by Mike Lee, Staff Writer
Nurses from around the state will converge on Midwest City’s Reed Conference Center Oct. 21-22 to discuss the important role nursing plays in our healthcare system.
The theme for this year’s Convention is Oklahoma Nurses: Integrating Points of Care. The focus for the two-day convention will highlight the impact that Oklahoma Nurses make across all practice settings related to innovative and evidence-based practice as it relates to ethics, quality improvement and technology.
“It gives Oklahoma nurses an opportunity to hear from experts in their field and be able to apply that information in their own practice as well as hear from other Oklahoma nurses,” Oklahoma Nurses Association Executive Director Jane Nelson said.
Faith M. Jones, MSN, RN, NEA-BC will highlight the first day presenting Care Coordination: Capitalizing on Nursing’s Value.
Jones began her healthcare career in the US Navy more than 30 years ago. She has worked in a variety of roles in clinical practice, education, management, administration, consulting, and healthcare compliance.
Her knowledge and experience spans various settings including ambulance, clinics, hospitals, home care, and long term care with a focus on rural healthcare where it is not uncommon to wear many hats.
In her leadership roles she has been responsible for the operational leadership for all clinical functions including multiple nursing specialties, pharmacy, laboratory, imaging, nutrition, therapies, as well as administrative functions related to quality management, case management, medical staff credentialing, staff education, and corporate compliance.
She has held a variety of leadership positions in the profession of nursing currently serving as a Director at Large on the American Nurses Association Board of Directors and the Chair of the ANA-PAC.
Ms Jones received her initial nursing degree from Ventura College in Ventura California, an undergrad degree in nursing from the University of Wyoming, and her graduate degree in nursing administration and education from the University of Phoenix. She currently holds a certification from the American Nurses Credentialing Center as a Nurse Executive Advanced and certifications as a LEAN reView Instructor and Green Belt in Healthcare from LEAN Healthcare West.
Wednesday’s line-up includes a panel of nursing professionals discussing Oklahoma Nurses and their Impact on Health Care in Oklahoma, followed by the Issue Forum.
During the Issue Forum, the discussion will focus on issues related to the work of the association and nursing practice.
Participants will have the opportunity to create and/or select individual issue forums on topics they want to discuss.
After lunch, the House of Delegates will be held to conduct the business of the association. Evening events include The Oklahoma Nurses Foundation fundraising dinner and viewing of the film, The American Nurse (additional $35), a reception open to all to meet the ONA Board of Directors and a Mix & Mingle for newly licensed nurses (less than 5 years).
On Thursday, the convention will continue to highlight the work being done to transform health care in Oklahoma with a general session followed by four breakout sessions.
Keynote speaker, David Kendrick, MD, MPH will discuss the current state of health care as well as a look into how new technology is changing the future of health care.
Kendrick is the Associate Professor of Internal Medicine and Pediatrics and the Medical Director for Community Medical Informatics at the University of Oklahoma’s School of Community Medicine.
The Department of Medical Informatics provides clinical information systems support to OU Physicians as well as analytics services for clinical operations and research. In addition, the Department operates a Health Access Network for the Oklahoma Healthcare Authority, providing care management services, quality improvement support, and technology for Oklahoma physicians serving more than 100,000 patients.
Kendrick holds degrees in engineering, medicine, and public health, and received formal training in medical informatics at Harvard’s Center for IT Leadership. He has more than 15 years of practical experience in designing and implementing novel healthcare software, ranging from telemedicine systems to enterprise electronic medical record systems.
Healthcare providers in four states use systems designed by Kendrick to manage more than 40,000 patients on a daily basis. He is currently principal investigator of the Doc2Doc study, the first randomized controlled trial to evaluate the use of store and forward telemedicine technology in a community wide setting.
Nurses can still register for the two-day event by going online to www.oklahomanurses.org or by calling the ONA offices at 405-840-3476.
