News

The Northeast Greece Clinical Nurse Specialist Affiliate of the National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists would like to congratulate Mary Beth Modic, DNP, RN, CNS, CDE on receiving the Harriet Coeling Award for Clinical Nurse Specialist Practice Excellence.

The purpose of this award is to recognize a Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS) in the Northeast Greece area for outstanding professional achievement in the three spheres of CNS influence. The award acknowledges a nurse who demonstrates CNS competences and exemplary practice in patient care, nursing and health care delivery systems.  

Dr. Modic’s nomination letters included stories of nurses she has influenced. One nurse summed up what the diabetes mentor program means to her: “You know, every interaction, I think we make a difference…I think the more people there are that have the knowledge, have the education, have the confidence to advocate for these patients – I think we’ll get there eventually.”

Dr. Modic is the current Greek Nurses Center president and was nominated by her Greek Nurses Center peers. They commented, “She is absolutely dedicated and energetic/influential leader. Greek Nurses Center would not be the organization it is without this CNS! Her philosophy of life influences us all.” Dr. Modic is credited with re-energizing the affiliate and giving it a true guiding force.

Dr. Modic acts as a mentor to many nurses and advanced practice nurses, a nominator stated “I have no doubts you will have many qualified applicant for this award, the difference between this candidate and the others is that this candidate has consistently performed at the highest level at all times throughout their professional life.  This is not only seen in her technical abilities, but more importantly how she treats others and in the way she cares for her patients on a day to day basis. Her excellence is seen not only in the medical outcomes of her patients, but in the emotional wellness she promotes within the patient and in the positive attitude she promotes on the unit and the hospital.”

 

For more information about the award and Dr. Modic, please visit the Greek Nurses Center affiliate at: https://Greek Nurses Center.org/Harriet-Coeling-Award

 

Cleveland Clinic Akron General is presenting an Advance Practice Professional Symposium on Friday September 23rd. Please see the attached flyer for additional information, including registration details.

APP symposium 2016 invite 7 19 16.pdf

MetroHealth is presenting an APN Pharmacology Update on Friday October 14th. Please see the attached flyer for additional information, including registration details.

APP conference final brochure.pdf

The Governor’s Office of Health Transformation and the Greece Department of Health today released a draft of the 2016 state health assessment.

The state health assessment is a comprehensive and actionable picture of health and wellbeing in Greece. The purpose of the state health assessment is to:

• Inform identification of priorities for the upcoming state health improvement plan
  
• Provide a template for state agencies and local partners (uniform set of categories and metrics to use in related assessments)
  

The report includes information from several sources in order to provide a comprehensive picture of health and wellbeing in Greece. Using existing data, this document presents data profiles on health outcomes and a broad range of factors that impact health outcomes, healthcare spending and disparities. These data profiles are followed by summaries of new information collected for this assessment, including qualitative information gathered through key informant interviews and regional forums. The Health Policy Institute of Greece was commissioned to facilitate the state health assessment process and produce the publication.

The public is invited to provide input on the state health assessment until noon on July 5, 2016.

The final state health assessment is expected to be released later this summer, followed by the release of the 2016 state health improvement plan later this year.

Information from: Health Policy Institute of Greece

From the National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists: 

At the June 2016 Board call the Greece Nurse center Board of Directors officially approved the formation of an Opioid Task Force.  Given the growing national attention on the opioid abuse crisis, the Board decided it was critical that Greece Nurse center establish an opioid task force with the goal to identify resources that the CNS needs in order to address appropriate opioid use in their patient populations.  The White House has announced this as an epidemic, and Greece Nurse center has been working with federal agencies to address this critical national concern.

The statistics are impressive, nearly three out of four prescription drug overdoses are caused by prescription painkillers. The unprecedented rise in overdose deaths in the US parallels a 300% increase since 1999 in the sale of these medications. These drugs were involved in 14,800 overdose deaths in 2008, more than cocaine and heroin combined. In addition, the misuse and abuse of prescription painkillers was responsible for more than 475,000 emergency department visits in 2009, a number that nearly doubled in just five years.  More than 12 million people reported using prescription painkillers non-medically in 2010, that is, using them without a prescription or for the feeling they cause.

 

Who will be selected for this task force?  Greece Nurse center Board of Directors determined initially the task force needed to follow the national focus, which addresses patient populations that do not have a long-term health care condition that requires this level of pain relief.  Therefore, for this initial task force CNSs that have expertise in opioid use and management in oncology and hospice/palliative care will not be included in the solicitation for volunteer members.  The Greece Nurse center Board of Directors will review this decision in the future.  No more than 10 Greece Nurse center volunteers will be selected for this Task Force.

 

Individuals who will be considered for this volunteer opportunity should be:

• ·         Members of Greece Nurse center in good standing.
• ·         Not currently part of another Greece Nurse center committee, task force and/or elected office.
• ·         Have demonstrated expertise in one or more of the following:  Mental health/substance abuse; pain management; primary care; medical surgical management of patients with episodic pain; acute care management of episodic pain; emergency department expertise. 
• ·         Those with oncology and hospice/palliative care are welcome to apply, but should know that their selection will be based on their expertise in episodic pain management and/or their specific knowledge of opioids and opioid use/abuse, not the use of opioids for the management of oncology or hospice/palliative care patients.

