WI ENA Connection

2009 STATE ENA SYMPOSIUM

The State Symposium “Straight to the Point – Cutting Edge Emergency Care” will be held September 1st to 3rd at Holiday Inn Conference Center in Stevens Point. September 1st will be a full day review of Emergency Care. Following the Emergency Care Review, there will be a Pediatric Trauma lecture and an Injury Prevention lecture. September 2nd will consist of full day of lectures on topics ranging from “Bloods and Guts of Trauma” to “Stroke” to “9 ½ Things You Would Do Differently if Disney Ran Your Hospital.” A paper and pencil CEN exam will be held on September 3rd. Mark your calendar now and schedule your time off now for this exciting venture into Emergency Care.

NORTHWEST REGION NEWS

Upcoming Symposium

Be sure to join us at our annual spring symposium to be held on Thursday, March 26, 2009 at Turtleback Golf and Conference Center in Rice Lake. Symposium topics include: Abdominal Trauma, Burns, Documentation and Liability, Facial Trauma, and Caring for Children in an Adult ED. There will be speakers from Regions Hospital, Hennepin County Medical Center, and Children’s Hospital. The cost is $25 for ENA members and $35 for non-members. This symposium is open to all ENA members and non-members. Please contact Denice Shepler, symposium coordinator, by email at beanices@aol.com or by telephone at (715)225-9538 for more information or for symposium brochures.

Upcoming Meeting

There will be a chapter meeting to follow the Spring Symposium on Thursday, March 26. Please come and share your ideas on how this region and the state can better meet your needs as an ENA member.

NORTH CENTRAL REGION

On Monday, January 5th, Emergency Nurses lost one of their own. Carla Weisshahn died unexpectedly, as a result of a PE. Carla worked as a night nurse at Theda Clark Medical Center, in Neenah, for the past 22 years, and she was a long-time ENA member. She was a dear friend to many, known for her wisdom and quiet strength and leadership. She wasn't one for a lot of meetings or committees, she was the one who worked the floor so someone else could go. She was a preceptor, a charge nurse, and a SANE nurse. She was incredibly kind, and daily modeled advocacy and compassion.

She loved to travel, and she loved her animals. A few years ago, she was caught in New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina. She was at the Convention Center, giving care to others: that was just who she was, and what she did. Carla was my friend and my co-worker, a confidant and mentor. She will be sorely missed, and her contribution to Emergency Nursing will not be forgotten. Laura Smolinski

MESSAGE FROM IMMEDIATE PAST PRESIDENT

It’s hard to believe that 2 years as your president has come to an end. I will say, it felt good to attend the January 2009 meeting and not have to worry about putting together an agenda. The past 2 years have been great. I cannot begin to tell you how supportive everyone has been, especially the board members. Not sure if I would have made it had I not had Barb Johnson to call at all hours of the day, evening and sometimes during the night. I have a much greater appreciation for having patience, for having to know about budgets and just working with others as a team.

Over the course of the past 2 years I think we have come quite far, however; we still have a ways to go and I think Matt will do a great job. Going from a 3 to a 2 tier state has been an undertaking and with each State Meeting, we find things to continually work on. We were able to complete an on-line voting for our Treasurer-elect and 3 regional directors. We put together 2-one day symposiums and 1-two day State Symposium. The attendance at all 3 was down in 2008, but some of that may have been due to the declining economy.I also think the attendance at our State Meetings have been and continues to be quite commendable. We are well represented either in person or by phone conference from our regions as well as our committees, focus groups and membership at large.

During the 2009 year, I will be the co-Chair along with Ruth Wulgaert for the 2009 State ENA Symposium, so even though I am no longer your president, I will continue to be around. Never hesitate to call or send me an email.

Thank you once again to all of my colleagues at the Wisconsin State ENA, you are a great group of people and totally awesome to work with.

Sharon Thorpe, RN

Immediate Past President

Wisconsin State ENA

STATE SCHOLARSHIPS

Once again, the State ENA will be awarding scholarships for National Scientific Assembly (tuition up to $385) in Baltimore, State ENA Symposium in Stevens Point (tuition up to $150), CEN Exam (member cost up to $200), and TNCC/ENPC/CATN (tuition up to $200). To apply for any of these scholarships, please complete a 2009 Wisconsin State Council Scholarship Application and a Wisconsin ENA Point System Tool and send to your regional director. The names and addresses of the regional directors are included on the Wisconsin ENA Point System Tool. The 2009 Wisconsin State Council Scholarship Application and Wisconsin ENA Point System Tool is attached and can also be found on the WI ENA website (www.wisconsinena.com) under the forms and policies tab. The completed scholarship application along with the completed point system tool must be postmarked by March 15.NATIONAL ASSEMBLY DELEGATES

Anyone interested in being a delegate to the General Assembly in Baltimore, please submit your letter of intent along with the Wisconsin ENA Point System Tool to Matt Sharp, WI ENA President, E4277 Finnegan Road, Reedsburg, WI 53959 by March 15, 2009. The Executive Board will determine the delegate status after the National ENA announce the number of delegates for Wisconsin.

