Rhode Island Nurse August 2022

Page 4 • Rhode Island Nurse August, September, October 2022
I am a Nursing Conference Junkie
Leigh Hubbard, MS, RN
President, ANA-RI
I remember my Nursing
Research course in my
Bachelor’s program at
UMass Dartmouth. It
was a mandatory course
within the curriculum, but
I remember thinking, this
is silly – I want to care for
people, not do research!
I tucked the info from
that course into a corner
of my brain and got to
work. For the first few years I busied myself with
getting into the practice of nursing, refining my
assessment skills, trying not to do harm, learning
how to be a good colleague, and teaching
those coming on after me. As I became more
comfortable with the basics, I felt a tug toward
improving the systems and workplaces that I
was a part of. I remember thinking, what would
happen if we changed this a bit, or refined this
process, or asked nurses about this scenario?
There was a desire to learn what other similar
institutions were doing – how were they handling
staffing deficits and medication errors? How
were they coping with the unexpected death of
a patient? How were other institutions reducing
post-surgical complications or admission rates?
I began using my institution’s library (Because
back then there was an actual place where
nursing journals were sitting on shelves) and
looking for information. It was in the front and
back of those journals I discovered invitations
to attend conferences. Then I remembered my
research class.
I attended my first conference in Boston in
2008. It was an adolescent health conference,
with a track in sexual health, which was the
area of nursing I was practicing at that time. I
paid a few hundred dollars, requested the time
off of work, and took the train from Providence
to Boston. I heard incredible speakers and met
incredible people. I learned of alternative ways to
ask questions in a way that carried less judgment
and would help put my youthful patients at
ease. I learned about assessment tools I hadn’t
seen before, and I learned of up-and-coming
technology and medications that were going to
be emerging in the near future. It was an injection
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As my nursing career evolved, I sought
out conferences and ways to physically
connect with others instead of just reading
a paper and doing a continuing education
quiz. When I met my mentor, the Director of
one of my programs, they shared this tidbit:
“Submit abstracts. You have things that you
are doing that other institutions should know
about. And don’t submit alone – always include
a colleague. We never do anything alone in
nursing.” I thought, no… everyone knows this
stuff. Everyone is doing this. What I’m doing
isn’t special. And also, Writing an abstract is
hard! What if it gets rejected? Ultimately, she
encouraged me to submit a 250 word abstract
about our program’s successful perioperative
transfusion reduction initiative. I logged onto
the website, followed the instructions, wrote
our story, found a few trusted colleagues to
edit and then incorporated their feedback. I hit
the ‘submit’ button and waited two months. I
remember receiving the email informing me that
our abstract was accepted! I was so excited and
also validated in the work we were doing for our
patients – now we would be able to share with
others and potentially positively impact care on a
larger scale!
My institution offered a professional
development benefit, so had I attended, the
conference would have been paid for but the
hotel and flight would have been on me, and I
would have had to take PTO to attend. Because
I had an accepted abstract, however, my
institution was willing to pay for the conference,
hotel, and flight. I was sold. With this
conference I not only got a dose of innovation
and inspiration but I also had the financial
support of my institution. I was tasked with
being an ambassador for our organization and
presenting this great information, but I wasn’t
left to do this on my own. I received help
organizing my presentation, working on timing,
and considering and preparing for questions
the audience may ask. The conference itself
was thrilling, as was presenting to a group of
supportive peers.
I now submit abstracts regularly. Some don’t
get accepted and some do. Some are related to
outcomes and data, and others are related to
nursing collaboration with other disciplines, or
how to manage angry patients, or care for people
who use drugs. More recently I worked with a
systems designer and researcher and submitted
an abstract to the Design Research Society
International conference. It was an entirely
different experience attending a conference
as one of the only healthcare professionals in a
huge room with creatives and designers, many of
whom were designing tech, systems, and policy
for healthcare. I met people who worked for
the United Nations, aiming to reduce antibiotic
resistance in rural India in females with urinary
symptoms, people designing adaptive equipment
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for people who had suffered a stroke, people
designing for wellness and aiming to end stigma
surrounding mental health disorders through a
redesign of algorithms associated with stock
imagery. Fascinating!
I have never been to a conference that I
felt wasn’t worth going to, and the network
of people that I have met have come in handy
long after the closing keynote speaker. From
those relationships, I have hosted nurses from
other hospitals who want to see what we are
doing, and I have visited hospitals and spoken
with nurses who have extended the offer. I’ve
emailed simple questions and received examples
of policies that I’ve used when developing new
programs or researching alternative ways of
doing. I’ve connected my colleagues with my
connections and fostered interstate institutional
collaborations. This, to me, is how great ideas
are spread, when we remove the silo and have
opportunities to connect and learn outside of our
usual four walls.
If you say to yourself, “I don’t have time,
and I don’t have anything to add….,” it’s likely
not true, but that’s okay – just attend. Attend a
regional conference and use that professional
development stipend which is a benefit likely
offered by your employer. Or think about the
things you do, the workarounds or the gaps in
care or practice that you have solved. Talk with
your manager or nurse educator about what it
would take to measure the effects of an action
or to write up the improvement. You may think,
“I don’t know what conference to attend…”
If you subscribe to a journal, seek out their
annual conference or check the ANA website
for upcoming conferences. Google it! Specialty
organizations usually have, at minimum, annual
offerings, but many have local or regional miniconferences
that may be available.
If you think, “I can’t take the time off…” when
planned for (and many of these are scheduled
up to a year in advance), it’s easier to request
the time, and if you let your manager know how
your attendance will improve your practice or the
practice on your unit, then they are likely to work
to support you if possible.
If you are scared to go alone, know that nurses
are pretty good at talking to people and making
others feel welcomed. By getting slightly outside
of your comfort zone, by stretching, you will
grow. Through this personal growth, learning,
and networking, we find common ground,
solutions to problems, and return to our daily
work professionally revitalized. **
Have you been to a conference you found
particularly exciting/valuable?
We would love to hear from you ! Use THIS
LINK and in the Subject: “Conference Junkie”
Happy Conferencing!
Leigh Hubbard’s nursing work includes
Managing a LGBTQ and sexual health clinic,
surgical services, program development
and management, regulatory readiness, and
ambulatory care and management. She has
worked in surgical intensive care, neurosurgery,
oncology, and women’s health. She finds great
joy in smoothing transitions within healthcare
through process improvement and helping to
guide RNs and other healthcare staff members
through unsure, challenging circumstances.
She feels that “professional growth spurts”
abound when a person or team innovate and find
connection.
Leigh Hubbard is also the President of the
American Nurses Association in Rhode Island
and the Strategic Design Fellow at RISD Center
for Complexity. She is a founding member of
Mainstay RI, a small think tank dedicated to
opioid overdose care redesign. She is an active
member of Grace Episcopal Church in Downtown
Providence, where she sings soprano in the choir
with her two children.