"Real nurses, real challenges, real solutions" convention speakers.

The afternoon session, for Continuing Education Day on September 28, 2007 entitled "Celebrating the Signature Strengths of Nurses-Called to Care for Self and Others" will enable nurses to better understand themselves, their strengths, and their mission. This program will provide "real personal resources" for nurses in meeting their real challenges.

The presenters, Jim and Linda Henry are nationally recognized experts in career development and health care education. They are the authors of the award winning "The Soul of the Caring Nurse", among other publications.

This afternoon workshop (1:00 to 5:00 PM) will enable participants to:

Define signature strengths and characteristics

Review self care as the foundation for caring for others

Come to clearer understanding of "this is why I became a nurse"

Complete positive inventories that identify their talents and abilities

Nursing Career Interests Inventory

Signature Strengths Inventory

Myers-Briggs Type Indicator Exercise

Gratitude Exercise related to Intentionality 

Start formulating their work/mission statement

Begin building a personal career continuation plan

Break Out Educational Sessions

9:00-10:00 AM Sessions Attendees will choose one session to attend.

Women and Cardiac Disease

Missy Jensen, MSN, FNP-C will cover the current epidemiology of heart disease in women in the United States. Methods for assessment, risk stratification, and diagnosis will be discussed as will the current evidence for treatment and prevention of cardiovascular disease in women. Missy Jensen is a nurse practitioner with the Heart Failure Clinic for the North Colorado Medical Center where she is involved in inpatient and outpatient heart failure management, data collection, and education for patient's living with heart disease.

Informatics

Rebecca "Becky" Green, is a visiting Assistant Professor of nursing at CSU in Pueblo. She will discuss the important field of informatics. At the core of informatics is computing power, information infrastructure, and the human connection. Nursing informatics is now a core learning area for university nursing students. Come learn more about this rapidly growing and changing field of nursing.

Nurse Practitioners in Private Practice in Colorado-Conquering the Barriers and Reaping the Rewards

Karen Tomky, RN, MSN, FNP had been in practice with a Family Physician in rural Colorado for 16 years when her physician retired. Since the physician could not find any physicians to take over her practice, she announced that the only medical practice in Crowley County would be closed. Ms. Tomky was faced with seeking a new job in another county and giving up health care for patients she had seen for many years. She will share with you many of the unseen barriers to buying a medical practice. These include NP's lack of business knowledge, hiring a collaborative physician to comply with the Colorado Nurse Practice Act, dealing with insurance panels, reimbursement issues, and more. She also discusses the rewards of her nursing practice, including patient gratitude.

10:30-11:30 AM Sessions Attendees will choose one session to attend.

Rural Healthcare in Colorado

Lou Ann Wilroy, Executive Director of the Rural Health Center, will provide a general overview of the status of rural healthcare in Colorado: the healthcare practitioners working in rural Colorado, the facilities providing services, the issues, challenges, barriers, and successes. Participants will learn about the benefits of working in a rural community as compared to urban practice. Programs and services available to rural communities and providers will be highlighted.

Forensic Nursing: Advancing our Frontier in Colorado and Beyond

Mary Pat DeWald, FNP, SANE-C will cover the history of forensic nursing weaving our international nursing tapestry. She will describe what forensic nurses do in Colorado, why the do it, and where they do it. The historical evolution of SANE in Colorado as pioneers in nursing will be reviewed.

Realities and Issues of Health Care Reform for Nurses in Colorado in 2007

Presented by Colorado Nurses for Access to Health Care for All (CNAHCA), a working committee of the Colorado Nurses Association.

Health care reform is at the forefront of both state and national political and policy discussions. Will it be a plan for change or collapse of our current system? What must nurses do to make "planned change" in health care in our state the preferred reality?

The Colorado Nurses Association co-sponsored one of four proposals on the short list for consideration by the State's Blue Ribbon 208 Commission for Health Care Reform. Come learn more about how the Colorado Nurses Association contributed to this proposal and what the "deal killers" were for us-the pieces in the proposal that were "non-negotiable" in terms of addressing the diverse issues of all practicing nurses in Colorado. This session is meant for all nurses-novice or expert on the current issues of health care reform.

The history and context of issues in healthcare reform in the U.S. will be described. Final proposals selected by the 208 Commission will be discussed. The concept of a single payer health system will be defined and its relationship to a one-risk pool. In attending the session, participants will be able to formulate and defend their own well-articulated argument for or against a single payer system.

11:35-12:05 Panel Discussion on Governor's Task Force on Nurse Workforce and Patient Safety

Guests will include Colorado Nurses Association Task Force Members, Eve Hoygaard, CJ Cullinan, and Mary Pat DeWald, moderated by Fran Ricker, E.D. This session will focus on history of the group formation, objectives, update on progress to date, and personal impressions of the working process. This is a unique approach to tackling a complex multifaceted issue. Specifics of action items will not be discussed, as they fall under the limitations of the task force operating guidelines.