November  2007

In June 2003, discussions began with representatives of HPNA, NBCHPN and HPNF, and a consultant to discuss how we could collectively move forward to have a greater impact on communicating the value of providing excellent nursing care at the end of life for all Americans. Our unified vision is to ensure that all persons become aware of the impact of those with hospice and palliative nursing care knowledge and expertise and their ability to deliver high-quality end-of-life care. The desire to achieve this purpose has lead to the formation of the Alliance for Excellence in Hospice and Palliative Nursing.

The mission of the Alliance for Excellence in Hospice and Palliative Nursing is to serve as the unified voice in hospice and palliative nursing to integrate and coordinate end of life care with other members of the interdisciplinary team, to act as a visionary for specialty trending nursing issues, to be a primary resource fostering excellence in hospice and palliative nursing, and to advance end-of-life care for the benefit of the public at large.

Don't miss these deadlines:

1) November 16, 2007 (tomorrow) - HPNA Approved Educator Renewal Deadline
 
2) December 1, 2007 - HPNF Certification Exam Scholarship Application Deadline

2008 AAHPM/HPNA Annual Assembly  
The 2008 Annual Assembly sponsored by the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine and the Hospice and Palliative Nurses Association will be held January 30 - February 2, 2008 in Tampa, Florida. Link to Conference Information

HPNA Pre-conferences for the 2008 Annual Assembly offered on Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Register with HPNA for these pre-conferences: Register Now! 

1) 8 AM - 5 PM Generalist Clinical Review Train-the-Trainer

2) 8 AM - 12 NOON APN Billing: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly 

3) 8 AM - 12 NOON Psychiatric Illnesses and the Dying

4) 8 AM - 12 NOON From Grassroots to Inside the Beltway: Policy Advocacy for Hospice and Palliative Care Professionals

5) 1 PM - 5 PM History and Physical Findings Related to Drug Therapy Management

6) 1 PM - 5 PM Challenges with Family Dynamics in End-of-Life Care

7) 1 PM - 5 PM Implanted Cardiac Devices and End-of-Life Decisions

Additionally, a FREE pre-conference entitled Nurse Leadership Skills Development Workshop "Clinical Mentoring Matters: Nurturing Nurses" FC3 will be offered on Wednesday, January 30, 2008 from 6 PM-10 PM. Registration for this pre-conference (#FC3) is through AAHPM. Link here to register with AAHPM for this FREE pre-conference.

AAHPM College of Palliative Care One-on-One Mentoring Program
Interested in career and professional development advice, but don't know whom to ask? The College of Palliative Care (CPC) offers an opportunity for students, residents, and junior and midcareer faculty to speak personally at the 2008 Annual Assembly with a senior mentor. Mentees will be paired with senior advisors who can help with issues related to professional development such as works in progress; clinical, educational, research, or administrative career paths; writing grants and papers; and balancing family and work priorities. The deadline for applications is November 15, 2007. For more information on this professional development opportunity, visit the CPC Web site at www.aahpm.org.

Additional Generalist Clinical Review Train-the-Trainer workshop scheduled
A Generalist Clinical Review Train-the-Trainer program has been scheduled for Saturday, June 14th, 2008 at the Sheraton Atlantic City in Atlantic City, New Jersey. This one-day workshop is for experienced hospice and palliative Registered Nurses who wish to become HPNA Approved Educators. Presented in a Train-the-Trainer format, participants will be taught facilitation skills to prepare them to teach the Clinical Review. Link To Application

New Corporate Education Product
The Hospice and Palliative Interactive Learning Resource: Generalist Nurse is an interactive learning activity for any nurse caring for persons with life-limiting illness in any setting. Utilizing an outline framework, this tool is a resource of the essential information on hospice and palliative nursing. The Resource's interactive design allows the user to navigate through the program in a manner that best fits their needs. Using Adobe Reader 7.0, the Resource is designed for agencies to place on their intranet for all staff to use. It can be purchased by calling 412-787-9301 or via HPNA website at www.hpna.org. Cost: $250.00. LINK TO THIS PRODUCT

Congratulations to the HPNA Chapter of Long Island (NY)
The HPNA Board of Directors has awarded chapter charter status to the HPNA Chapter of Long Island. Congratulations to the Chapter Executive Board led by President, Beth Dehler; Vice-President, Eileen Roberto; Secretary/Treasurer, Barbara Kramer and to the full membership of our newest chapter on your accomplishment! They will receive the award of charter at the HPNA Annual Membership Meeting being held during the 2008 Annual Assembly.

Click here to see the full listing of the HPNA Chartered Chapters and Provisional (forming) Groups.

Upcoming weekly teleconferences: Must pre-register; call HPNA at 412-787-9301

Advanced Practice Nurse Compassionate Fatigue (Wed. Dec. 5, 2007 12 noon ET) 

Clinical Nursing Development of a Palliative Sedation Protocol from an Interdisciplinary Point of View (Wed. Dec. 12, 2007 12 noon ET).

