October 2018 Newsletter
Governor Kay Ivey signs National NP Week Proclamation
The role of the nurse practitioner (NP) will be showcased November 11-17, 2018 , as NPs across the country celebrate more than 50 years of practice during National NP Week.   Governor Kay Ivey signed a Proclamation declaring National NP Week in the state of Alabama.  

To strengthen public awareness of NPs and access to primary health care, the Nurse Practitioner Alliance of Alabama (NPAA) is participating in the national public awareness campaign “We Choose NPs.”  NPAA is a statewide professional organization advocating for issues of significant importance for the general welfare of Alabama’s NPs.  The mission of NPAA is to promote excellence in NP practice, education, and research; shape the future of healthcare through advancing health policy; and build a positive image of the NP role as a leader, educator, and provider of healthcare.  Click here to view the proclamation!
Congratulations to New NPAA Officers!
Rebecca Graves, PhD, NP-C is the NPAA Executive Board's new treasurer. Dr. Graves is an Assistant Professor and Director of Special Projects and Evaluation at the College of Nursing at the University of South Alabama. Dr. Graves is an Acute Care NP and a Family NP and earned her Ph.D.  from the University of Tennessee Health Science Center. Dr. Graves maintains a busy clinic practice, robust research program and inspires students through enthusiastic teaching. Dr. Graves looks forward to working with the NPAA Executive and Steering Committee's to continue to promote expanded opportunities for Alabama NPs. 
Rachel Steil  has been elected to the Steering Committee as a Student Member at Large. Rachel is a student in the Doctor of Nursing Program with a concentration as a Family Nurse Practitioner at Samford University. She earned her Master of Science in Nursing, Nursing and Health Systems Administration from UAB. Rachel presently is working as a Registered Nurse in Radiation Oncology at UAB. Rachel is excited to seek election to NPAA as she envisions working with the annual conference committee to add student focused topics to the agenda. Rachel will strive to increase the number of student members of NPAA. 
Bela Patel has been elected to the Steering Committee as a Student Member at Large. Bela is a student in the Doctor of Nursing Practice program at the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Nursing. She anticipates graduation in Spring, 2020. Bela earned her Master's of Nursing from UAB with a specialization as an Adult-Gero NP. She is presently a faculty member at the UAB SON where she is a nurse practitioner in the nurse managed Providing Access to Health Care (PATH) clinic which provides care to uninsured diabetic patients in the Jefferson County and surrounding areas. Bela is excited to bring a student perspective to the Nurse Practitioner Alliance of Alabama. 
12th Annual NPAA Conference A Success!
The 12th Annual NPAA Conference was an overwhelming success! This year's theme, "Speaking in One Voice: Fostering Evidence Based Practice", focused on best practices in advanced nursing practice and included updates in pharmacological treatment. A legislative update was given on the State and National arenas. Over 300 participants took advantage of opportunities to network with colleagues, students and sponsors. A unique group of 41 companies exhibited the latest offerings in services, educational programs, and other aspects of patient management.
2018 NPAA Award Winners
During the NPAA Awards luncheon, the NPAA awards served as a testament to the individuals in Alabama who are making a difference in the lives of their patients and students and as recognition for those delivering and advocating for outstanding patient care. These awards provided an opportunity to give recognition to individual health care providers, educators, or advocates --- the in-the-trenches team members and the leaders who inspire, motivate, and empower others around them --- to make a difference in the lives of those for whom they provide care.  Click here to see a list of the 2018 award winners.
Alabama Board of Nursing's New Requirements for Renewal
The Alabama Board of Nursing (ABN) is requiring additional documentation from all CRNPs and CNMs during this license renewal cycle. This documentation is to needed to provide the Joint Committee which has oversight on all collaborative agreements that QA plans, emergency plans and referral plans are in place for each collaboration. Also, occasionally physicians will state that they were unaware that they were the collaborating physician for a CRNP. This can happen in larger health systems when the CRNP and CNM and physician are dependent on administrative staff to process their regulatory paperwork. By requiring the physician to sign all current and future forms this will protect the CRNP and CNM. 

When you renew your RN and CRNP licenses, you must complete all of the steps below by December 31, 2018. 
  1. Go to https://www.abn.alabama.gov click on RN renewal and log into My Profile. Answer the RN/CRNP renewal questions and pay the fee. You no longer pay an additional fee if you wait until December to renew.
  2. Complete the Quality Assurance form that is attached to this email. A sample QA plan is posted on ABN website. Administrative Code for Collaborative Practice Chapter 610-X-5 states that the QA plan should contain a "meaningful selected sample of patient records". You decide the number and remember, if you are ever audited you must be following your plan that you created. It is expected that your QA plan include collaborative review of all adverse outcomes. You also can decide the frequency of collaborative review of the sampled charts but it must be done at least every quarter. This form must be signed by you and the physician. Once it is signed, scan and email it to advancedpractice@abn.alabama.gov by 12/31/18.
  3. You are also required to send a copy of your Standard Protocol to ABN. This protocol can be very simple, no need to be too detailed. The protocol must contain your emergency plan. If you are practicing in the outpatient setting, you can state "will stabilize the patient until emergency personnel arrive". For acute care setting, it's appropriate to state "will activate code system and follow hospital procedures". This form must be signed by you and the physician. Once it is signed, scan and email it to advancedpractice@abn.alabama.gov by 12/31/18.
Join the Nurse Practitioner Alliance of Alabama!
The Nurse Practitioner Alliance of Alabama (NPAA) is the professional organization that represents the State’s nurse practitioners (NPs) and students enrolled in NP programs. The mission of NPAA is to promote high quality healthcare for Alabama’s citizens. All NPs and NP students in Alabama are urged to join NPAA. For more information, visit  http://www.npalliancealabama.org.