Illinois Nursing Leader Fellows Selected

The Illinois Nursing Leader Fellows for 2014-2015 have been selected. The Illinois Nursing Leader Fellowship was created to implement the recommendations of the RWJF/IOM report on the Future of Nursing. The fellowship is designed to bring together managers and new directors from diverse practice environments across the continuum to participate in interactive sessions to build leadership competencies and skills. Graduates of this program agree to serve as mentors to new participants of future programs. The fellowship consists of 1.5 consecutive conference days, four times per year. In a highly competitive process, the following nurses have been selected for the 2013 nursing leader fellowship program.

Kayla Banks	Carle Foundation Hospital
Dinna Barker	Freeport Health Network
Mary Cranston	Illinois State University
Anne Curtiss	Carle Foundation Hospital
Isabel Gonzalez	Saints Mary & Elizabeth Hospital
Yvonne Kanyange-Nyenya	Tenet Health Chicago
Susan Klug	Memorial Medical Center
Ann Lough	Rush University Medical Center
Rose Mader	Cadence Central DuPage Hospital
Salitha Marsh	Cook County Hospital
Todd McCartney	Advocate Bromenn Hospital
Cassie Mekeel	Freeport Health Network
Blanca Miller	Illinois State University
Pam Nikiel	Saints Mary & Elizabeth Hospital
Ted Nofer	Morris Hospital
Emily Oakes	Memorial Medical Center
Timothy Rog	Rush University Med Center
Joan Salomon-Sales	Kindred Hospital
Sheryl Sons	OSF- St Francis Hospital
Lisa Sullivan	Cadence Central DuPage Hospital
Angela Turner	Advocate Bromenn Hospital
Pam Van Meter	Jersey Community Hospital
Latisha Washington	Swedish American Hospital
Robbin Weaver	Cook County Hospital
Tina Wyatt	Herrin Hospital

The program has outstanding faculty sharing their leadership knowledge. Faculty includes: Janet Krejci (lead), Melinda Noonan, Shelly Malin, and Cecilia Wendler. The next fellowship program will begin in November of 2015. Information and application forms will be shared prior.

Advance Your Nursing Career

Registration now open for the Aspiring Nurse Leader Workshop.

November 21, 2014
Presence St. Joseph Medical Center
333 N. Madison Street
Joliet, IL 60435

This workshop is designed for staff nurses, charge nurses, nurse coordinators, and new nurse managers from any type of healthcare setting who wish to aspire to achieve higher heights in their nursing career.

During this one day workshop, you will learn:

Cutting edge leadership skills
Improved Communication Skills
Overview of Certifications
Importance of serving on a BOD
Successful transitioning from peer to manager

For more information or to register, click here:
http://www.ionl.org/?page=ANLW

Mid-Term Elections – What This Means for Us
 
Republicans had a very successful election day across the country, taking control of the U.S. Senate, increasing their majority in the U.S. House, and winning 24 of 32 gubernatorial races – including Illinois.

In one of the most closely watched and contentious gubernatorial races in the country, Republican challenger Bruce Rauner defeated incumbent Democrat Pat Quinn by more than 150,000 votes (50.6% to 46.0%). Governor Quinn has not yet conceded, saying he wants to see all votes counted.

Meanwhile, Democrats appear to be on their way to maintaining super majorities in both the Illinois Senate and House, pending the final outcome of a few close races in the House.

Nationally, Republicans gained at least seven seats in the U.S. Senate, meaning that Republicans will control both chambers of the Congress in the final two years of President Obama’s Administration.

For full report, click to read IHA’s Summary.

AACN Releases Findings on Progress in Transitioning to the Practice Doctorate 

Today, the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) released findings from a national study conducted by the RAND Corporation, which examined the progress made by nursing schools in transitioning to the practice doctorate – a solution advanced 10 years ago to better meet the healthcare needs of the nation. The report authors found near universal agreement among nurse educators about the value of the Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) degree in preparing individuals for advanced nursing practice. Though many schools are moving to transition from the master’s degree to the doctorate for select nursing roles, many schools are facing barriers to full adoption of the DNP, which AACN is committed to addressing.