Journal Club Healing Connections: On Moving from Suffering to a Sense of Well Being (Wed. Dec. 19, 2007 3 pm ET)

Nursing Assistant Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (Wed. Nov. 28, 2007 3 pm ET) 

Please note: beginning in January, 2008 the APN and Clinical Nursing teleconferences will be combined and this Professional Nurse Teleconference will be conducted on the second Wednesday of the month at 12 noon ET. Pharmacological information will be included as appropriate to the topic. The Nursing Assistant teleconferences will continue on the 4th Wednesday of the month.

HPNA Approved Educators! It's time to renew your HPNA Approved Educator status!
In mid-October, important information was e-mailed to you regarding renewing your HPNA Approved Educators status. Please complete and return to the National Office by November 16, 2007 (tomorrow).

If you require any assistance, please contact HPNA National Office @ (412) 787-9301.

Additional information on your JHPN mailing label
Beginning in September, 2007 the mailing label on your Journal of Hospice and Palliative Nursing will include ‘Renew mm/dd/yyyy' on the first line near the membership number. This month/day/year is your current HPNA membership expiration date. This is one more method we are implementing to inform members of the membership expiration date to encourage a timely renewal.

Notification of Membership Expiration
Beginning with the July, 2007 renewals, notification regarding expiration of the HPNA membership will change to the following:
1) A hard copy renewal form will be sent only to those for whom we do not have an email address on file. There will be no follow-up mailing after the expiration date.
2) An email reminder with a link to the Members Only area of the HPNA website will be sent to those for whom we do have an email address. A back-up plan is in place for those email addresses that may not accept the notice.

Newest posts on the HPNA website:
 - Testimonials from current members
 - Quality of Life Matters newsletter for November 2007 
 - One new TIPS sheet entitled TIPS for Managing Fatigue
 - Two new Patient/Family Teaching Sheets:
      Managing Bowel Incontinence; Managing Bladder Incontinence

HPNA Monthly Update

2008 NBCHPN® Certification Recognition Event
NBCHPN® will host its 7th Annual Certification Recognition Event during the Annual Assembly of the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine and the Hospice and Palliative Nurses Association. The luncheon will be held on Thursday, January 31, 2008 from 12:45-2:00 p.m. at the Tampa Convention Center in Tampa, FL. Presentation will be "Certification Linked Practice". Seating is limited to the first 250 registrants. Registration details are available through the website at www.nbchpn.org or by calling the National Office at 412-787-1057.

NBCHPN® 2008 Computer Based Testing (CBT) 
CBT is about to begin! NBCHPN® continues to work with our professional testing company, Applied Measurement Professionals (AMP) towards CBT in 2008! The online application will open on December 1, 2007. Visit our website www.nbchpn.org for Announcements and the Certification Newsletters for more information. 

NBCHPN Monthly Update

Certification Exam Scholarship Applications Due! 
September Certificants are eligible to apply for a Certification Exam Scholarship from HPNF. Find out how to apply here. One award of the entire exam fee is offered for each level of certification: ACHPN, CHPN, CHPLN and CHPNA. More information is available at www.hpnf.org.

Deadline is December 1. For questions, contact Laura Ristau, Director of Development, at the National Office. This great member-benefit is made possible in part through member donations! 

Key to Your Heart - Great gifts of Thanks for Thanksgiving
Key to Your Heart cases make perfect Thanksgiving gifts! Orders placed by noon on November 19 will ship that day. You can place orders for Key to Your Heart jeweled keepsakes online or by phone (412-787-9301). Order several for unexpected December gift-giving needs!

The Key to Your Heart project is an ongoing way to provide support for the Foundation as well as promote the work we do to others. The beautiful case, available for a $20 donation, doubles as a PR tool! 


2007 Annual Member Appeal
The Hospice and Palliative Nurses Foundation is a nonprofit organization which, through grants, scholarships and other awards, provides funding to nurses and other healthcare professionals pursuing education and research related to end-of-life care. Its mission is to advance the work of the Hospice and Palliative Nurses Association (HPNA).

Charitable giving helps HPNF to provide funding for professional education and research promoting compassionate and skilled pain management and end-of-life nursing care. All gifts of all sizes are important to this work which benefits nurse-members, hospice and palliative organizations and perhaps most importantly people with life-limiting illnesses.

HPNF is part of the Alliance for Excellence in Hospice and Palliative Nursing which includes HPNA and the National Board for Certification of Hospice and Palliative Nurses (NBCHPN). Together, the organizations are leading the way in excellence in pain management and end-of-life care. Won't you add to our efforts with a new gift this year?

Click here to make an Annual Member Appeal donation to HPNF

SAE exams support the Foundation
Through the end of 2007 proceeds from the registered nurse self-assessment exam benefit the Foundation. Your purchase helps fund scholarships and grants and other member benefits. You can find the Registered Nurse Self Assessment Exam (SAE) on the AMP Web Site
http://store.lxr.com/product.aspx?id=229.

Vist the HPNF website at http://www.hpnf.org/Default.aspx