Inland Empire Nurses Association News

March 2011 - District 4, Volume 11, Issue 1 - Published Quarterly

IN THIS ISSUE:   Message from the President   IENA Nominations   Scholarship Opportunities   Nurses voted most trusted profession   Dates of Interest   Your IENA Dollars at Work   New Members

Message from the President:

My colleagues and fellow IENA members, spring is upon us! St. Patrick's Day and Easter decorations are in the local stores, and the snow is quickly melting. We hope you will find time this spring to attend some of the events sponsored by your professional organization.

Local Unit Chair "Dinner on Us": In January, we hosted the Local Unit Chair "Dinner on Us." This is IENA's opportunity to strengthen our connection with your WSNA Local Unit Officers and discover opportunities to support the wonderful nurses in our community. If you need information about the local unit officers at your facility please click here. One of the opportunities identified at this meeting was facilitation of continuing education in our community. To meet this need, IENA is presenting a workshop on March 10 that builds on the WSNA workplace violence program, PTSD/Complex Trauma: What Is It? Who Has It? How Well Do You Know That Patient or Coworker? We hope to see you at Mukogawa Commons on March 10. We also have pages on our website that feature Community Events and CE Offerings in the Spokane area. Both pages are frequently updated, so check back to stay current.

Nurse Legislative Day in Olympia: February 14, 2011 was Nurse Legislative Day in Olympia. We had the opportunity to visit with State Representatives, sit in on committee hearings, and hear from our WSNA colleagues. Nurse Legislative Day provides the opportunity to make our voices heard in Olympia, and we encourage every nurse in our district to participate in the future. IENA will be sponsoring a bus again next year, so be sure to visit our website in the fall for details. Please see the excellent article about the event written by Lynnette Vehrs, who coordinated the bus trip and legislator visits this year. Click here for the article.

(Above): WSNA's Nurse Legislative Day 2011.

Click on image to see larger size in a new window.

To see images from the event, visit our Photo Galleries page.

Spring Scholarship and Awards Gala: On April 26, 2011 IENA will again be hosting the Spring Scholarship and Awards Gala at Mukogawa Commons. Watch our website for details about this event when outstanding nurses in our community are recognized and students are supported through scholarships. If you know of an outstanding nurse who deserves our recognition, please take a few minutes to complete the nomination application. Click here for the nomination guidelines and application.

Pride in Nursing Conference: IENA will participate in the Pride in Nursing Conference on May 6, 2011, one of many events held during National Nurses Week. The conference is at Mukogawa Fort Wright Institute, and WSNA will be sharing our exhibit booth. It has consistently been well attended with over 200 participants. We are pleased to be involved in this event celebrating the wonderful work nurses do every day!

IENA Board of Directors Elections: In July, elections will be held for the IENA Board of Directors - PLEASE JOIN US! Your professional experience is invaluable in promoting the nursing profession and advocating for health and safety in our community. Refer to the Nominations article in this newsletter for a list of open positions. If you are interested in serving, please contact Administrative Secretary JoAnn Kaiser at iena@aimcomm.net.

Please visit the Inland Empire Nurses Association on Facebook. Find out about upcoming events, read our comments and learn more from our nursing links. Come and join us on Facebook.

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IENA Nominations

The Nominating Committee is recruiting candidates interested in serving on the IENA Board of Directors. Elections will be held in July 2011. Newly elected officers are invited to the September and October board meetings and will take over officially in November.

Positions to be filled are listed below:

Click here to download a copy of the Nomination Flyer (PDF, 81 KB).

If interested in serving your local professional association, please contact Administrative Secretary JoAnn Kaiser at the IENA office by May 15, 2011 to obtain a Consent to Serve form. JoAnn can also provide more information about the responsibilities of each position. IENA office telephone: 509-328-8288; IENA office email: iena@aimcomm.net.

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Your IENA Dollars at Work

Along with providing professional development and influencing the legislative process, the IENA Board of Directors takes seriously the importance of financially supporting local and national philanthropic efforts. IENA member dollars contributed in 2010 are listed below:

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens

can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has.

- Margaret Mead

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2010-2011

IENA Board of Directors:

President: Michele Slider

Vice-President: Peggy Slider

Treasurer: Martha Goodall

Secretary: Louanne Hausmann

Directors-at-Large: Vivian Hill, Larry Koffel, Danielle Feist, Kim Ward, Bobbi Woodward, Peggy Smith

OCCUPATIONAL GROUP DIRECTORS:

General Duty: Vacant

Community/Public Health: Kimberly Parkey

Independent Practice: Vacant

Nursing Management: Vacant

Education:

Lynnette Vehrs

Nominations Committee:

Laurie Vessey

Administrative Secretary: JoAnn Kaiser

Past President: Michele Slider

Dates of Interest:

March 10, 2011; 5-8 PM

CE: PTSD Workshop & Dinner, Mukogawa Commons.

April 26, 2011

Scholarship and Awards Gala Mukogawa Commons.

May 6-12, 2011

Nurse Week Events.

June 2011

Slate of Candidates announced for 2012 elections.

For more details, please visit our Events page.

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Public Ranks Nursing as Most Trusted Profession

According to the American Nurses Association, nurses were voted the most trusted profession in America for the 11th year in a row in Gallup's annual survey, which ranks professions for their honesty and ethical standards. Eighty-one percent of Americans believe nurses' honesty and ethical standards are either "high" or "very high."

"It's extremely gratifying to know that the public continues to hold the profession in such high esteem," remarked ANA President Karen J. Daley, PhD, MPH, RN, FAAN. "The public's high regard for the profession, coupled with nurses' education and skills, makes nurses well positioned to play a major role in the transformation of the nation's health care system."

Both the Accountable Care Act and the Institute of Medicine's recently released report on the Future of Nursing call for a larger role for nurses in providing patient-centered care in a reformed health care system.

Since being included in the Gallup poll in 1999, nurses have received the highest ranking every year except in 2001, when fire fighters received top honors. Results were based on telephone interviews with more than 1,000 adults.

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Scholarship Opportunity for Certification Review Class, Exam, or Recertification Exam

The Inland Empire Nurses Association (IENA) is pleased to offer scholarship opportunities for members completing a certification review class, certification exam, or recertification exam. A maximum scholarship amount of $200.00 is available throughout the year while funding allows. It is available to all WSNA members with proof of completion of a certification review class, certification exam, or recertification exam.

To apply, click here.

A $200 scholarship was awarded to Susan Stauffer, BSN, who recently completed her NCC Certification, and to Elyse Erickson, BSN, for earning her CNOR Certification.

Providing for the Continuing Professional Development of Nurses

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New IENA Members:

IENA is sending new member letters to those who joined WSNA and IENA since November 30, 2010. We hope that some of our newest members will join us in promoting IENA by becoming Committee and/or Board members in the future.

We encourage all members to visit our official website for more information on becoming involved in the association and for current events planned by IENA.

Click here for the new IENA Members list.

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Happy St. Patrick's Day from the Inland Empire Nurses Association!

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