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May 2005
News Watch
1.AACN
LEADERSHIP NETWORKS NOW ACCEPTING NEW MEMBERS
Enrollment is now underway for faculty wishing to
participate in AACN’s seven Leadership Networks. The networks
provide a forum for nursing school faculty and staff to connect
with colleagues nationwide while engaged in professional development
activities and resource sharing. Working through the networks, peer
professionals will share best practices and success stories, sharpen
leadership skills, and take full advantage of AACN resources. The
seven networks include Organizational Leadership, Instructional
Leadership, Research Leadership, Practice Leadership, Business Officers
of Nursing Schools, Nursing Advancement Professionals, and Graduate
Nursing Admissions Professionals. The annual membership fee is $100
per person per network. Faculty and staff may participate in multiple
networks, and schools may send more than one representative to each
network. For more details, see http://www.aacn.nche.edu/Networks.
2.
AONE SUPPORTS BACCALAUREATE PREPARATION FOR RNs
AACN applauds the recent statement from the
American Organization of Nurse Executives (AONE) to move the education
level of registered nurses to the baccalaureate level in the future.
AACN has long advocated for creating a more highly educated nursing
workforce in the interest of improving patient safety and providing
better care. In support of this recent action, AACN President Jean
E. Bartels said: “We applaud the AONE Board of Directors for
their leadership and vision which will reinforce efforts to enhance
the education level of the nursing workforce and better position
nurses as equal partners in the health care delivery system.”
Read the AONE statement online at http://www.aone.org/aone/pdf/PracticeEducationPartnership0405.pdf
and the AACN response at http://www.aacn.nche.edu.
See also a recent story from NurseZone.com titled “Organization
Calls for Baccalaureate Education for All Nurses,” http://nursezone.com/job/MedicalNewsAlerts.asp?articleID=13899
3.
INPUT NEEDED ON PROPOSED COMMUNITY COLLEGE-BSN POSITION STATEMENT
AACN invites faculty and deans from member institutions
to provide comments on a draft position statement related to baccalaureate
nursing programs offered at community colleges by July 1, 2005.
The AACN Board of Directors will review these comments at their
meeting in July, and then re-issue the draft statement with any
revisions by September 1. AACN members will vote on the position
statement at the October meeting. The statement is posted online
at http://www.aacn.nche.edu/Publications/positions/DraftCCBSNsStatement.htm.
Please send comments and suggestions to Robert Rosseter, AACN director
of public affairs, at rrosseter@aacn.nche.edu.
4.
FIRST CNL FACULTY DEVELOPMENT WORKSHOP
OFFERED
On August 9, 2005, AACN will present the first Clinical
Nurse Leader (CNL) Faculty Development Workshop at the University
of Kansas School of Nursing in Kansas City, KS. All academic and
clinical faculty participating in the CNL project are invited to
attend this workshop which will facilitate designing master’s
curriculum, developing didactic and clinical experiences, preparing
preceptors, and shaping immersion experiences. The CNL workshop
precedes a two-day conference co-sponsored by AACN and the Plexus
Institute titled “Complexity Science: Opportunities for Nursing
Education” on August 10-11, 2005. This introduction to complexity
science is designed for pioneering educators who are committed to
making major improvements to nursing education, research, practice
and leadership by tapping the latest advances in science. Details
on both programs can be found at http://www.aacn.nche.edu/CNL/pdf/CNLFacDevPreCon.pdf.
5.
AACN STATEMENT ABOUT NEW NURSING PROGRAM ON
ST. KITTS
AACN Executive Director Polly Bednash would like
to share the following statement with AACN members regarding a new
nursing program opening on the island of St. Kitts in the Caribbean:
“I am writing in response to the large number of emails I have
received from AACN members about the reported opening of a nursing
program in St. Kitts. This program, which will be a for-profit endeavor,
is planned for opening by the same individual who opened a school
of medicine in Grenada and a veterinary medicine program in St.
Kitts. The planned program will be for an associate degree program
in nursing, and according to a report in the Chronicle of Higher
Education, the program will seek accreditation from the National
League for Nursing Accrediting Commission.
