The Official Journal of the Hospice and Palliative Nurses Association
Diversity Task Force
In June 2003, the Hospice and Palliative Nurses Association Board of Directors developed a 3-year strategic plan for the years 2003-2006. Within that Strategic Plan was the goal to increase membership diversity and to investigate diversity in educational products.
The first strategy toward accomplishing this goal was to develop a Diversity Task Force. Through membership recruitment and recommendation of leaders in the field of diversity, the first step was accomplished in July 2004. The following individuals agreed to serve HPNA on the Diversity Task Force:
* Jeanne Martinez, Chair of the Alliance for Excellence in Hospice and Palliative Nursing, President of the National Board for Certification of Hospice and Palliative Nurses (Chicago, IL)
* Masako Nagamatsu, doctoral student from the University of Chicago, HPNA member representing the Asian/Pacific Islander population (Nashville, TN)
* Joyce Newman Giger, PhD, endowed Chair from UCLA, author of nursing diversity
* Carolyn Adams, PhD, researcher from University of Texas, El Paso, HPNA member
* Linda Burnes Bolton, PhD, Vice President of Nursing, Cedar-Sinai, Los Angeles, CA, Past President of the National Black Nurses Association
This committee was charged with creating an agenda through use of focus groups to increase membership diversity, to seek ways to help our membership provide better care to diverse populations, to define unmet needs in our educational products and services in terms of ethnic diversity, and to increase HPNA's visibility within diverse nursing organizations. The task force chose to focus in the beginning on ethnic diversity issues.
The first question asked by the task force was "How much diversity exists in the HPNA membership?" The following statistics quickly identified areas of weakness.
Recognizing that HPNA is poorly represented in terms of the Asian/Pacific Islander population of nurses, the task force developed the following recommendations that were presented to the HPNA Board of Directors on Saturday, October 10, 2004, with wholehearted endorsement.
* Present at the Asian/Pacific Islander Nurses Association Annual Conference
* Write a letter to the Philippine Nurses Association to increase the visibility of the HPNA
* Sponsor attendance of an Asian/Pacific Islander nurse to HPNA's Annual Assembly
* Encourage Asian/Pacific Islander nurse to apply for the Purdue Pharma RN Reporter Award
* Offer our content expertise to the National Coalition of Ethnic Minority Nurses Associations through Dr Betty Williams
* Send a letter to the Asian American/ Pacific Islander Nurses Association Inc (AAPINA) offering ways to collaborate
* Contact the various member groups in the National Coalition of Ethnic Minority Nurses Associations to consider opportunities to publish articles in newsletters and journals and to present at their annual conferences
The Diversity Task Force will also conduct a focus group with the HPNA membership on August 17, 2005, to seek additional input in terms of ways to define the unmet needs of our membership in terms of diversity. If you would like to participate in this call, please watch the Web site (http://www.hpna.org) for more details or call the National Office at 412-787-9301.
HPNA Slate of Nominees and Proposed Bylaw Revisions
Thank you to all of the voting members of HPNA who took the time to vote for the 2006 HPNA Board of Directors as well as your vote on the proposed bylaw revisions.
Save the Date!!!!
The 2006 AAHPM and HPNA Annual Assembly will be held February 8-11, 2006, in Nashville, TN. Please visit our Web site (http://www.hpna.org) for details.
New HPNA Publications
Conversations in Palliative Care
By Joan T. Panke, MA, APRN, and Patrick Coyne, MSN, APRN, BC-PCM.
ISBN: 0-9717499-4-9. 2004
The book Conversations in Palliative Care, presented in a question-and-answer format, is a comprehensive resource built upon a foundation of the basics of defining palliative care and hospice, communicating with patients and families and with other professionals, spiritual care, bereavement, and more. Nurses who are not familiar with the field of palliative care will find this text a helpful orientation tool to key principles for application to families and patients in care settings such as emergency rooms, intensive care units, general medical areas, and long-term-care facilities. To those who work in the area of hospice and/or palliative care, this book offers unique features, including topics such as nutrition, physical therapy, and occupational therapy. In addition, the "how to" sections of the text discuss starting a palliative care program.
Price: $40.00 HPNA member
$50.00 nonmembers
Order directly from HPNA by calling 412-787-9301.
Order Online from HPNA at http://www.hpna.org
Speakers' Bureau
The Hospice and Palliative Nurses Association's Speakers' Bureau is a listing of speakers and topics approved by the HPNA's Board of Directors. There are currently six members of the speakers' bureau who have submitted 12 topics.
Each fall HPNA welcomes applications for new members to the speakers' bureau. The application, along with abstracts for two topics and other required information, is due in the National Office by December 1, 2005.
The application and a list of current speakers and their contact information can be found at http://www.hpna.org under Education.
What Is Certification?
Many nursing specialties and other occupational groups offer certification programs. It is generally accepted as a method of verifying that your practice is a step above what is considered "routine." Nurses and other professionals are mandated to obtain licensure from the state in which they wish to practice prior to entering their profession in that state. Licensure is obtained from a governmental agency to allow entry into an occupation or professional practice group. This demonstrates the minimal degree of competency required to ensure that public health, safety, and welfare will be reasonably well protected. Certification is recognized as a voluntary process that publicly attests to a higher level of expertise, recognizing specialized knowledge, skills, and experience that will generally promote optimal provision of services.
Certification also enables the public in general and employers in particular to distinguish between those practitioners who have attained some qualifying level of competence. NBCHPN certifies all levels of nursing in hospice and palliative care. The CHPN examination process and credential are accredited by the American Board of Nursing Specialties (ABNS) and the CHPNA examination is accredited by the National Commission on Certifying Agencies (NCCA). These accrediting bodies define certification as formal recognition of the specialized knowledge, skills, and experience demonstrated by the achievement of standards identified by a nursing specialty to promote optimal health outcomes.
The certification process may vary by nursing specialty or occupation, but typically involves the completion of specialized education, experience in a specialty nursing practice or occupation, and the successful completion of a qualifying examination or portfolio. Upon completing the certification process, nurses and other qualified members achieve a specialty certification credential.
Look for
HPNA MEMBERSHIP SURVEY
September 2005
Details on how to participate will be sent to you in August 2005.
We need your input!!
Certification Tackettes
Are available for purchase from the National Office.
All Tackettes are 10-kt gold filled for a cost of $35.00 each
APRN BC-PCM Tackette
CHPNLK(R) Tackette
CHPLN Tackette
CHPNA Tackette
To order please visit the Web site at http://www.nbchpn.org or call the National Office at 412-787-10571