Read the full article

CDC Releases Updated Ebola Monitoring Guidelines 

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has released updated guidance for the monitoring of individuals who have potentially been exposed to Ebola. The guidance stratifies risk by four levels – high, some, low and no – and applies to individuals traveling from West Africa, as well as those who may be exposed in the United States. Health care workers treating Ebola patients in the U.S. are considered low risk if they have worn proper personal protective equipment with no known breaches in infection control. According to CDC, if a health care worker treating someone with Ebola in the U.S. becomes sick with Ebola and it is not clear how he or she became exposed, then the other health care workers in that hospital who also took care of the Ebola patient would also be considered exposed and, therefore, high risk. High-risk individuals will require direct active monitoring and will be subject to restrictions on their travel and public activity.

The guidance is available HERE.

See the factsheet HERE.

IONL Hosted Final CENP Review Class of the Year

IONL hosted AONE’s CENP review course on Oct. 23 at Bolingbrook Hospital. IONL wishes to thank Adventist Hinsdale Hospital CNO, Shawn Tyrrell for the support in launching a successful course. The CENP Essentials Review Course is a one-day course that assists participants in preparing for the CENP exam through a review of the AONE Nurse Executive Competencies ™ and practical application of the competencies.

New Evidence Shows Impact of BSNs on Patient Outcomes, Health Care Costs 

Research published in the October issue of Medical Care illustrates the impact a higher proportion of nurses with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) would have on patient outcomes and health care costs. In the study, Economic Evaluation of the 80% Baccalaureate Nurse Workforce Recommendation, researcher Olga Yakusheva from the University of Michigan and her co-authors found a 10 percent increase in the proportion of BSNs on hospital units was associated with lowering the odds of mortality by 10.9 percent. In addition, the research found that increasing the amount of care provided by BSNs to 80 percent would result in significantly lower readmission rates and shorter lengths of stay. This would translate into cost savings that would more than off-set expenses for increasing the number of BSNs in hospital settings. These findings support the work of the Academic Progression in Nursing program, for which AONE serves as the national program office, representing the Tri-Council of Nursing. (University of Michigan School of Nursing news release, 9/18/14)

The DAISY Foundation Announces First Executive Director 

The DAISY Foundation is proud and excited to announce that it has appointed its first Executive Director, Cynthia D. Sweeney, MSN, BSN, RN, CNOR, NEA-BC.

The DAISY Foundation – an acronym for Diseases Attacking the Immune System – was established by members of J. Patrick Barnes’ family in 1999. Patrick died of the autoimmune disease idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) at the age of 33. The DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses was created to commemorate the skilled and compassionate care Pat received from his nurses and to recognize the super-human work nurses continue to do every day. As The DAISY Award has grown to over 1,700 healthcare facilities in all 50 states and 12 other countries, so has the overall Foundation and its voice and opportunities. The time is right to appoint a nursing professional with executive experience to help drive and sustain this work that has become so meaningful to nurses around the world.

Important Dates:

• Dec. 12: Lunch ‘n Learn Webinar: "Exploring the Role of the Registered Nurse in Primary Health Care"
  Register
• Apr. 24, 2015: IONL' s Mid-Year Conference, Springfield, IL
• Sept. 24 & 25, 2015: IONL' s Annual Conference, Lisle, IL
• Midwestern Institute for Nursing Leadership at Kellogg Registration for 2015 will be coming soon!

Other Events (outside of IONL):

• April 15-18, 2015: AONE Annual Conference Phoenix, AZ
• November 20: CAP2 APRN/PA Summit

Member News:

IONL’s Annual Conference had two raffle winners

• Collene Kuesis from Northwestern Medicine, Delnor received a $50 Visa Gift Card
• Victoria Zickenheiner from Advocate Illinois Masonic received a $50 Spa Gift Card

Please congratulate our winners!

Did You Know…

IONL member Cathy Smithson chairs the Leadership Workgroup for the Illinois Healthcare Action Coalition (IHAC). See what this workgroup has accomplished.