The medical and veterinarian education program were
able to operate because faculty from U.S. programs were hired for
short-term employment to teach in the program and contractual arrangements
were made in the U.S. for students in the program to receive clinical
training in U.S. based programs. It is my understanding that the
cost for the planned associate degree program will be very high.
As was true in the programs designed for medical
and veterinary education, this program is clearly a response to
the large number of students unable to acquire access to a nursing
education here in the US. This is, in fact, a major part of the
press release and materials released by the program administrators.
AACN will monitor this situation and provide information
to you about the work of the St. Kitts program to establish itself
as an accredited program and also will work to focus on the need
for a strong resource base for already established programs designed
to produce baccalaureate-prepared nurses. Additionally, the AACN
Board will review this issue and determine what other types of response
the association may have.”
6.
AACN LAUNCHES NEW NURSING EDUCATION FUNDING INITIATIVE
In an effort to enhance our advocacy efforts on behalf
of member institutions, AACN is pleased to announce the launch of
a new initiative called Enhancing Nursing Education Funding in the
States. AACN has engaged the service of Tim Henderson, a nationally
recognized expert in primary care and health professions policy,
to develop a funding information profile for each state; provide
an analysis of the best funding opportunities for nursing education;
and describe the current policy climate affecting support for nursing
education in each state. Mr. Henderson will also be available at
AACN’s fall 2005 and spring 2006 meetings to provide technical
consultation to nursing deans attending these events. For more information
on Mr. Henderson and his work, see http://www.aacn.nche.edu/Government/ENFS.htm.
7.
SPRING CONGRESSIONAL VISITS INCREASE WITH CLEAR RESULTS
The number of Capitol Hill visits made by AACN members
during the Spring Annual Meeting has increased dramatically over
the past three years. In 2005, 112 deans met with their members
of Congress, more than double the previous year, and over five times
more than in 2003. Also, the number of individual representatives
and senators visited has improved as well. Deans visited 93 different
congressional offices this spring, again almost twice those visited
in 2004, and quadruple those in 2003. The Government Affairs Committee
and staff would like to thank those who made the effort to visit
their senators and representatives. We would also like to salute
the AACN State Grassroots Liaisons who organized the senate visits.
Thanks to these crucial efforts, 51 senators, including 15 Republicans,
signed on to the “Dear Colleague” letter in support of
increased funding for nursing workforce development funds in FY
2006, exceeding last year’s total by 10. Read the letter online
at http://www.aacn.nche.edu/Government/pdf/FY06SenateDearColleage.pdf.
8.
APPLY NOW FOR NEW COMMUNITY-BASED JOB TRAINING GRANTS
On May 3, as part of the President’s High Growth
Job Training Initiative, the U.S. Department of Labor issued a solicitation
for grant applications under the Community-Based Job Training Grant
Program. These grants aim to foster capacity building through community-based
strategic partnerships to train workers for high growth, high demand
industries such as registered nursing. In FY 2005, $248 million
is allocated for these grants. Based on current authority, senior
colleges and universities are eligible for these grants; however,
preference will be given to community colleges. AACN urges member
schools to apply and pursue strategic partnerships with community
colleges, health industry employers, and other local network resources
to address the shortage of nurses and nurse educators. For more
information, see http://www.doleta.gov/business/Community-BasedJobTrainingGrants.cfm.
9.
UPDATES TO AACN’S ANNUAL SURVEY POSTED ON THE WEB
Each year, AACN surveys nursing institutions with
baccalaureate and/or graduate programs and publishes reports on
enrollment and graduations, faculty salaries, and dean salaries.
Since the 2004-2005 reports were published earlier this year, the
following charts have been posted online:
For details on AACN’s data reports, see http://www.aacn.nche.edu/IDS/datarep.htm.
10.
SUMMER SEMINAR COMING TO VANCOUVER, BC IN JULY
Join colleagues at the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver July
24-27, 2005 for AACN’s annual Summer Seminar. Under the theme
"Interprofessional Education and Research: Considerations for
Nursing Education", participants will explore several programs
characterized by noteworthy models, beneficial collaborations, and
a history of success. Topics are applicable to any nursing school
with the potential to share resources and partner with another health
care or other discipline in educational and/or research programs.