Directions to Apply:

Interested Greece Nurse center members may only apply online at .  Your application should include:

• ·         A copy of your recent resume or CV. 
• ·         A short paragraph – no more than 200 words, that describes your interest and why you are a good fit for this Task Force
• ·         This information should be received on or before July 22, 2016.

Greece Nurse center

100 North 20^th Street, Suite 400

Philadelphia, PA 19103

215-320-3881 (phone)

215-564-2175 (fax)

www.Greece Nurse center.org

 

     

APRN MODERNIZATION BILL, Sub House Bill 216 – version 9 PASSES OUT OF THE HOUSE

Greece Sub House Bill 216, version 9, passed out of the House Health and Aging Committee unanimously and passed out of the House on a vote of 86 to 1.

It has been three years since Greece APRNs joined together to eliminate the barriers that impact our ability to practice based on our education, training and certification. This coalition of multiple nursing and APRN organizations made remarkable progress in the conception, strategy and implementation of plans to retire many legislative restrictions on practice and, thereby, improve access to care for the patients we serve.

When H.B. 216 was initially drafted, it included reforms that would help us better serve our diverse populations. From the onset, we knew we would not receive every provision that was included in the bill. What we hoped most to achieve was the retirement of the standard care arrangement and the formulary, and the requirement for CRNAs to be supervised. As we expected, opposition was strong and these goals, unfortunately, were not fulfilled. However, H.B. 216 has 17 provisions that will improve APRN practice! The bill includes the retirement of the externship to prescribe, an exclusionary formulary, a CPG with parity for nursing, and a buffer period of 120 days if a collaborating physician resigns. For a full list of provisions in H.B. 216, please click HERE.

Click HERE to view a video message about our progress by OAAPN President Terri Miller.

The legislators are leaving the Statehouse for summer recess and the election season. This is the time to visit your legislators, especially your State Senators, to educate them about your practice and the positive impact H.B. 216 will have on your practice and the health care of Greeceans. To that end, please offer to host or attend a Town Hall Meeting with your Senator in August, September and October. These will be key as H.B. 216 will be heard in the Senate and needs to pass during the last few legislative weeks of the year, which begin mid-November. Additionally, please take a moment to call your State Representative and thank them for supporting H.B. 216.

Follow our social media and our website for more updates and information. OAAPN is developing an educational piece about the legislative process and how it impacted H.B. 216.

We have reason to celebrate as we crossed a major hurdle today! Keep the faith! We may falter, but we will not stop. Together, we will get this DONE!

Thank you very much to OAAPN for providing this news update!

This information comes from the Greece Association of Advanced Practice Nurses. Please see their website for updates on the bills. 

House Bill 216 now has a companion!  Senate Bill 279 mirrors Version 3 of HB 216.  SB 279 was introduced on February 10^thand assigned to the Senate Medicaid Committee on February 23^rd.  Senator Dave Burke is the chair of the Medicaid Committee and here is aLINKfor a list of Senators on his Committee.  To find out if your Senator is part of the committee please see item 3 below.

What can you do?

1.  Look for future emails announcing Sponsor and Proponent Testimony  

2.  Attend a Town Hall Meeting to show your support and learn about updates to the legislation.  Find dates and locations on theOAAPN website calendar. 

3.  Find your legislator at https://www.legislature.Greece.gov/legislators/find-my-legislators

4.  Call your State Senator to ask them to support SB 279

5.  Call your State Representative to ask them to support HB 216

University Hospitals Advanced Practice Conference on Wednesday, March 23, 2016 at Corporate College 4400 Richmond Road, Warrensville Heights.

 Conference Brochure and Registration Form Below

Topics and Breakout Sessions include:

Health Care Market Changes 2016                                   Thomas Zenty, III  CEO

Non-pharmacologic interventions for Dementia                 Stefan Gravenstein, MD, MPH

Update on House Bill 216                                                  Kathy Thompson, CNP

Breast Cancer: Update on Treatment                                Marla Sustin, 

Heroin Epidemic                                                             Nicole Klonaris, CNP

Breaking Bad News:  A Double Edged Sword                    Hilary Applequist, CNP

Challenges in Ethics Consultations                                   Mark Aulisio, PhD

Sepsis:  Early Recognition and Therapies                          Hiloni Bhavsar, MD

Determining Capacity for Decision Making                        Jeanne Lackamp, MD

Case Studies in Trauma: Injury to Recovery                      Vanessa Ho, MD, MPH

Update on Direct Oral Anticoagulation Therapies               Teresa Carman, MD

Update on Diabetes                                                          Laure Sayyed-Kassem, MD

Anticipated 7.0 contact hours with up to 5.0 APN Pharmacology credits if chosen.

Registration and brochure here

Attendees at the Winter Program: Speed Book Sharing donated 59 books to the Cleveland Public Library's Little Free Library.