Events

Indiana Nurses Calendar

ISNA Members Hold Annual Meeting In Indianapolis

The ISNA 2007 Annual Meeting opened at the Holiday Inn Select at the Indianapolis Airport on Saturday, September 22, 2007, with a presentation “Retirement Planning for Nurses.” Sharon Freed, MSN and Kathryn Parkins, Freed-Parkins Financial Consulting Group, conducted this enlightening seminar. Both Sharon and her daughter Kathryn are First Vice Presidents-Investments with Wachovia Securities. They were assisted by Gene Olivetti from The Hartford.

Several ISNA members were recognized at the Awards Luncheon. Cynthia Wilson, Pittsboro, received the Ruth Stanley Psychiatric Nurse of the Year Award. Diana Kemper, Indianapolis was the winner of the Beverly S. Richards Clinical Nurse Specialist of the Year Award, which was accepted by Sandra Wood.

Diana Sullivan, Greenwood, was the recipient of the Georgia B. Nyland Public Policy Award for outstanding contributions to the development and implementation of health related policy.

The Association’s highest honor, that of Honorary Recognition, was bestowed upon Vicki L. Johnson, Vice-President for Nursing Services and Chief Nursing Officer, Schneck Medical Center, an ANCC accredited Magnet facility in Seymour.

Dorene Albright, ISNA President, opened the ISNA Meeting of the Members on Saturday afternoon. The members accepted the revised Public Policy Platform (printed on page of the ISNA Bulletin) and approved an amendment to the ISNA Bylaws which authorizes the ISNA Vice-President to serve as one alternate to the Center for American Nurses. Both documents are available at IndianaNurses.org.

Two resolutions submitted by the ISNA Board of Directors were approved. They are: ”Implications of Fatigue on Patient and Nurse Safety” and “Support for Universal Access and Health Care Reform.” Another resolution “Support for Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)” was introduced by Past ISNA President Nadine Coudret, Dean of the College of Nursing and Health Professions, University of Southern Indiana. An additional “Resolved” was amended into the proposed resolution and the resolution was adopted as amended.

Members of the ISNA-Nurse Political Action Committee solicited donations from the members attending the 2007 ISNA Meeting of the Members. Contributions and pledges to the ISNA-Nurse PAC totaled $1,860.

The results of the election were announced new officers and delegates introduced, the members of the ISNA Board of Directors were sworn in by outgoing President Dorene Albright, and incoming ISNA President Ella Harmeyer outlined her goals for the biennium.
Following the meeting the members present and invited guests attended a reception for Barbara Carrico, ISNA Administrative Assistant, who retired after 22 years as an ISNA employee.

Adopted, Indiana State Nurses Association Meeting of the Members, September 22, 2007.

Implications Of Fatigue On Patient And Nurse Safety
That ISNA continue to emphasize that regardless of the number of hours worked, each registered nurse has an ethical responsibility to carefully consider his/her level of fatigue when deciding whether to accept any assignment extending beyond the regularly scheduled work day or week, including a mandatory or voluntary overtime assignment;

That ISNA urge employers to recognize the registered nurse’s right and obligation to refuse an assignment if impaired by fatigue; and

That ISNA urge employers to recognize their legal and ethical obligations to establishing safe staffing systems; and

That the Indiana State Nurses Association (ISNA) develop communications and other strategies to increase awareness of RNs, managers, employers, policy makers, and the public of the dangerous impact of fatigue on patient, nurse, and public safety.

Support For Universal Access And Health Care Reform
That the Indiana State Nurses Association, using the American Nurses Association’s 2005 Nursing’s Agenda for Health Care Reform as a benchmark, continue to support legislative and policy efforts toward achieving universal access to safe, quality, affordable health care for all Hoosiers; and

That the ISNA members encourage the ISNA Board of Directors to develop strategies and partnerships that challenge health care legislators, policy makers, employers, and the public to place a higher priority on providing comprehensive health insurance coverage and access to safe, quality health care services for all Hoosiers at an affordable price; and

That ISNA, in pursuing these efforts, continue to strongly advocate for consumer access to a full range of health provider and health care services that include registered nurses as providers.

Support For Nursing Doctoral Programs
That the Indiana State Nurses Association support and communicate to the Indiana Commission for Higher Education the need for additional nursing practice doctoral programs in Indiana, and

That the Indiana State Nurses Association work collaboratively with nursing programs throughout the state to assure that Indiana nurses have reasonable access and opportunity to enroll in doctor of nursing practice programs, and
That ISNA, through collaboration with nursing entities, promote access to the Doctor of Nursing Practice program for advanced practice nurses, including Nurse Practitioners, Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists, Nurse Midwives, and Clinical Nurse Specialists, as supported through the national specialty nursing organizations.