NANN's Neonatal Connection bloggers had a great time at the 30th Annual Educational Conference. Check out everything they are did below and follow them along on their journey!
Pictured (from left to right): Courtney Prewitt, Carrie-Ellen Briere, and Kristin Howard
Kristin Howard
Wednesday, September 10, 2014
I could feel the Arizona heat the moment I stepped off the plane in Phoenix! Fall is in the air in Denver it is supposed to snow there this week so I will be enjoying the warmth while I can! After checking in to the hotel and exploring downtown and little, my research partner (Michelle) and I found a place to relax and get pedicures. My mom, who is a nurse, insists it is good luck to get a pedicure before a presentation. Hoping to ward off evil spirits, Michelle and I made sure to follow through so the good juju will be with us on Friday when we present!
Then, we went over to the Welcome Reception and, after riding what felt like every elevator in the building because we got lost, checked in and headed to the exhibit hall. Michelle and I found several of our colleagues from Denver and caught up on everyone's take of the Arizona weather and forecast for Denver this week.
I thoroughly enjoyed the snacks and may-or-may-not have dropped hummus on myself.. oops! I was able to say hello to some of the nurses I met at the NANN Research Summit this past April. I visited several booths and scoped out who has the best give aways and of course best info for our babies! On the way out, I ran in to a childhood mentor of mine from my hometown in Wyoming!
I've only been in Phoenix for a few hours but the conference is off to a great start! It is always humbling to step back and realize how many talented and dedicated nurses I will be surrounded by this week.
Thursday, September 11, 2014
Feeling energized for the conference, I got up early this morning and went to the hotel gym to get in a work out. I apologize to anyone who had the unfortunate experience to witness my near death experience on the treadmill.. so much for my work out, the best laid plans!
Anyway, Michelle and I had fresh, hot coffee delivered to our room promptly at 06:00 (well worth the $3.50 delivery charge!) I regained my composure after the treadmill incident and headed over to the opening presentation. I couldn't help but smile and try to suppress the urge to dance when I walked in and heard Will Smith's "Gettin' Jiggy with it" playing overhead.
Dr. Bondurant kicked off the conference by calling on Kid President to help motivate us to make a difference. I think he is one of my new idols! I thoroughly enjoyed the dysmorphology lecture, who doesn't love a good game of guess the syndrome?!
After the morning sessions we had time to roam the exhibit hall and make sure we hadn't missed anything yesterday and got the down-low on all the new technologies available for our babies. Then we learned about blood transfusion related NEC and (just like everything else in Neonatology) we still don't have the prefect answer. However, Dr. Marin was a great speaker and gave a wonderful presentation. Michelle and I went to the dinner symposium this evening, CEUs and good food, my favorite way to learn!! Amid all the learning, I did take a few minutes to photo bomb some lovely nurses I met in line at dinner and couldn't help but take a picture of the amazing desserts!
Now, we are relaxing by the pool and reviewing our presentation for tomorrow. Not a bad way to spend the evening considering my family in Northeast Wyoming has been sending me pictures of the snow they got last night! I hope everyone enjoyed the day as much as I did (other than the treadmill mishap!)
I could feel the Arizona heat the moment I stepped off the plane in Phoenix! Fall is in the air in Denver it is supposed to snow there this week so I will be enjoying the warmth while I can! After checking in to the hotel and exploring downtown and little, my research partner (Michelle) and I found a place to relax and get pedicures. My mom, who is a nurse, insists it is good luck to get a pedicure before a presentation. Hoping to ward off evil spirits, Michelle and I made sure to follow through so the good juju will be with us on Friday when we present!
Then, we went over to the Welcome Reception and, after riding what felt like every elevator in the building because we got lost, checked in and headed to the exhibit hall. Michelle and I found several of our colleagues from Denver and caught up on everyone's take of the Arizona weather and forecast for Denver this week.
I thoroughly enjoyed the snacks and may-or-may-not have dropped hummus on myself.. oops! I was able to say hello to some of the nurses I met at the NANN Research Summit this past April. I visited several booths and scoped out who has the best give aways and of course best info for our babies! On the way out, I ran in to a childhood mentor of mine from my hometown in Wyoming!
I've only been in Phoenix for a few hours but the conference is off to a great start! It is always humbling to step back and realize how many talented and dedicated nurses I will be surrounded by this week.
Thursday, September 11, 2014
Feeling energized for the conference, I got up early this morning and went to the hotel gym to get in a work out. I apologize to anyone who had the unfortunate experience to witness my near death experience on the treadmill.. so much for my work out, the best laid plans!