The conference is for deans, directors, chairs, other academic leaders,
and faculty interested in the topics. Participants will be encouraged
to share perspectives, ideas, concerns, and successful strategies.
For complete information, visit the AACN Web site at http://www.aacn.nche.edu/conferences/05SummerSeminar.htm.
11.
EVIDENCE-BASED GERONTOLOGICAL RESOURCES AVAILABLE ONLINE
AACN members are encouraged to explore the evidence-based
gerontological resources available online at http://www.GeroNurseOnline.org.
Information is available in 19 topic areas, including dementia,
pressure ulcers and skin tears, family caregiving, and mealtime
difficulties. This content can be incorporated into a variety of
courses, such as a stand-alone geriatric course, fundamentals, med-surg
and health assessment. Permission is granted to reproduce and post
on BlackBoard/WebCT/listservs for non-profit educational use. GeroNurseOnline.org
is made possible by the Nurse Competence in Aging Initiative, an
alliance of the American Nurses Association, American Nurses Credentialing
Center, American Nurses Foundation, and The Hartford Institute for
Geriatric Nursing, New York University, Division of Nursing. For
more information, contact Nicole Rotunda at nar204@nyu.edu.
12.
TWO ELNEC COURSES OFFERED IN 2005 FOR NURSE FACULTY
The End-of-Life Nursing Education Consortium (ELNEC)
is sponsoring two upcoming training programs for nursing faculty
looking to develop new expertise. On August 3-5, 2005 the third
ELNEC-Pediatric Palliative Care Course will be held in Pasadena,
CA. On October 28-30, 2005 the first ELNEC-Core course for undergraduate
nursing faculty in three years will be held in Washington, DC. To
register online, see http://www.aacn.nche.edu/ELNEC.
For questions, contact ELNEC Director Pam Malloy at pmalloy@aacn.nche.edu.
13.
NEW REPORT ISSUED ON LONG-TERM
CARE NURSING WORKFORCE
The National Commission on Nursing Workforce
for Long-Term Care has released a new report titled “Act Now
for Your Tomorrow” which suggests practical steps and models
to address the shortage of nurses in long-term care settings. With
nearly 100,000 vacant positions on any given day and a turnover
rate exceeding 50 percent, the report found that the nurse shortage
is costing long-term care facilities an estimated $4 billion a year
in recruitment and training expenses. Convened by the American Health
Care Association, the commission highlights model programs for addressing
the nursing shortage and calls for collaboration at the federal,
state and local levels to bring new nurses into the field. AACN
Executive Director Polly Bednash serves on the Commission. To download
the report, visit http://www.ahca.org/research/workforce_rpt_050519.pdf.
14.
CALL FOR NOMINATIONS ISSUED FOR 2006 AACN BOARD ELECTIONS
AACN’s Nominating Committee has issued a Call
for Nominations for candidates to fill five Board seats and two
committee vacancies. Chaired by Dr. Timothy Gaspar from Winona State
University, the committee will choose the slate of candidates at
the 2005 Fall Semiannual Meeting based on nominations and the committee’s
deliberations. The positions under consideration are President-Elect,
Secretary, Board Member-at-Large (3 vacancies), and Nominating Committee
(2 vacancies). Nominations must be received by 5pm on October 22,
2005. For more information, see http://www.aacn.nche.edu/Membership/CallforNominations.htm.
15.
CHEROKEE INSPIRED COMFORT AWARD SEEKS APPLICATIONS
Cherokee Uniforms is currently seeking nominations
for the 2005 Cherokee Inspired Comfort Award. These annual awards
recognize nurses for exceptional service, sacrifice and innovation
in practice. Individuals may nominate someone in four categories:
student nurse, registered nurse, LPN/LVN, and other non-physician
healthcare professional. Winners will receive an all-expenses paid
trip to a nursing conference, association membership, or other valuable
prizes. Cherokee Uniforms will donate $1 for every professional
nominated for the award to Nurses House, a national fund that provides
short-term financial assistance to RNs facing serious hardship.
