The Official Newsletter of the Virginia Council of Nurse Practitioners
Doctor of Nursing Practice Program through
James Madison University
James Madison University is excited to
announce their new online Doctor of Nursing
Practice program to begin in Spring 2014. The
Department of Nursing has recently expanded
their programs and moved to Burruss Hall
to accommodate their growing numbers of
students and faculty.
The DNP at JMU is a practice focused
degree with an emphasis on the rigor of
evidence-based practice grounded in research
knowledge and the analysis of clinical and
systems data. The program will prepare
students to influence policy and lead healthcare
innovation at the highest organizational level,
while allowing students to focus on a particular
specialty area in advanced practice nursing.
“Good interprofessional collaboration and
evidence-based practice enhances safety and
quality improvement within healthcare,” said
Dr. Linda J. Hulton, Professor of Nursing and
the DNP program coordinator.
According to Hulton, there is a 17-year gap
between development of new research and
its implementation in the medical field. This
program was developed to help bridge that
gap. “For example, DNPs may notice a high
incidence of diabetes within their community.
They would then research the latest evidencedbased practice, complete a micro/macro
assessment and propose new treatment delivery
methods. As an advanced practice nurse, they
could develop, implement, and evaluate a
program to lower the risk for patients,” said
Hulton.
This doctoral program includes a rigorous
capstone project that is heavily tailored to the
student’s individual interests and specialty area.
Throughout this program students will be
addressing significant problems in real time and
in real-practice settings.
The program is part of JMU’s new College
of Health and Behavioral Studies. The program
is flexible, with both four-semester and six
semester course of study available. Courses will
be offered in various online formats that are
manageable for students who continue to work
full time in their specialty area.
Applications will be accepted on a rolling
deadline beginning in January 2013 with
a priority deadline of August 1st. Initially,
enrollment will be capped at 12 students due
to the intensity of capstone projects. The
program’s curriculum will consist of 40 to 44
credit hours including 1,000 course-related
practice hours post-BSN, depending on the
review of the applicant’s transcripts.
JMU Nursing, “The knowledge of healing; the art
of caring.”
To learn about this program contact Dr.
Linda Hulton, coordinator of the DNP
program, at [email protected] or (540) 5682909. James Madison University is located at
800 S. Main Street, Harrisonburg, Va. 22807. :
Article by Katie Casey (‘13), JMU Office of Public
Affairs.
IN THIS ISSUE—Winter 2012
VCNP Contacts������������������������������������������������2
From the President�������������������������������������������3
From the Membership Chair����������������������������4
New Member Update��������������������������������������4
From the Public Relations Chair�����������������������5
From the Education Committee Chair��������������6
From the Government Relations Chair�������������6
Home-Based Care Tested in
Medicare Initiative���������������������������������������7
ConnectVirginia’s DIRECT Messaging Helps
Providers Achieve Meaningful Use��������������8
ODU Conducts Survey of Virginia NPs������������8
Members in the News: Michelle S. Earnest &
Sharon Corriveau�����������������������������������������8
Regional Reports����������������������������������������������9
Find us on facebook
VCNP CONTACTS
Winter 2012
VCNP Officers
President
Phyllis Everett
President Elect
Maribeth Capuno
Past President
Cindy Fagan
Secretary
Denise Chernitzer
Treasurer
HoChong Gilles
Government Relations
Mark Coles
Membership
Carola Bruflat
Bylaws/Policies & Operations Patrice Malena
Public Relations
Lisa Riha
Education & Programs
Maureen Flattery
Nominations & Awards Chris Daley
Historian
Ann Bennett
Northern Shenandoah
Valley Region
President Miriam Birmiel
Past President Rose Jannuzzi
Secretary Sallie Grundman
Treasurer Marty Morrow
Government Relations
Claudia Pierce
Membership Marie Jackson