Anyway, Michelle and I had fresh, hot coffee delivered to our room promptly at 06:00 (well worth the $3.50 delivery charge!) I regained my composure after the treadmill incident and headed over to the opening presentation. I couldn't help but smile and try to suppress the urge to dance when I walked in and heard Will Smith's "Gettin' Jiggy with it" playing overhead.
Dr. Bondurant kicked off the conference by calling on Kid President to help motivate us to make a difference. I think he is one of my new idols! I thoroughly enjoyed the dysmorphology lecture, who doesn't love a good game of guess the syndrome?!
After the morning sessions we had time to roam the exhibit hall and make sure we hadn't missed anything yesterday and got the down-low on all the new technologies available for our babies. Then we learned about blood transfusion related NEC and (just like everything else in Neonatology) we still don't have the prefect answer. However, Dr. Marin was a great speaker and gave a wonderful presentation. Michelle and I went to the dinner symposium this evening, CEUs and good food, my favorite way to learn!! Amid all the learning, I did take a few minutes to photo bomb some lovely nurses I met in line at dinner and couldn't help but take a picture of the amazing desserts!
Now, we are relaxing by the pool and reviewing our presentation for tomorrow. Not a bad way to spend the evening considering my family in Northeast Wyoming has been sending me pictures of the snow they got last night! I hope everyone enjoyed the day as much as I did (other than the treadmill mishap!)
Friday, September 12, 2014
Today was all about successes. After yesterdays catastrophe on the treadmill, I decided to be a little more cautious and rode the stationary bike instead. I'm thrilled to report that my workout was successfully completed without any more near death experiences!
Michelle and I headed over to presentations this morning but were both uncharacteristically quiet due to nerves setting in about our upcoming presentation. I spent most of the break searching for the booth with the best breath mints to keep with me for my talk. I'm not sure who I thought was going to be that close to me but none the less, I was on a mission. I think I ingested enough peppermint to have fresh breath for the next six days, successful mission! We then headed in to hear the marvelous Mary Coughlin speak about Trauma-Informed care.
I don't think there was a single NICU nurse in the room who couldn't identify with her when she mentioned not getting to the bathroom or lunch for an entire shift because we were worried about one of our babies. Just the thought made me want to run to the restroom!
During the lunch break, Michelle and I went over our presentation just one last time and made a few last minute additions.. my brother sent me a "knock knock" joke I just had to include (see attached). I didn't see anyone fall out of their chair in a sleep induced coma during our presentation so I'm gonna say it was a success!
After our presentation met up with our Denver colleagues to take a group picture in front of a conference sign. Anyone who has ever tried to take a group picture of a bunch of women knows how long it can take to first convince everyone to be in the picture and second to get everyone lined up for the picture. (It may have been slightly less efficient than trying to herd cats). Then, we had to retake the picture several times because someone had their eyes closed, someone else thought they looked wide, someone else thought they looked like they were wearing pajamas, and so on...
Finally, we managed to get a picture the entire group agreed was OK for our NNP newletter, another success! Michelle and I then had to take a less formal picture because that is the kind of people we are! After the final presentations of the day we wrote ourselves prescriptions, per Mary Coughlin's orders, for some relaxing pool time and a mexican feast. I successfully ate enough chips and salsa to completely cancel out both of my morning workouts! Overall, the day was filled with many successes, some more important than others, but isn't that how life in the NICU goes too?
Today was all about successes. After yesterdays catastrophe on the treadmill, I decided to be a little more cautious and rode the stationary bike instead. I'm thrilled to report that my workout was successfully completed without any more near death experiences!
Michelle and I headed over to presentations this morning but were both uncharacteristically quiet due to nerves setting in about our upcoming presentation. I spent most of the break searching for the booth with the best breath mints to keep with me for my talk. I'm not sure who I thought was going to be that close to me but none the less, I was on a mission. I think I ingested enough peppermint to have fresh breath for the next six days, successful mission! We then headed in to hear the marvelous Mary Coughlin speak about Trauma-Informed care.
I don't think there was a single NICU nurse in the room who couldn't identify with her when she mentioned not getting to the bathroom or lunch for an entire shift because we were worried about one of our babies. Just the thought made me want to run to the restroom!
During the lunch break, Michelle and I went over our presentation just one last time and made a few last minute additions.. my brother sent me a "knock knock" joke I just had to include (see attached). I didn't see anyone fall out of their chair in a sleep induced coma during our presentation so I'm gonna say it was a success!
After our presentation met up with our Denver colleagues to take a group picture in front of a conference sign. Anyone who has ever tried to take a group picture of a bunch of women knows how long it can take to first convince everyone to be in the picture and second to get everyone lined up for the picture. (It may have been slightly less efficient than trying to herd cats). Then, we had to retake the picture several times because someone had their eyes closed, someone else thought they looked wide, someone else thought they looked like they were wearing pajamas, and so on...
