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Complexity, uncertainty and change now define today’s health care environment. So does opportunity, when it comes to nursing. With health care reform promising to tap into the influence that nurses can wield for improving a system of care, the expansion of nursing leadership is now more critical than ever. To assist the nurses of Texas better prepare for that immediate role, the Texas Nurses Association is hosting its 10th Annual Nursing Leadership Conference in Austin on September 23 and 24, 2010.  It is a must-attend for any nurse who seeks perspective and enlightenment on an evolving practice environment. 

Day One

Day One of the Nursing Leadership Conference offers information – data – for solving problems and making informed decisions in an everyday practice environment. A team of Texas experts – both stakeholders and nursing leaders – will provide an update on the new regulations,legislation and policies that govern nursing in Texas.  They include Clair Jordan, MSN, RN, Texas Nurses Association; James H. Willmann, JD, Texas Nurses Association; Mary Beth Thomas, PhD, RN, Texas Board of Nursing; and Elizabeth Sjoberg, JD, RN, Texas Hospital Association. 

Rose Gonzalez, MPS, RN, Director, Government Affairs, American Nurses Association
As director of government affairs for American Nurses Association, Gonzalez will present a perspective on national health care reform legislation, including the introduction of federal legislation that will empower RNs to drive staffing decisions.

Texas’ own new staffing rules will be a topic of Day One as moderator and panelists review From the Capitol to the Bedside: Implementing Staffing Legislation.  Noted panelists from various hospitals throughout the state include Joyce Batchellor, DNP, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN, senior vice president/system chief nursing officer, Seton Family of Hospitals; Jo Rake, MSN, RN, CNEA, vice president of nursing, Hendrick Medical Center, Abilene; and Judith Krupala, MSN, RN, CNA-BC, FNP-BC, chief nurisng officer, Cuero Community Hospital.  They will join TNA's Cindy Zolnierek, PhD(c), MSN, RN in discussion of how the rules are being implemented within their own facilities.

The first day of TNA's Nursing Leadership Conference also includes a celebration of success and accomplishment.  Nurses from newly designated and re-designated Magnet® hospitals and Pathway to Excellence™ hospitals will be recognized, as will some very special award winners.

Day Two

Day Two of the 10th Annual Nursing Leadership Conference brings recognized speakers and noted national researchers to Austin.

Linda Cronenwett, PhD, RN, FAAN, Beerstecher Blackwell Term Professor, former dean of the School of Nursing, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Dr. Cronenwett has spent a career gaining competency in evidence-based practice and quality improvement.  A principal investigator since 2005 of a national initiative, Quality and Safety Education for Nurses, funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Dr. Cronenwett will address Conference goers on educational preparation of primary care providers of the future.

Karlene Kerfoot, PhD, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN, Vice president and chief clinical officer, Aurora Health Care System, Milwaukee, Wis.
With a passion for improving the care of patients by improving the quality of work life for clinicians on the front line, Dr. Kerfoot has spent a great deal of her career in pursuit of that devotion.  She has held a number of executive nursing positions including her current one where she has responsibility for clinical areas and quality programs throughout a 14 hospital system.  At this year’s Leadership Conference, she will present Leading in Times of Turmoil. 

Linda H. Aiken, PhD, RN, FRCN, FAAN, The Claire M. Fagin Leadership Professor in Nursing, professor of sociology, and director of the Center for Health Outcomes and Policy Research, University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing. 
Groundbreaking is the best way to describe the research of Dr. Linda Aiken; evidence-based approaches to nurse staffing in hospitals the most current. On Day Two of the 10th Annual Nursing Leadership Conference, Dr. Aiken will present her latest findings and promises to help conference goers make sense of the evidence.

Kenneth I. Shine, MD, executive vice chancellor for Health Affairs, The University of Texas System.  
With the responsibility for six UT System health institutions, Dr. Shine oversees education, research and health care delivery in Texas through academic planning and programs.  He will moderate a panel discussion on Models of Care – Interprofessional Collegiality.  

Registration

Registration for the 10th Annual Nursing Leadership Conference of Texas Nurses Association is available online. Both checks (made payable to Texas Nurses Association) and credit cards are accepted.  Registration confirmation will be provided.  For registration fees and groups discounts, please refer to the details on the registration form.

Hotel Accommodations

Host hotel: Omni Austin Hotel Southpark, 4140 Governor’s Row, Austin, TX.  Toll-free reservations by phone at 800.THE-OMNI (800.843-6664); online at omnihotels.com or texasnurses.org. Room rate: $136 per night plus applicable taxes for single/double room.  Reservation deadline for Leadership Conference room rate is September 7, 2010.

Additional Information is available from Texas Nurses Association, 800.862-2022 ext. 3 or via e-mail to cne@texasnurses.org.

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