Public Relations Patricia B. Krauskopf Education & Programs
Jeanmarie Bechtle
Nominations & Awards Sallie Grundman
ConferenceVacant
Northern Virginia Region
Blue Ridge Region
President Laurie Buchwald
President-Elect
Dee McGary
Past President Katie Katz
Secretary Judy Hill
Treasurer Cindy Talton
Government Relations Sabrina Johnson
Membership Katie Katz
Public Relations Vacant
Education & Programs Nancy Harvey
Tony Ramsey
Nominations & Awards Bridgette Williams
Conference Mary Hope Gibson
President President Elect Past President Secretary Treasurer Government Relations
Membership
Public Relations Education & Programs Nominations & Awards Conference Central Region
Peninsula Region
President Rosie Taylor-Lewis
President-Elect
Kim Grossman
Past President Marilyn Grossman
Secretary Barbara Williams
Treasurer Magen Calland
Government Relations Debbie Erickson
Membership
Jennifer Lloyd-Fitzgerald
Public Relations Kim Buzzelli
Conference Marilyn Grossman
Education & Programs JoAnn Earp
Laura Mann
Historian Phyllis McCormick
Fredericksburg Region
President Timmye Ross
President-Elect Lisa Keel
Past President Isabelle Amann
Secretary/Historian Piper Schlesser-Foresman
Treasurer Tiffany Simons
Government Relations
Pam Arledge
Membership Karen Hlwya
Public Relations Michele Earnest
Education & Programs Brenda Crum
Caroline Conneen
Nominations & Awards Adele Young
Conference Carol Campbell
President President-Elect Past President Secretary Treasurer Government Relations
Membership Public Relations Conference Louise Ritz
Lynn Poole
Kathy Mares
Linda Hestvik
Marie Fugitt
Connie Henry
Lynn Poole
Heidi Wilson
Zita Buky
Katie Colcher
Julie Spencer
Margaret Light
Carola Bruflat
Jean Rilee
Janice Porter
Marge Stuppy
Cheryl Lumbard
Naomi Bower
Gloria Engelberger
Angela Blackman
Janice Porter
Lisa Riha
Vacant
Piedmont Region
President
Rebekah (Becky) Compton
President-Elect
Mary Dievert
Secretary Charlene Exline
Treasurer Gerald (Joe) Montoya
Government Relations
Reagan Thompson
Membership Nancy Lutz
Mitzi Thompson
Public Relations Sara Hallowell
Education & Programs
Kim Bednar
Nominations & Awards Dawn Bourne
Conference Nancy Lutz
Joanne Coleman
Richmond Region
President Angela Starkweather
President-Elect Catherine Murphy
Past President Alison Ryan
Secretary Katy Grubbs
Treasurer Rachel Cloutier
Government Relations Elaine Ferrary
Kevin Brigle
Membership Louise Manetta
Public Relations Mary Baker
Education & Programs Maureen Flattery
Nominations & Awards Theresa Fortin
Conference Marie Gerardo
Shenandoah Region
President Susan Conaty-Buck
President Elect Andrea Knopp
Past President Margaret Upton
Secretary Cathy Rittenhouse
Treasurer Ashley Cook
Government Relations
Mary Atkins
Membership Susan Adamson
Public Relations Vacant
Nominations & Awards Sharon Strang
Conference
Pete Hill
Southwest Region
President Past President Secretary Treasurer Government Relations Membership Nominations & Awards Conference Joan Mullins
Linda Davidson
Misty Bendall
Vacant
Rebecca Mullins
Joyce Thompson
Joyce Thompson
Donna Davis
Angela Harrison
Tidewater Region
President Heather Hallberg
President-Elect Ruth Bertsch
Past President Sharon Bodtke
Secretary Carolyn Ingram
Treasurer Emily Forbes
Government Relations Terry Long
Membership Beth Wolfinger
Christi Fowler
By-Laws Chris Sauer
Education & Programs Vacant
Public Relations
Margarita Simón
Nominations & Awards Margie Garcia-Garrett
Historian Ann Bennett
Conference Tammy Maloney
Virginia Council of Nurse Practitioners
250 West Main Street, Suite 100, Charlottesville, VA 22902 • 434/977-3716 • Fax 434/979-2439 • www.vcnp.net
-2-
FROM THE PRESIDENT
Winter 2012
The Holidays: It’s All About the “Presence”
By the time you receive this newsletter, you will
be deep into the hustle and bustle of the holiday
season. The thought of presents for/from family
and friends occupies a lot of your day; what to buy,
wrapping them, shipping them, re-gifting them,
returning them.
For a minute I want you to stop and think about
“presence”, instead of presents. Some of us will be
spending the holidays missing someone who was
present this time last year. Some of us, due to work
responsibilities, will not be present for some of the
traditional gatherings with your family and friends.
