks. "Are you interested in learning how to get along better with others, especially those who are different from you? At the completion of this session, you'll have more confidence, competence, and commitment to manage your own behavior as you work with others in a team-based world."
Once you've mastered confidence, use it to voice your opinion!! Kathy Reno, RN, BSN, MBA, PhD, president and founding partner, RenoConsulting, plans on advising nurse leaders to step back and review the role of a board of directors during her session "Using the Numbers to Tell Your Story." By focusing on the nurse leader's position as a board member and non-board member, Reno will discuss interesting tactics on how to get your message heard and use your time effectively.
"Building influence with the board is crucial for long-term success in obtaining a high level of status for nursing in organizations," she says. "This program looks at some success factors in presenting to and building strong relationships with the board."
While some ideas work, others don't. Resilience is a key factor in how you approach and respond to your circumstances, and can transform hardship into challenge, failure into success, and helplessness into power. During her session "The Bounce-Back Factor: Developing Resiliency in the Face of To-day's Challenges," Jo Manion, RN, CNAA, PhD, FAAN, Manion & Associates, will detail several practical ways to thicken your skin and find resilient employees.
"Everyone is dealing with tough challenges today in our healthcare workplaces," she notes. "We need people who are resilient in the face of change, who can adapt and who can recover from adversity quickly and in a healthy, growth-promoting manner."
Innovative approaches
When medical errors occur, it's the ethical responsibility of the clinician to disclose those errors to patients and family members. During her session "The Power of an Apology," Eleanor Wilson, RN, MSN, MHA, vice president, patient care services, Doylestown Hospital, will clarify why and when medical errors should be disclosed, identify who's responsible for the error, discuss what should be disclosed to the patient and family, and more.
"Medical errors occur in healthcare every day," she explains. "In order to maintain the public trust, healthcare professionals must be willing to admit mistakes, apologize when they occur, and work to prevent them from recurring. Learn who, how, and when to apologize when mistakes happen."
During the past several decades, there have been major shifts in gender, cultural background, and many other characteristics of nurses, physicians, and other occupational and professional groups in healthcare. Sean Clarke, RN, CRNP, PhD, associate director, Center for Health Outcomes and Policy Research, University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing, believes these changes are expected to continue. His session "A Lens into the Future: Tomorrow's Healthcare Workforce" aims to review demographic information and various projections that'll eventually affect you, your staff, and your facility.
"While we hear and think a great deal about the shortage of registered nurses, the gender and age composition in other fields has changed as well, and there are many reports of problems on the horizon regarding supply," he states. "This session will take a look at the national picture in terms of trends and projections for supply and demand for the different health disciplines in your facility."
Nursing professionals tend to learn about family through the media, educational texts, and their own perceptions and experiences, yet none of these resources can be counted on to give accurate pictures of diversity in the household. To remedy this disparity, Bob Chapman, RN, CCRN, MN, critical care services manager and Magnet project coordinator, Valley Medical Center, plans to teach effective steps to meet the needs of changing family systems and discuss "Who's 'the Family' Anyway."
"There's no question that we've made a great deal of progress in the advancement of science and the use of technology; however, in the area of diversity, we still have a long journey ahead of us," he says. "This breakout session will offer meaningful tools to learn how inclusiveness is a key component to becoming the service provider of choice, business partner of choice, employer of choice, and neighbor of choice globally."
Register now!!
You can register by one of three ways: online, via fax at 1-856-218-0557, or by phone at 1-800-346-7844, ext. 7798or ext. 7750. All preregistration for Congress2007 must be postmarked no later than August 27, 2007. For more information, visit our Web site at http://www.nmcongress.com.
Exhibitors on hand
The following healthcare companies will have representatives in the exhibit hall:
American Association of Critical-Care Nurses
American Nurses Credentialing Center
AMN Healthcare
API Software Inc.
Armstrong Medical Industries Inc.
Artromick International Inc.
Assessment Technologies Institute
AtStaff Corporation
B. E. Smith Inc.
Bernard Hodes Group
Calmoseptine Inc.
Carroll Hospital Group
Concept of Care Inc.
Cross Country Staffing
Dale Medical Products
Decision Critical Inc.
Durfold Corporation
Elsevier Inc.
Excelsior College
Fastaff Travel Nursing & US Nursing Corp.
FocusOne Solutions
HCPro Inc.
Hoana Medical
Integrated Voice Solutions
Jannetti Publications Inc.
Jeron Electronic Systems Inc.
Judith Briles
JWT Employment Communications
Lionville Systems Inc.
O'Grady Peyton International
ON Assignment Nurse Travel
OptiVox Patient Reports/The White Stone Group
Raspberry Medical Inc.
Rauland-Borg Corp.
ResQ Healthcare Systems
Sigma Theta Tau International
SimplexGrinnell
SpectraLink
Tektone Sound & Signal Manufacturing Inc.
The Nielsen Healthcare Group
VasTech
Vivid Learning Systems
Vocera Communication Inc.
West-Com Nurse Call Systems Inc.
Wolters Kluwer Health (Lippincott Williams & Wilkins)