Nominations must be made by July 31, 2005. For more details, see
http://www.cherokeeuniforms.com.
16.
NINR OFFERS PREDOCTORAL TRAINING SUPPORT FOR DOCTORAL STUDENTS
The National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR)
is committed to increasing the number of doctorally-prepared nurses
to meet the demands for behavioral, biological, and biobehavioral
scientists. NINR is particularly interested in facilitating the
progress of students who are in research training programs for recent
nursing graduates and students in BSN to PhD programs. Through the
grant program named the Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service
Award for Individual Predoctoral Fellows in Nursing Research, NINR
will provide predoctoral training support for doctoral students.
The applicant must propose a research training program and dissertation
research that is consistent with the scientific mission of NINR.
The National Institutes of Health recognizes the critical importance
of training nurse clinicians to become researchers and encourages
them to apply. For more information, see http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PAR-05-091.html.
17.
INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF FORENSIC NURSES SEEKS INPUT
The International Association of Forensic Nurses
(IAFN) is seeking nurse educators to participate in an online survey.
The IAFN has received a grant funded by the U.S. Department of Justice
Office of Victims of Crime to develop a training curriculum for
nurses related to elder and vulnerable person abuse and neglect.
IAFN is conducting a survey to identify potential gaps between education
and experiential needs of nurses. To support this effort, AACN members
are encouraged to complete the five-minute online survey found at
http://www.iafn.org/survey.
Your participation will give IAFN the data it needs to develop a
targeted training program for nurses and advanced practice nurses
on how to provide state-of-the-art care to elder and vulnerable
adult abuse/neglect victims.
18.
NEW PARTNERSHIPS AND GRANT-FUNDED INITIATIVES
In this section, AACN spotlights new partnerships
and initiatives launched by members, corporate citizens, philanthropies,
and government sponsors that effectively increase student capacity,
add new nursing faculty, increase student diversity, address the
nursing shortage, and enhance the way education is delivered.
- Late last month, Kaiser Permanente in Southern
California announced that it was awarding $580,000 to Mount St.
Mary’s College and Azusa Pacific University (APU) to help
students defray the cost of nursing school and ease nursing shortages
at Kaiser Permanente hospitals. These forgivable loan awards include
$440,000 for 17 accelerated BSN students at Mount St. Mary’s
College; $120,000 for APU’s accelerated MSN students; and
$20,000 for APU’s Second Careers and Nursing (SCAN) students.
Read more online at http://ckp.kp.org/newsroom/scal/archive/scal_050422_nursinggrants.html.
19.
MEMBER NEWS, ANNOUNCEMENTS, AND AWARDS
- In late April, AACN President Jean E. Bartels,
dean of the school of nursing at Georgia Southern University,
was honored with a distinguished alumni award from Marquette University
in Wisconsin.
- The Luminary Project is the first-ever Web-based
tool to promote the work of nurses who are advocating for safe
hospitals, clean communities, and children born without toxic
chemicals in their bodies. The project is jointly sponsored by
Health Care Without Harm, the University of Maryland School of
Nursing and the American Nurses Association, with support from
the Beldon Fund. All nurses engaged in this important work are
encouraged to access the site as a resource and to add their own
stories to the site. “Nurses are natural catalysts. We are
constantly solving problems and improving our practice. But we
almost never take the chance to be recognized. The Luminary Project
lets us do that in a way that inspires others to build on our
collective experiences,” said Dr. Barbara Sattler, Director
of the Environmental Health Education Center at the University
of Maryland School of Nursing. Read stories of “luminaries”
across the country at http://www.TheLuminaryProject.org.
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The University of Illinois at Chicago College
of Nursing and the first U.S. World Health Organization Collaborating
Center for Nursing are hosting an upcoming conference titled
“Optimizing Global Health through Nursing Science”
on October 28-29, 2005 in Chicago. Organizers have issued a
Call for Abstracts on any global, global-relevant, or cross-cultural
local health and nursing topic. Presentations and poster sessions
plus ‘think tank’ group sessions will be held. Abstracts
must be submitted by June 15, 2005. For more details, see http://www.uic.edu/nursing/events/optimizing.htm.