You can see that presence in our own circle of
family and friends is a precious thing and should
not be taken for granted. More than gifts, just being
there, being present has meaning.
And so it is for our patients. How many times has a patient said that they like the care
provided by NP’s because they spend time, they listen?
The concept of nursing presence has been discussed in the literature and it is this act of
caring, being attentive to patient needs, that make nursing special. In those intimate times
from birth to death, most of us have been with patients and families during each of these
phases of life. Sometimes they are planned or expected, sometimes tragic, but what they
remember is who was with them. It was you.
So whether you are with family, friends or patients during these next few weeks, it is your
unique presence that will be felt and remembered long after the gifts and shifts are gone.
May you have the presence of those you love this Christmas in your home and in your
hearts. I look forward to a productive new year with you.
:
Regards,
Phyllis Everett, MSN, RN, AOCN, NP-C
President, VCNP
MARK YOUR CALENDAR
Register NOW for the 2013
VCNP Annual Conference
at www.vcnp.net
VCNP MISSION
To facilitate the advancement
and foster the professional
growth of nurse practitioners,
and to advocate for the
improvement of health and
access to care for all Virginians.
Scholarship Winner Announced
The VCNP Nurse Practitioner Scholarship is awarded to a student
enrolled in a doctoral program in the Commonwealth of Virginia. This
one-time award is made to a student who has completed 50% of the
required hours of graduate study and exhibits academic excellence
and a commitment to advanced practice nursing with strong clinical
and leadership abilities.
At left Chris Daley, Nominations & Awards Chair with this year’s
NP Scholarship Winner, Emily Ackerson.
:
-3-
MEMBERSHIP
Winter 2012
From the Membership Chair
The Membership Committee has been busy
with several projects such as promotions for the
NP scholarship, seeking preceptors for students,
promoting VCNP membership, welcoming
new members and more. As Chair, I have also
spoken about the development of our new
practice agreement to various groups around
the Commonwealth – the Central Region and
the Virginia Association of Free Clinics. The
response to our legislative efforts has been very
positive. Your VCNP leadership stands ready
to be your dedicated resource to answer your
questions as we move forward.
In this Holiday season, I am grateful that we
have a statewide organization such as VCNP.
Our organization is the sum of its parts and
so our projects need your ongoing support.
We need each of YOU to be involved in our
PR projects (including NP Week’s service
project, Reach Out and Read-VA), promoting
the benefits of membership, supporting our
annual clinical conference, and most of all
our legislative efforts. Since I first became a
member of VCNP in 1998, I have benefited
from many changes to NP practice in Virginia
– our signature bill, a dedicated NP member
on the Board of Nursing, membership on
statewide boards such as the Governor’s
Healthcare Reform initiatives, leadership roles
on the Virginia Action Coalition, collaboration
and consultation in our practice environments,
and changes to our prescriptive authority –
twice! So I am very grateful this year.
If you have renewed your membership
– thank you! If not, I hope you’ll review our
member benefits at www.vcnp.net under
the Membership tab and join us for another
incredible year. Or, give a gift of membership
to a new or current NP, and help grow our next
generation. Best wishes for a healthy and happy
holiday season!
:
Carola Bruflat, MSN WHNP/FNP, VCNP
Membership Chair
GIVE THE GIFT OF
MEMBERSHIP
Give the Gift of Professional Involvement—A Membership
to the Virginia Council of Nurse Practitioners (VCNP)
VCNP offers many valuable benefits to its members, including ...
• Professional development, continuing education and
networking opportunities through local meetings and the
annual state conference
• Coordinated health policy and regulatory advocacy through
regional legislative activities and a paid lobbying firm to
promote access to care, reimbursement parity and choice for
healthcare consumers
• Reduced registration fees at our state conference
• Information on current job opportunities and FREE job postings
• Find an NP - This directory will allow the public and other
nurse practitioners to locate you by specialty
•Discounted legal review of employment contracts
To give the gift of membership, please visit
www.vcnp.net/membership.php
Full membership is $150 per year. Membership to VCNP is the gift that keeps on giving throughout the year!