2009 NATIONAL ENA SCIENTIFIC ASSEMBLY

The 2009 National ENA Scientific Assembly will be held October 8th – 10th at the Baltimore Convention Center in Baltimore, Maryland. For more information, go to national ENA website at www.ena.org.

TNCC INSTRUCTOR COURSE

A TNCC Instructor Course will be offered on April 23rd and 24th in Milwaukee. Spots are limited, but there are still some openings in the course. For application information, go to the State ENA website www.wisconsinena.com for application information. Please email Katrina Ceci, the Course Coordinator, at chickpea@wi.rr.com for more information on this instructor course.

TNCC INSTRUCTORS

Any ENA member who is a current TNCC instructor and has completed the 6th Edition update and has not updated their contact information, please email your contact information to Dotty Rippl, State Education Coordinator, at DJR911RN@aol.com. Dotty is trying to get a complete list of current trained TNCC instructors for the state.

TNCC BOOKS

Effective June 1st, 2009, the price of the TNCC and ENPC Provider Manuals will increase in price. The TNCC Provider Manuals will increase from $45 to $50. The ENPC Provider Manuals will increase from $35 to $40. The price of the instructor supplements will remain at $47.50 for TNCC and $40 for ENPC. Why is ENA increasing the price of the TNCC and ENPC books? ENA has been absorbing the increased costs of fulfillment, printing, and postage/shipping. ENA cannot continue to carry the full burden; therefore, this modest increase in cost is necessary.

2009 ELECTIONS

The Wisconsin ENA will be putting out a call for nominations to current ENA members who would like to run for the following positions:

•Northeast Regional Board of Director

•South Central Regional Board of Director

•Northwest Regional Board of Director

•Secretary

•President – Elect

The term for the Regional Board of Directors begins on January 1st, 2010 and is a two-year term. The term for secretary begins on January 1st, 2010 and is a two-year term. The term for president-elect begins on January 1st, 2010 and is one-year orientation to the president role followed by two years as president and one-year as past president.

The Regional Board of Director of the Wisconsin State Council is an elected position. This position should be familiar with the Wisconsin State Council Bylaws and the National ENA Bylaws as well as current policies and procedures.

Qualifications / Eligibility:

RN and ENA member

Desired: Membership for 2 yrs or more

Responsibilities:

1.Attends State Council Meetings.

2.Acts as a member of Board of Directors.

3.Communicates information from State Council meetings to the membership of the region represented.

4.Encourages members from their region to seek out scholarship opportunities offered by the WI State Council.

5.Performs additional duties as assigned by the Board.

6.Supports the President and all officers in carrying out the Wisconsin State Council Strategic Plan and Goals.

7.Act as committee liaison to one of the current committees.

August 1st is the deadline for submission of letter of intent. Letter of intent must be electronically submitted or postmarked by the August 1st deadline. Only self-nominations will be considered or accepted. Paper ballots will be done at the State ENA Symposium in September. Sharon Thorpe, Past President, will coordinate the election process.

CONFERENCE CALL for STATE COUNCIL MEETINGS

Short on time and unable to free up the day to attend a State Council Meeting, consider telephoning in for the meeting. All you need is a telephone and a quiet room. Any ENA member interested in participating has the option to dial a toll-free number and be present via telephone. The telephone number is provided with the agenda prior to each state meeting.

ENA FOUNDATION

The ENA Foundation is a national, charitable, not-for-profit organization committed to excellence in emergency care. Established in 1991 by the Emergency Nurses Association, the mission of the ENA Foundation is to provide educational scholarships and research grants in the discipline of emergency nursing. Funding for this mission is a result of contributions made by emergency nurses, ENA State Councils and chapters, industry support, and friends of emergency nursing.

Are your aware that five Wisconsin ENA members have received scholarships from the ENA Foundation totaling about $18,000. Kelly Johnson and Bradley Goettl each were awarded $3000 in 2006. Bradley Goettl was awarded $5000 in 2004. Katrina Ceci was awarded $3000 in 2003. Karla Boho was awarded $2000 in 1996. Donna Voigt was awarded $2000 in 1995.

As a result of the generous donations received in 2008, the ENA Foundation will be offering 37 scholarships to undergraduates, graduates, and non-RNs. Consider applying for a scholarship. Application deadline is June 1, 2009. Application is available on the National ENA website www.ena.org/foundation/scholarships.

NEWSLETTER

All ENA members are encouraged to submit an article for the Fall 2009 newsletter. No minimum length or special format required. Articles may be submitted to Denice Shepler, editor, at beanices@aol.com.

UPCOMING MEETINGS

March 19th Elizabeth Inn – Plover

May 14th Elizabeth Inn – Plover

August 13th Ruth’s Cabin – Lake Poygan (near Appleton)

November 19th Elizabeth Inn – Plover

•All meeting at Elizabeth Inn are at 9:00am with breakfast at 8:30am.

•Conference Call available for all meeting at the Elizabeth Inn

DATES TO REMEMBER

September 1st - 3rd State Symposium Stevens Point

October 7th - 8th General Assembly Baltimore

October 8th -10th Scientific Assembly Baltimore