October 11, 2017
"Listen! The wind is rising and the air is wild with leaves, we have had our summer evenings, now for October eves!"
                                                             --Humbert Wolfe

As we adjust to the idea of fall, let's commit to making it a FUN and EDUCATIONAL season! KCNA has a fine line-up of continuing nursing education this fall; register for any or all of these events here. (More information below under Continuing Nursing Education.)
       Our best to you this autumn!

        -- Sue Vermeulen & Rose Williamson
            KCNA Staff

P.S. Of particular interest (details below): 
*  Money Matters on October 24 is FREE to KCNA members; register by October 16. 
*  Defining Hope, a documentary about hospice care and nurses, is FREE to KCNA members; register by October 30. 

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CONTINUING  NURSING EDUCATION
Register for fall CNE Events at www.kcnurses.org


Dinner Seminar: Money Matters
Tuesday, October 24  *  6:30-8:30 p.m. 
Ivar's Salmon House, Seattle
KCNA MEMBERS ONLY. This free,  no-obligation work-shop is designed to provide an overview of financial planning and investing. Speaker Adrian Hedwig is financial advisor at Salal Investment Services. Register by October 16.
 
Special Viewing: Defining Hope
Wednesday, November 1  *  7 p.m.
Locations TBD 
1.25 Contact Hours
There will be more than 100 one-night-only screenings of the documentary  Defining Hope , scheduled to coincide with National Hospice and Palliative Care Month. The movie follows eight patients with life-threatening illnesses and the nurses who care for them. 
 
Fall Nursing Summit: 
Learning about Homelessness
Monday, Nov. 20 * 5:30-8:30 p.m. 
Good Shepherd Center, Wallingford
1.5-hour Certificate of Completion
The summit will include: 1) "The Meaning of Home: Nursing's Role in Effectively Addressing Homelessness," with Josephine Ensign, DrPH, RN, NP-C, author of Catching Homelessness: A nurse's story of falling through the safety net, and 2) Taking Action for the Homeless: help pack 400 cold kits for distribution to Real Change vendors. Representatives of Real Change will be on hand. Register by November 13.

Share your expertise. Become a Mentor!     
The KCNA MentorLink Program connects KCNA members with other members (new nurses or nurses new to a position) and nursing students to facilitate supportive mentor relationships. Minimum commitment is six months; most teams have contact every few weeks. There is no cost to participate. To get involved, complete an application at www.kcnurses.org/members/mentorlink and return it by  November 6. Then plan to attend the orientation on  November 29, 5:30-8 p.m. The orientation program will include dinner.
 
Dinner Seminar: Substance Use Disorder-
It Can Happen to You
Wednesday, December 6  *  5:30-7:30 p.m.   
Good Shepherd Center, Wallingford
1.5-hour Certificate of Completion
This seminar will address substance use disorder within the general population and among health care providers. Participants will learn about signs and symptoms, treatment options, legislative actions, and the role of nursing in addressing this national crisis. Speaker Heather Stephen-Selby, BSN, MSN ARNP-BC, RN is assistant executive director of nursing practice, education and research at WSNA. Register by December 4.

MARK YOUR CALENDAR: 
2018 CNE Events from KCNA
More information and registration at  www.kcnurses.org

Dinner Seminar: Human Trafficking
Thursday, January 25, 5:30-8 p.m.
Good Shepherd Center, Wallingford
2-hour Certificate of Completion
This session will raise awareness regarding the prevalence, risk factors and health consequences of sex trafficking, with speaker Kelly Martin-Vegue, RN, MSW, The Center for Children & Youth Justice. 

Seminar: Ethics Conversations & Health Equity
Saturday, February 10, 8:30 a.m.-1 p.m.
Good Shepherd Center, Wallingford
4-hour Certificate of Completion
This workshop will feature three interactive sessions exploring ethics, upscaling social justice practice for health equity and value-based care, and mindfulness. Speakers include: Anne Poppe, PhD, MN, BSN, BA, RN; Doris M. Boutain, PhD, RN, PHNA-BC; and Christine Prenovitz, MSW, E-RYT.
 