20.
AACN OUTREACH AND ADVOCACY UPDATE
- Earlier this month, Rep. Steven LaTourette (R-OH)
became the new co-chair of the House Nursing Caucus along with
Rep. Lois Capps, RN (D-CA). He is replacing Rep. Ed Whitfield
(R-KY) who served in the role for almost three years. The House
Nursing Caucus has been instrumental in advancing nursing issues
in Congress, particularly funding of nursing education. Many thanks
to Rep. Whitfield for all his hard work, and welcome to Rep. LaTourette
from northeast Ohio. For more details on the House Caucus, see
http://www.aacn.nche.edu/Government/LegislativeStrategies/NursingCaucus.htm.
- AACN is supporting the Community-Based Health
Care Retraining Act (S. 444), sponsored by Sen. Russell Feingold
(D-WI). This legislation would amend the Workforce Investment
Act to help communities experiencing both significant manufacturing
or service sector job losses and shortages in the health care
professions. Demonstration projects to retrain displaced workers
for high-demand health care jobs would be created, led by local
workforce development boards. Communities would have flexibility
in how they use the demonstration grants, based on their specific
needs. Schools of nursing with baccalaureate and graduate programs
are specifically cited in the bill as eligible for inclusion in
these initiatives. Possible activities include creating or increasing
education and training capacity by expanding facilities, hiring
faculty, providing faculty student loan repayment assistance,
assisting with establishing/expanding clinical educational components,
and purchasing additional equipment, such as computers and books.
- AACN Government Affairs staff attended the Friends
of the Health Services and Resources Administration (HRSA) meeting
on April 26, along with several other health and professional
organizations. Dr. Betty Duke, HRSA Administrator, shared her
thoughts on the present and future goals of the agency, especially
that it will be difficult to balance all the priorities within
the tight budget. She highlighted the innovative nature of one
demonstration program, namely the Grow Your Own Nurse Program
for federally qualified health centers. For more information,
see
https://grants.hrsa.gov/webExternal/SFO.asp?ID=D7B98462-205D-4FB9-B5C3-C9DD94E78458
- AACN Government Affairs staff attended a meeting
of the Higher Education Group on May 10. Two prominent Capitol
Hill staffers from the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions
Committee, Beth Buhlemann (majority) and Jane Oates (minority),
discussed prospects for the upcoming reauthorization of the Higher
Education Act in the 109th Congress.
- AACN Government Affairs staff met with 125 nursing
students from Johns Hopkins University on May 12. Students learned
about the appropriations process and the federal funding streams
for nursing education and research. Also, representatives from
the American Nurses Association spoke to the students about practice
issues currently being addressed by federal legislation. Former
Hopkins School of Nursing faculty member, Dr. Ellen-Marie Whelan,
who now serves as Staff Director for the Senate Health, Education,
Labor and Pensions Subcommittee on Aging, concluded the program.
If you would like to bring your students to Washington to learn
more about public health policy, contact Gene Throwe at 202-463-6930,
ext. 237 or gthrowe@aacn.nche.edu.
21. OPPORTUNITIES
AND RESOURCES TO CONSIDER
- The third annual Translating Research Into Practice
(TRIP) conference will be held on July 18-20, 2005 in Washington,
DC. This year's conference will highlight two areas: obesity and
health disparities reduction. In addition, the conference will
continue to provide an opportunity to share innovative TRIP research
and implementation methods, case studies and other experiences.
Conference information is available online at
http://www.epc3.net/TRIP05/Conference/indexconference.html.
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The National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN) is
hosting the 2005 NCLEX Invitational on September 19 at the Hilton
New Orleans Riverside in New Orleans, LA. Since 1999, the NCSBN
Testing Services department has hosted this annual conference
to update attendees on the core foundations of the NCLEX®
examinations and how they all play a key role in the development
and administration of the nurse licensure examination. For more
details including how to register, see http://www.ncsbn.org.
If you would like to subscribe to receive News Watch each month,
please e-mail apathak@aacn.nche.edu.
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