Get the inside scoop on this year's riveting presentations and speakers.
A Staff Report
According to its denizens, Boston's main attractions revolve around baseball, Harvard Square, Faneuil Hall, baseball, Downtown Crossing, and, well, baseball. Further mixing things up this year is Nursing Management's 6th Annual Recruitment & Retention Conference, scheduled from April 11 to 13 at the Renaissance Boston Waterfront Hotel. With nearly double the poster presenters as last year, not to mention a multitude of timely exhibits and presentations, this year's event promises to significantly enhance your recruitment and retention savvy and send you packing with a bevy of tips and strategies designed to positively enhance your organization's everyday practices.
To kick off the final part of our two-part conference preview, we're offering a sneak peek at session 132 on page 22 of this issue. Titled "The nurse shortage: Where we stand and where we're headed," Sean Clarke, RN, PhD, CRNP, associate director, Center for Health Outcomes and Policy Research, University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing, Philadelphia, Pa., authored this issue's CE article based on information from his upcoming session on the same topic. The article shares an in-depth look at some of the current trends, projections, and predictions Clarke will discuss at the conference. Not enough to sate your curiosity? Read on for two additional previews guaranteed to spark your interest and get you excited for this year's varied educational offerings.
More than a feeling
Recent findings from the field of positive psychology clearly demonstrate that it makes good business sense to have positive employees. According to Jo Manion, RN, CNAA, PhD, FAAN, Manion & Associates, Oviedo, Fla., being happy in our work is far more than simple "happiology." In her session "Creating a Positive Workplace: Finding and Keeping Tomorrow's Workforce," she'll offer concrete, practical, and evidence-based approaches for increasing levels of positivity in the workplace.
"Many managers deal with so much negativity every day, it begins to wear them down," says Manion. "This session focuses on what we've learned recently from the field of positive psychology about happiness[horizontal ellipsis]where it comes from and what we can do to be happier people both at home and in our professions. It includes simple strategies that can be used in the workplace to create a positive environment and, ultimately, a place where people are excited and enthused about coming to work."
Whereas a happy demeanor promotes positivity in the workplace, being inquisitive shows conviction and attention to detail. According to G. Rumay Alexander, RN, EdD, clinical associate professor and director, Office of Multicultural Affairs, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Nursing, Chapel Hill, N.C., appreciative inquiry draws one to inquire beyond superficial appearances to deeper levels of social existence. During her session "Appreciative Inquiry: The Power of Positive Thinking," she'll unseat existing patterns of belief, create space for new voices, and expand circles of dialogue to provide support for innovative action.
"Organizations as well as individuals are defined by the questions they ask and the topics they choose to ask about," Alexander explains. "More than a method or technique, the appreciative mode of inquiry engenders a reverence for life that draws one to inquire beyond superficial appearances to deeper levels of the life-generating essentials of social existence potentials. If you're making changes or transforming your environment, come to this session and learn more."
Register today
Register for Nursing Management's Recruitment & Retention Conference at 1-800-346-7844, ext. 7750, or fax 1-856-218-0557. For more information or to register online, visit http://www.recruitmentretentionconference.com/. To reserve a room at the Renaissance Boston Waterfront Hotel, call 1-800-468-3571.