Finally, we managed to get a picture the entire group agreed was OK for our NNP newletter, another success! Michelle and I then had to take a less formal picture because that is the kind of people we are! After the final presentations of the day we wrote ourselves prescriptions, per Mary Coughlin's orders, for some relaxing pool time and a mexican feast. I successfully ate enough chips and salsa to completely cancel out both of my morning workouts! Overall, the day was filled with many successes, some more important than others, but isn't that how life in the NICU goes too?
Saturday, September 13, 2014
After our mexican fiesta last night Michelle and I had a hard time peeling ourselves out of bed this morning for an early talk about oxygen toxicity. However, we did manage to stumble over to the conference center and were revived by the bottemless coffee served during the presentation! After our caffeine fix, we went to Mary Wyckoff and Dr Ellingson's lecture about Pan Resistant organisms... WOW! Both Michelle and I voted this to be one of our most favorite presentations of the whole conference. The statistics they presented were staggering and really made you think twice about the way we practice. Thank you for sharing, great job ladies!! Dr. Clark sent us out with inspiring words to empower each of us to make a difference in our own units and in the field of nursing. Now the real work begins, bringing all this new information back to our units and putting it in to practice! Michelle and I managed to squeeze in just a little pool time before we headed to the airport and back to Denver. We were welcomed back with a bluebird sky and gorgeous Colorado sunset. It was a great conference but I am always happy to be home. Tomorrow, I will return to the NICU with a renewed determination to improve the lives of our babies! Thank you to everyone for all their hard work, not only during the conference, but on a daily basis while on the front lines of the NICU!!
After our mexican fiesta last night Michelle and I had a hard time peeling ourselves out of bed this morning for an early talk about oxygen toxicity. However, we did manage to stumble over to the conference center and were revived by the bottemless coffee served during the presentation! After our caffeine fix, we went to Mary Wyckoff and Dr Ellingson's lecture about Pan Resistant organisms... WOW! Both Michelle and I voted this to be one of our most favorite presentations of the whole conference. The statistics they presented were staggering and really made you think twice about the way we practice. Thank you for sharing, great job ladies!! Dr. Clark sent us out with inspiring words to empower each of us to make a difference in our own units and in the field of nursing. Now the real work begins, bringing all this new information back to our units and putting it in to practice! Michelle and I managed to squeeze in just a little pool time before we headed to the airport and back to Denver. We were welcomed back with a bluebird sky and gorgeous Colorado sunset. It was a great conference but I am always happy to be home. Tomorrow, I will return to the NICU with a renewed determination to improve the lives of our babies! Thank you to everyone for all their hard work, not only during the conference, but on a daily basis while on the front lines of the NICU!!
Carrie-Ellen Briere
Thursday, September 11, 2014
Today was the first day of the conference and it was quite a day filled with meeting new people and learning about what is going on in Neonatal care. This year I received one of the 2014 NANN Small Grants Research Awards and my day started with receiving this award at the opening session. It was a huge room and I was nervous about getting up but fortunately I didn't trip on the stage!
During the opening session they also gave out awards to NICU professionals who have made a significant impact in neonatal care. It was so impressive to hear about what these people have done in their careers and how they have impacted the NICU.
At the first session of the day I went to a genetic talk that went over assessing for genetic syndromes and the different dysmorphic features that we encounter in the NICU. During lunch I spent an hour in the NANN Research Institute Steering Council's booth and was able to hear about what some NICU nurses and nurse practitioners are doing in their units, as well as meet one of the other Grant recipients from this year. This afternoon I heard about current evidence on breastmilk in the NICU and I look forward to going back over my notes later. It has been a very busy day and I'm finishing it out with another session and then attending the poster session to answer questions about my poster. I hope everyone that is here is enjoying the conference and I urge anyone reading this who isn't here, to definitely consider coming next year. It is so exciting to be surrounded by so many other NICU nurses who love their job as much as I do!
Friday, September 12, 2014
Who would of thought that I could lose a sweater in a place where it is 103 degrees? My first (and hopefully only!) loss of the conference is my favorite white cardigan... just in time for the crisp fall temperatures when I return home to Connecticut -- I guess a shopping trip is in order! Other than that sad start to the day, I enjoyed the annual business meeting and a session on the crazy amounts of chemicals that we subject our bodies (and our NICU babies) to every day... as soon as I got out of there I began looking at how bad some of the cosmetic products I use are -- yikes!
In the general session today Mary Coughlin talked about the importance of taking care of ourselves so that we can take better care of others. Sometimes that lesson is lost in our every day life and I know I need to be better about it.... I'm sure many of you can relate too. To start this promise to myself off right, I ate my lunch quickly and headed to the pool to read for a few minutes between sessions.