-4-
Welcome New Members
Richmond
Sherry Allgood*
Brenna Bohatec*, RN, BSN
Elizabeth Brown
Central
Jeannette Brown*, MSN-RNCElizabeth Maguire*
OB, C-EFM, WHNPS
Sarah Waddell*, RN
Kristin Brown*, RN
Enjoli Carter*
Fredericksburg
Edward Dankyi*
Kimberlee Bruce, FNP-C
Megan Foege*
Robyn Erhardt, ARNP
Mary Frayser*
Natasha Prymak*
Julie Grachan, WHNP-BC
Jason Harris*, RN, BSN
Northern Virginia
Wilnette Hill*
Abigail Ho, FNP-C, MPH
LaKeysha Jenkins*
Zsofia Laszlo*
Kathleen Jensen, NP-C
Jessica Padilla*, RN
Kasey Saunders-Carter, NP-C Brittany Luth*, RN, BSN,
Student NP
Jennifer Small, FNP-BC
Mankanchan Majhail, FNP
Megan Stuart*, RN
Amy Meadors*, RN, BSN,
Danielle Sutton*
CCRN
Lisa Moss, ACNP-BC
Northern Shenandoah
Christian Schilling*, RN
Brandi Lloyd*, Student ANP
Barbara Walsh*, MPH, RN,
Lynda Miller, RN, MSN,
PHCNS-BC
FNP-C
Lauren Woolfolk*, BSN, RN
Blue Ridge
Sarah Fitzgerald*, RN, BSN
Peninsula
Kate Berry*, RN, BSN,
CMSRN
Sharon Bishop*, RN, BSN
Allison Cale*
Rachelle Schilling, FNP
Piedmont
Jerimie Batac*, RN, BSN
Ashleigh Bergstrom*, MSN,
RN, CNL
Norma Branham, Geriatric NP
Carolin Connelly*, RN, BSN
Melanie Denny*, CPNP
Lisa Harrison*, RN, BSN,
CCRN
Karen Highlander, NP
Elizabeth Jones*, RN
Anna LaMonica*, RN, BSN
Katy Meinbresse*, RN, BSN,
PCCN
Erica Randolph*, RN, BSN
Kathryn Reid, PhD, RN,
FNP-C
Matthew Robertson, MSN,
ACNP-BC
Donna Wilson*, RN, BSN,
CBCN
Shenandoah
Lori Reid*, RN
SOUTHWESt
Robert Bishop*, RN, RRT,
RPFT
Rachel Bryant*, BSN, RN
Jessica Conley*
Molly Johnson, FNP-BC
Tidewater
Leah Childress*
Mary Corley, ANP-BC
Nicole Finley*, RN, BSN, NP
Student
Michelle Frickanisce*, BSN, RN
Amanda Gosman*
Kristi Harley*
Christianne Hayes*, BSN
Cimone John, WHNP
Laura Marcinczyk*, BSN,
Student NP
Melanie Markuson*
Joys Miller*, FNP-Student
Collen Naumann, FNP-C
Cecilia Otoo*
*Student Member
PUBLIC RELATIONS
National NP Week Recap
Congratulations for an outstanding National NP
Week, November 11-17. VCNP area chairs and members
pushed the envelope and put Nurse Practitioners in the
news (print, TV and radio), on the web and Facebook,
in employee newsletters and more. You accepted
proclamations from local cities and counties and embraced
Reach out and Reach Virginia. It is not too late to donate to
RORVA; visit www.reachoutandread.org/bookdrive/default.
aspx?ref=VCNP. As of November 30, 2012 we’ve collected 188
books and raised $965.00. Help us add to our totals, and get a yearend tax deduction!
Governors Proclamation to VCNP is above, you may also see it
on display at the annual conference. Stop by and see it.
A few area chapters embraced additional community services.
The Blue Ridge area made a generous donation to three local free
clinics earmarked for dental care, Peidmont area participated in radio
interviews and television interviews with 2 NPs, and the Richmond
area was embraced with a large supplement in the Richmond
Times; http://richmondtimesdispatch.va.ee.newsmemory.com/
special.php?date=20121109. Visit VCNP’s Facebook page today to
see pictures of NP Week.
Public Relations welcomes your stories and photos; please share
your news with us! Happy Holidays.