District Meeting: 
Conversation with new WSNA Executive Director
Wednesday, February 28, 5:30-7:30 p.m.
Good Shepherd Center, Wallingford
1.5-hour Certificate of Completion
Sally Watkins, PhD, RN, executive director of Washington State Nurses Association, will speak about current WSNA activities and provide legislative updates for 2018. There will be time for questions as well. 
 
Dinner Seminar: 
Health Care Ethics: Henrietta Lacks and Beyond
Wednesday, March 28, 5:30-8 p.m.
Good Shepherd Center, Wallingford
2.0-hour Certificate of Completion    
Join Bridget Carney, PhD, RN, healthcare ethicist, to discuss the bestselling book The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks in light of related issues of healthcare ethics. Register by March 1 and KCNA will mail you a free copy of the book! 

Conference on nurses' roles in addressing opioid epidemic
The Washington State Nursing Care Quality Assurance Commission is offering a conference entitled Choosing the Path: Healthcare Regulation and Substance Use Disorder on October 13 in Seattle. The program will bring together stakeholders to address the roles and responsibilities of nurses related to opioids and other drugs of abuse. Washington is leading the way in addressing the role of medically prescribed opioids in contributing to the epidemic. Find more information here. 

NATIONAL HEALTH AWARENESS RECOGNITIONS
October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month

Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women in the U.S., after skin cancer. A new report from the American Cancer Society finds that death rates from breast cancer in the U.S. dropped 39% between 1989 and 2015. This translates to 322,600 deaths avoided during those 26 years. However, African-American women still have higher breast cancer death rates than white women nationally (26% higher in 2011-2015).
 
Reports based on these findings provide detailed analyses of breast cancer trends and current information on: known risk factors; factors that influence survival; the latest data on prevention, early detection, treatment; and ongoing research. Read more here.
 
Year of the Healthy Nurse: 
October addresses violence,  resilience, infection control

Durin g  AN A's Year of the Healthy Nurse,  
October is filled with be st practices to address workplace violence, moral resistance, and immunizations and infection control. ANA has a dedicated website where nurses will find helpful tips, articles, webinars and other resources from a variety of organizations. Check it out here .    

NURSING NEWS AND CLINICAL ISSUES
Compounds in asthma drugs may help with Parkinson' s 

In an unexpected finding, researchers have demonstrated that certain asthma drugs might protect against developing Parkinson's disease by lowering the production of the disease-linked protein alpha-synuclein.  But researchers caution against attempting to medicate with such drugs before clinical trials establish they are safe in this patient group, and that they really have an impact on the processes of Parkinson's disease. Findings were published in the journal Science. Read more.

STD Surveillance Report shows 
increases and disparities

The Sexually Transmitted Disease Surveillance Report for 2016, released recently by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), documents a third year of overall increasing rates for chlamydia, gonorrhea, and syphilis. Disparities are deepening for the hardest-hit and most vulnerable groups: youth aged 15-24; gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men, and pregnant women (surge of congenital syphilis). To stem the tide, health care professionals must commit to better understanding the changing face of the STD epidemic and the real-world challenges that can stand in the way of prevention. More information here.

Nurse leaders launch 
Action Now! to address 
nursing education challenges
 
Several complex issues are getting in the way of Washington's ability to produce the nursing workforce needed by the state's growing communities. Factors include: a nursing faculty shortage, nursing education funding that fails to keep pace, and a lack of quality practice experiences for all students. At the same time, there is a national call to provide access to baccalaureate and graduate education for nurses. 

A group of Washington State nursing leaders has come together to form a statewide initiative called  Action Now! to tackle these challenges and transform the state's nursing education system. The initiative's vision is "Nursing Education: Securing the Future of a Healthier Washington." For more information and to get involved, contact Action Now! co-leads Sofia Aragon, Annette Flanders and Mindy  Schaffer  at [email protected].

RESOURCES
Video: Healthier Washington begins with nurses

The Washington Center for Nursing and Washington State Health Care Authority have produced a video about what all Washington nurses need to know regarding the social determinants of health and the Healthier WA initiative. The organizations want to inspire every nurse to be an agent for change, and give him or her the tools and resources to do so. Watch the video. 

King County Nurses Association | (206) 545-0603 |  http://www.kcnurses.org
4649 Sunnyside Avenue North  Room 352   Seattle, WA 98103