After the next session I headed back to my poster to answer questions and had some great discussions with people. One person even approached me with the assumption I had never actually worked in the NICU before and wanted me to validate myself! As a 27 year old who still gets carded for "R" movies, this was not anything new, but really makes me kind of laugh at what people must think when they realize I'm not in high school, and I even have my PhD....Who else gets mistaken for their age all the time? I'd love to hear some funny stories! (I have plenty from families in the NICU as well!)
Anyways, to end the day I went with my friend and colleague to dinner at a Greek restaurant down the street and ended with an amazing ice cream from Coldstone Creamery. I'm looking forward to the final sessions tomorrow and am excited to see what Dallas has in store for me next year!
Here are my AZ facts of the day: Everything is spicy in AZ... even the brownies! It is so hot here that even the pool water barely does anything to cool you off!
Courtney Prewitt
Thursday, September 11, 2014
The 30th Annual NANN Conference is off to an amazing start! The city of Phoenix is filled with so much beauty and culture, however the HEAT is in a league of it’s own!! Everything is fresh and exciting-- even the fun I’m having with the badge labels. The running joke is that my name badge will be down to my knees by then end of the conference). My vote for next year... badge labels with prints and patterns (cheetah, chevron, etc.).
Today was an exciting day for Texas Children’s Hospital! Kudos to Dr. Patricia Bondurant (Keynote Speaker), Shannon Holland (Presenter), Alexandria Luton (Presenter), Dr. Paul Checchia (Presenter), Barbara Levy (NANN Scholarship Recipient), and last but not least Pamela Spivey, NANN President-Elect.
Today’s sessions were great! Listed below are my ‘Session Highlights’:
I want to hear from you!
The 30th Annual NANN Conference is off to an amazing start! The city of Phoenix is filled with so much beauty and culture, however the HEAT is in a league of it’s own!! Everything is fresh and exciting-- even the fun I’m having with the badge labels. The running joke is that my name badge will be down to my knees by then end of the conference). My vote for next year... badge labels with prints and patterns (cheetah, chevron, etc.).
Today was an exciting day for Texas Children’s Hospital! Kudos to Dr. Patricia Bondurant (Keynote Speaker), Shannon Holland (Presenter), Alexandria Luton (Presenter), Dr. Paul Checchia (Presenter), Barbara Levy (NANN Scholarship Recipient), and last but not least Pamela Spivey, NANN President-Elect.
Today’s sessions were great! Listed below are my ‘Session Highlights’:
- Nurses should be full partners with physicians and other health professionals in leading the redesign of healthcare in the United States.
- Working in silos must cease. We have to work as equal partners in care across profession, discipline, and specialty.
- * Nursing is the most trusted profession. Everything we do, everything we say, everything we touch plays a role in a child and their family’s life.
I want to hear from you!
Pam Spivey
Tuesday, September 9, 2014
The NANN Board of Directors met today and some pictures are below. I really enjoyed the conversations that we shared and truly believe that we have a great conference and year ahead of us.
The NANN Board of Directors met today and some pictures are below. I really enjoyed the conversations that we shared and truly believe that we have a great conference and year ahead of us.
Wednesday, September 10, 2014
I had a blast today! After attending meetings this morning doing the work of the organization for our members, I got to laugh and network with "old" and new friends in NANN's first speed networking session. It was loads of fun!
Thursday, September 11, 2014
Boy am I tired! Up by 6am, Starbucks for my 'usual' only with an extra shot of espresso, then off to the conference. Really enjoyed the posters...taking back great ideas. Mary Coughlin was 'wicked' awesome. I plan on following my prescription for self care as ordered. Thank you Mary for sharing your passion with us.
After a whirlwind of a day I treated myself to a monster burger and fries ( no dietary restrictions when treating yourself:-)
Time to hit the hay and get some sleep. Y'all have a great Friday night and I'll see you in the morning.
I had a blast today! After attending meetings this morning doing the work of the organization for our members, I got to laugh and network with "old" and new friends in NANN's first speed networking session. It was loads of fun!
Thursday, September 11, 2014
Boy am I tired! Up by 6am, Starbucks for my 'usual' only with an extra shot of espresso, then off to the conference. Really enjoyed the posters...taking back great ideas. Mary Coughlin was 'wicked' awesome. I plan on following my prescription for self care as ordered. Thank you Mary for sharing your passion with us.
After a whirlwind of a day I treated myself to a monster burger and fries ( no dietary restrictions when treating yourself:-)
Time to hit the hay and get some sleep. Y'all have a great Friday night and I'll see you in the morning.