:
Lisa Riha, DNP, APRN-BC
VCNP Public Relations Chair
-5-
Education
Winter 2012
From the Education Committee Chair
The Education Committee has finalized the program for the
2013 conference in Williamsburg, VA. Currently the committee
is reviewing the submitted poster abstracts. Dinner programs are
in planning stages. Once finalized, information will be emailed
for dinner registration. Watch for email blasts announcing hotel
registration, and then conference registration. The brochure will
be emailed again this year rather than via US Mail. Remember,
there will be an “early bird” rate so register early!
If your region is planning an educational offering the forms are
posted on the website in the “Members Only” section. VNA forms
will not be accepted. Contact Maureen Flattery as soon as you are
considering a program as one of the committee members must
serve as a lead nurse planner on your committee. The VNA does
not have a lead nurse planner training session scheduled at this
time for those regions that have forwarded names for training. As
soon as the VNA schedules a training session, regional presidents
will be notified.
:
Maureen Flattery, RN, MS, ANP-BC
VCNP Education Committee Chair
GOVERNMENT RELATIONS
From the Government Relations Chair
We are receiving a great deal of positive feedback from
members, employers and others related to our decision to contract
with the well-respected NP attorney Caroline Buppert to draft
generic Practice Agreement language.
The Practice Agreement template and supporting documents
were emailed to all VCNP members last month and have been
posted to the vcnp.net web site. Here’s how to access these
documents:
On the home page there is a link to general HB346 information
open to the general public. Once you have logged in to the
Members Only section, click on the “legislative advocacy” tab
in the Legislation section then click on “HB346 Regulatory
Update”. This article provides good general information and
embedded hyperlinks to both a pdf and Word version of the
Practice Agreement Template. Members are encouraged to
also click on the “companion document” hyperlink for line by
line template explanations.
Clicking on the “HB346 FAQs” in the legislative advocacy
section also provides substantial further useful explanatory
information.
Best wishes for the holiday season!
:
Mark Coles, RN, BA, MSN, NP-C
VCNP Government Relations Chair
In Pictures
VAC: Your Help Needed
The Virginia Action Coalition Access to Care
Workgroup is seeking opportunities to educate
nursing and non-nursing stakeholders about
the recommendations from the IOM Future of
Nursing Report.
We have developed an APRN video that will
be used to help educate the public about who
APRN’s are, what we do and the important
message of APRN practice to the full extent of
education and training for increased access to
care for citizens of the Commonwealth.
Please email Cindy Fagan at cynthia.fagan2@
va.gov if you know of a community speaking
opportunity or if you would like to get involved
with this important work.
VNF Gala
Members of the VAC (Virginia Action Coalition) gathered together for a
picture at the end of the gala.
:
-6-
IN THE NEWS
Winter 2012
Home-Based Care Tested in Medicare Initiative
BY TAMMIE SMITH
Family nurse practitioner Susanna Payne
typed on her laptop computer as she quizzed
Maureen Peterson on the medications
Peterson was taking.
“When’s the last time you took your
metolazone?” Payne asked, referring to a
drug that treats high blood pressure and fluid
retention.
“You were pretty swollen the last time I
was here,” Payne said later. She reminded
Peterson of the need to watch her salt intake
as she did a hands-on exam, where she noted
the swelling in Peterson’s left leg and foot.
Typically such an exam would take place
in a medical office, but Payne handled it
in the living room of the Richmond home
Peterson shares with her husband and
caregiver, Harry Peterson.
Mrs. Peterson, 57, who needs a wheelchair
to get around, is thankful that Payne, a nurse
practitioner who works for VCU Health
System’s House Calls program, was able to
come to her.
“House Calls has been a blessing to
me. It really has,” Peterson said, recalling
at least a couple of instances in which she
missed doctor’s appointments because van
transportation didn’t show.
The concept of medical house calls
might bring to mind black-bag-carrying rural
physicians. But under the modern version,
the federal Medicare program is testing
whether home visits can provide care of
select homebound patients on par with, or
beyond, office visits.
The Medicare Independence at Home
initiative is funding demonstration projects
in 15 individual medical practices and
three group efforts across the country. The
programs will voluntarily enroll up to 10,000
Medicare beneficiaries who have chronic
conditions and meet other criteria. The
project runs for three years.
“We will be rewarded if the patient’s
quality of care is maintained but their costs
go down, said Dr. Peter Boling, professor of
medicine and chairman of the division of
geriatric medicine at Virginia Commonwealth
University.
