The Journal of Stomal Therapy Australia - Australian Association of ...

President’s report
It’s our AASTN website and journal
Leeanne White RN, STN • CNC, Ballarat Health Services, Victoria
The executive is pleased to report that the website has been
upgraded. Our new website coordinator, Mary Ryan, has
enabled us to establish access and is looking forward to feedback
and suggestions. This has been challenging and complicated at
times but the outcome has been good. The executive will ensure
that details related to the website are recorded in the policy
manual so it will be accessible for future executive committees.
The website has been able to be updated with almost instant
service. We have had several enquires from other nursing
specialties regarding our association since the website upgrade.
We will need to consider the preferred format for the section on
how to find a stomal therapy nurse and this would be a good
issue for further discussion at state branch meetings.
Access to the website has enabled the AASTN Education
and Professional Development Committee to add the current
documents that support the AASTN – much to the relief of
Cynthia Smyth and her team – and Sue Delanty was very excited
about working with the website manager on this. It is a relief to
have the Standards and other documents available for members
to access. I will catch up with Cynthia and her committee in
Melbourne for the October two -day workshop.
Our journal editor Diana Hayes will be preparing another
edition soon and we encourage members to support the journal
by sending in letters on issues to generate discussion.
Planning for the 2008 Annual General Meeting has been
challenging. Thanks to Sue Delanty in Tasmania the tele-health
link will be coordinated from there, with the states linking in.
The number of sites is limited so we are unable to have more
than one site per state. Thanks to the state representatives and
members of the executive for all the correspondence related to
arranging venues and IT support. We are currently collating
the contact details and will be in communication with the state
representatives again. Planning is continuing and we will need
to have as much of the business as possible submitted and
circulated prior to the meeting.
the AASTN representatives attending. While on the subject of
appliances, I would like to mention that the ostomy associations
I liaise with do an excellent job.
Both state and federal governments have a commitment to
cancer care and we as stomal therapy nurses are in a key
position. For example, we need to be aware of the potential
impact of bowel cancer screening. Initially there may be more
temporary stomas before there is a reduction in the death rate
from colorectal cancer in the longer term. The Cancer Council
has released a bowel cancer screening forum report, available at
www.cancer.org.au – it would be great if there were more stomal
therapy nurse positions in Australia particularly in rural areas.
Finally all members of the executive have been working hard
and I can assure you that emails and telephone calld have been
frequently flying around the country.
VALUES, PURPOSE AND
VISION OF AASTN
Our values
Quality, respect, accountability,
commitment and innovation.
Our purpose
To provide support and leadership to stomal
therapy nurses in their endeavour to provide
quality nursing practice.
Our vision
Enduring recognition for excellence and innovation
in stomal therapy practice at a national and
international level.
The next Stoma Assessment Panel (SAP) meeting will be held
in Canberra on 27 September. Diana Hayes and I are among
JOURNAL OF STOMAL THERAPY AUSTRALIA 2007 27(3)