Arizona Nurse - October 2021

Page 2 • Arizona Nurse October, November, December 2021
PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
A Time to Reflect
As I complete my second
and final term as your AzNA
President, it is time to reflect.
Since we are a dynamic and
responsive organization that
supports the advancement
of the nursing profession
to promote a healthy
Arizona, as I look back, the
accomplishments have been
many in the last four years:
Less is more: After Selina Bliss, RN
much input from the
membership, the chapter bylaws and finances
have been streamlined for our geographical and
Special Interest Chapters thereby making the
work for our volunteer leaders much less, so
more time may be spent on chapter activities.
More is good: AzNA created the Organizational
Affiliates model with two affiliate membership
options to bring together specialty nursing
organizations as a unified voice for nursing
practice in Arizona.
Change is good: We consolidated the five
Special Interest Chapters into three, to include
the Emerging Nurse Professional, Nurse
Educator, and Nurse Practitioner Council
Chapters. Two of the geographical chapters
consolidated, merging the Greater Phoenix
Chapter and the East Valley Chapter into the
newly formed Central Arizona Chapter, still
known as Chapter 1.
Charge less, get more: The value pricing
pilot with ANA was a success and now it costs
you only $15.00 a month to maintain three
concurrent memberships, including the ANA,
AzNA, and your geographical and/or Special
Interest Chapters.
Look to the future: Upon Robin Schaeffer’s
retirement, the AzNA Board brought on Dawna
Cato and updated the position from Executive
Director to that of our Chief Executive Officer.
Most intimidating: Writing this President’s
Message quarterly for the Arizona Nurse
knowing that it reached over 87,000 nurses in
the state of Arizona. I tried not to think about it.
Biggest satisfaction: Seeing one of my
President’s Messages on the bulletin board in
the nurses’ lounge at our local hospital.
Proudest accomplishment: Providing the
Success Pays Program for AzNA members. To
advance nursing practice and professional
development by increasing the number of
certified nurses in the workforce, Arizona
Call for Article Submission
Submit your article or research for publication in AzNA’s quarterly print publication.
The Arizona Nurse is distributed to over 58,000+ RNs in the state.
AzNA welcomes submission of nursing and health related news items and original articles.
We encourage short summaries and brief abstracts for research or scholarly contributions
with an emphasis on application.
To promote inclusion of submitted articles, please review the article guidelines available
on the AzNA website at www.aznurse.org/Guidelines.
An “article for reprint” may be considered if accompanied by written permission from the
author and/or publisher as needed. Authors do not need to be AzNA members.
Submission of articles constitutes agreement to allow changes made by editorial staff and
publishers. See article guidelines for more information.
Submit your article to info@aznurse.org.
nurses now have the opportunity to take a
certification exam or renew their certification
through the American Nurses Credentialing
Center (ANCC) with less cost and anxiety.
Members can take an exam up to two times and
are charged a reduced rate only if they pass the
exam. A bonus is the Sasmor Scholarship Fund
which pays for the first ten AzNA members per
year who successfully pass their certification
exams.
Most significant challenge: Without a
doubt, it is COVID-19. From this challenge,
AzNA formed and led the Nursing SMART -
“Situation Monitoring Response Team” with our
organizational affiliates and major professional
organizations in Arizona to form a rapid response
group to address crises as they hit Arizona as a
result of COVID-19. From this group arose the
RNconnect 2 Well-Being text messaging system
where nurses receive supportive messages
that connect them to self-care resources. To
communicate the benefits of this program, the
Hearts for Nurses initiative sewed over 7,000
quilted hearts to put in the hands of nurses as
a physical keepsake and a thank you for their
incredible work.
Hardest part: Advocating through the AzNA
Public Policy Committee to pass legislation on
the federal and state levels that impacts the
nursing profession and patient care. While
we had some good bills get through his last
legislative session, we have more work to do
introducing new legislation next year.
Most exciting: Attending and participating
in the ANA Membership Assembly for the first
time where I got to participate with hundreds
of others along with the governing and voting
body of ANA to determine policy and positions
for the Association.
Reason to celebrate: ANA extended the Year
of the Nurse from 2020 into 2021 which means
we have another year dedicated to recognizing
and honoring the positive contributions of the
nursing profession.
On this note, let us all take time to reflect on
our accomplishments. While it takes a village
to raise a child and all kinds of members to run
the oldest and largest nursing association in
Arizona, it has been an honor to be part of this
professional organization that is considered the
voice of nursing in Arizona.
Selina Bliss, RN, PhD, CNE, RN-BC, ANEF
Past-President – AzNA
Arizona Nurse Editorial Board
Carol Peyton Bryant, DNP, RN, ACNP, CCRN
Kim Callahan, RN
Rebekah Christopher, RN
Anna Hustin, MSN, RN, NE-BC
Sherry Ray, EdD, MSN, RN, CHSE
Melisa Salmon, MSN, RN, CCRN, MBA
Alicia Shields, MSN, RN, CENP, DNP-student
Melissa Zuber, BSN, RN
The editorial board of the Arizona nurses is comprised of
members of the Arizona Nurses Association, who review all
submissions, provide expert advice on content, attract new authors,
and encourage submissions.
If you are interested in serving on the editorial board, please
contact info@aznurse.org for more information.
Chair:
Rhonda Anderson, DNSc, RN, FAAN, FACHE
Vice Chair:
Pat Mews, MHA, RN, CNOR
Secretary:
Chloe Littzen, BSN, RN
Scholarship Chair:
Sharon Rayman, MS, RN, CCTC, CPTC
Elected Trustee:
Carol Stevens, PhD, RN
Elected Trustee:
Kimberly Behrens-Grieser
Elected Trustee:
Phillip Guarrera
Executive Director:
Dawna Cato, PhD, RN, NPD-BC
Board of Directors
President:
Heidi Sanborn, DNP, RN, CNE
Secretary:
Amanda Foster, MSN, APRN, FNP-C
Treasurer:
Beth Hale, PhD, RN
Governmental Affairs Officer:
Heather Ross, PhD, DNP, ANP-BC, RN, FAANP
Director-At-Large:
Sonia Blau, BSN, RNC-OP, CDP
Director-At-Large:
Robert “Bill” Adams, MSN, RN, CDCES, NHDP-BC
Past President:
Selina Bliss, PhD, RN, CNE, RN-BC
Staff
Dawna Cato, Phd, RN, NPD-BC, Chief Executive Officer
Wendy Knefelkamp, Director of Operations
Debby Wood, Senior Project Coordinator
Madi Moyer, Communications Specialist
The Arizona Nurse (ISSN 0004-1599) is the official
publication of the Arizona Foundation for the Future of Nursing
(AzFFN), peer reviewed and indexed in Cumulative Index for
Nursing and Allied Health Literature. Arizona Nurse Author
Guidelines are available at www.aznurse.org. Call 480.831.0404
or info@aznurse.org for more information.
No material in the newsletter may be reproduced
without written permission from the Executive Director.
Subscription price: included in AzNA membership or
$30 per year. The purpose of the Arizona Nurse is to
communicate with AzNA members and non-members in
order to 1) advance and promote professional nursing in
Arizona, 2) disseminate information and encourage input
and feedback on relevant nursing issues, 3) stimulate
interest and participation in AzNA and 4) share information
about AzNA activities.
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