NP Susanna Payne (right)
is an active member of the
Richmond region VCNP.
“That’s what we expect. Because we will
be able to get to them quickly when they
start to feel bad and help them stay on a
more steady path, they will spend less time
in the hospital, which is safer and better
for them,” said Boling, a founding member
of the American Academy of Home Care
Physicians.
VCU has operated its House Calls program
for more than two decades, and Boling, who
heads the program, has championed the idea
of home-based care for frail patients.
For the demonstration project, VCU
is partnering with two other institutions
— the University of Pennsylvania House
Calls program and MedStar Washington
Hospital House Call program — to form a
consortium.
Each of the programs in the consortium
has its own group of providers, but
collectively they will enroll up to 500 patients.
Boling said there are three physicians
making house calls and nine nurse
practitioners. The program has recently
added a social worker, office nurse and data
analyst and will soon add another nurse
practitioner.
Payne said clients typically live within 15
miles of VCU Medical Center, and she does
three to five visits per day, keeping in touch
with patients between visits by phone.
-7-
“Will you call me on Monday to let me
know how the fluid is doing?” she asked
Peterson during her visit. If everything
stayed the same, she said she would be back
in two weeks.
Boling said VCU’s target is to enroll 150
to 200 patients. To qualify, patients must be
covered by Medicare and have problems in
carrying out basic activities such as dressing
and using the bathroom.
If the demonstration projects are
successful, it could change the Medicare
program “quite dramatically and almost
create a whole new field,” Boling said.
“We’ve designed it so that lots of
programs could get into this type of model
without having a lot of cash and backing and
changes in structure of insurance programs
or other things that are barriers to entry,”
Boling said.
“That is one reason why so many of the
advanced geriatric care models have not
advanced,” he added. “It costs so much and
you have to have so many resources and
structures in place to start programs. We
wanted to avoid that, and we wanted to target
these programs and design them specifically
to take care of people who are very frail and
old and at risk.” :
Article courtesy of the Richmond Times-Dispatch.
IN THE NEWS
Winter 2012
ConnectVirginia’s DIRECT Messaging Helps
Providers Achieve Meaningful Use
ConnectVirginia is the Statewide
Health Information Exchange (HIE) for
the Commonwealth of Virginia that is
being built with funding from the Virginia
Department of Health and the Office
of the National Coordinator for Health
Information Technology (ONC) within the
U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services. According to Sandy McCleaf, MBA,
Executive Director of ConnectVirginia,
“Our mission is to foster and sustain trust,
collaboration and information-sharing
between providers of healthcare services in
Virginia, leading to measurable improvement
in outcomes and cost-effective delivery of
services.”
In order to help providers achieve
meaningful use, ConnectVirginia provides
a service called DIRECT Messaging that
allows providers to share health information
in a method similar to regular webbased email but with the added security
required for sensitive health information.
ConnectVirginia Direct Messaging is a
secure, HIPAA-compliant “push” messaging
system where information is sent from
one registered provider directly to another
registered provider who is known to the
sender. Referrals and transitions of care
are perfect opportunities to use DIRECT
Messaging.
“As the demand for Nurse Practitioners
increases, use of the HIE ConnectVirginia
needs to be adopted and integrated by nurse
practitioners in the Commonwealth of
Virginia for better office and organizational
work flows.” Chrissy Brubaker, NP, President
Air Park Medical.
Organizational DIRECT Messaging
accounts are also available. Each organizational DIRECT Messaging Inbox is
managed by a site administrator, and can
be accessed by two staff. The ability to
have additional staff managing a DIRECT
Messaging Inbox has also been extended to
health care providers that wish to maintain a
ODU Conducts Survey
of Virginia NPs
Drs. Micah A. Scott and Kathleen Forst
Putnam are conducting a study related to the
practice specifics (salary and attitudes) of
Nurse Practitioners across Virginia.
The survey is located at https://www.
surveymonkey.com/s/WZS3YDP. Please cut
and paste the URL into your internet search
box. This will take you directly to the survey.
This survey has been approved by the IRB
from ODU. Results of this study will be
made available to the VCNP membership
at the upcoming annual conference. Your
participation is very much appreciated.
Please participate in this survey only one
time. Also, you are encouraged to forward this
e-mail to your nurse practitioner colleagues
who may not be members of the VCNP. The
largest sample possible benefits us all.
Please paste the URL below and complete
the survey ... your participation in this survey
is very much appreciated.
:
personal DIRECT Messaging account. Each
provider can share their DIRECT Messaging
account with up to two additional staff for
no additional cost.
Another feature available in DIRECT
Messaging is the ability to have an alert sent
when a new message arrives in the DIRECT
Messaging Inbox. Each person authorized
to access a DIRECT Messaging Inbox will
be able choose to have an e-mail and/or text
sent to them informing them not only of the
arrival of a new message, but also who sent
it to them.
DIRECT Messaging is still available free
of charge until April 1, 2013. After that
time, a low monthly fee of $15 per DIRECT
Messaging address will be applied ($180 per
year invoiced annually). More information
on ConnectVirginia DIRECT Messaging,
including enrollment forms and user guides,
can be found at www.connectvirginia.org/
direct-messaging or email questions to
[email protected]. :
Members in the News
Michelle S. Earnest
VCNP member, Michelle S. Earnest, MSN, M.Div, RN, FNP-BC, EEM-AP
is a holistic nurse practitioner and recently completed her Advanced Energy
Medicine Certification with Innersource, the certifying organization for Donna
Eden Energy Medicine. She has been working on this course of study for 5 years
and is pleased to have completed her highest level of work. She also completed
her advanced teacher training and is authorized to teach in the Eden Energy
Medicine Certification Program. Donna Eden is a world renown healer, teacher,
and author and is widely respected in the alternative/complementary medicine
world and is endorsed by Dr. Norm Shealy, Dr. Christine Northrup, Dr. Mehmet
Oz and others.
Sharon Corriveau
Sharon Corriveau, DNP, CFNP, IBCLC made news during the last semester of
her DNP program. Follow the links below to read more about her research.
http://news.virginia.edu/content/nursing-grad-student-gathers-researchinstitutes-protocol-encourage-breastfeeding
http://www.nursing.virginia.edu/news/son/name,8047,en.aspx
-8-
:
REGIONAL REPORTS
Northern Shenandoah
 The Shenandoah region and the
Northern Shenandoah Valley Region
(NSVR) of the VCNP purchased radio
spots for NP week on National Public
Radio, WMRA out of Harrisonburg,
Virginia and the Winchester station was
heard at 94.5.
 The NSVR participated in the “Reach
Out and Read” book drive: By early
December we had collected 60 books
and continued to collect until the
December 13th meeting. Last year we
collected over 100 children’s books
which were sent to: Winchester Free
Medical Clinic and the Winchester
Health Department. We will be sending
the books to the same sites.
Shenandoah
 Reach Out and Read Virginia program:
74 gently used and new books received
from our generous chapter members and
distributed to area clinics.
Winter 2012
 2012 Nurse Practitioners Week:
 Shenandoah and Northern
Shenandoah Chapters partnered to
have 8 messages per day aired on
WMRA Public Radio for all 7 days of
NP Week.
 City Councils of Harrisonburg and
Staunton issued proclamations during
NP week congratulating NPs for their
efforts to provide care to residents.
 Educational Sessions offered to chapter
members:
 September: Chapter Meeting/Dinner
(Chili’s) provided by Xolair®
 November: 2013 NP Law and
Protocol Development Educational
Session. Presented by Chapter
President Dr. Susan Conaty-Buck at
James Madison University Nursing
Department.
 Congratulations to Chapter Member, Emily
Akerson, MSN, FNP, Associate Director of
the JMU Institute for Innovation in Health
and Human Services for being awarded the
2012 VCNP Student Scholarship.
Virginia Council of Nurse Practitioners
250 West Main Street, Suite 100
Charlottesville, VA 22902
-9-
Tidewater
 Current Membership: 228
 We sponsored a double booth at the
Ultimate Women’s show, had excellent
NP speakers during the event on
different topics to include skin cancer
and dermatology and pap smear
guidelines, etc. We also sponsored the
November Caregiver event held at
the Norfolk Health Department. This
event was for caregivers for all age
groups from disabled children to older
adults. This event helped promote
nurse practitioners as providers that
help enable caregivers to make educated
choices in an overwhelming health care
system. The Tidewater region is also in
the process of working on our regional
educational symposium in April. :