August-September 2011 FNPN Newsletter

Posted over 12 years ago by Regina Pommer

Good Afternoon!

We would like to bring you up to date on what’s new in your own backyard of Florida. In this newsletter you will find the following:

Loretta Ford inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame
From the Conference Committee
Education Updates
Membership Update
FNPN Spotlight
From Your AANP Representative
Job Announcement
FNPN PAC Update
Around the State and Around the Nation
News You Can Use

Quote of the Month:

"Don't ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive."
- Howard Thurman

Loretta Ford will be inducted into National Women's Hall of Fame

Congratulations to Dr. Ford! Dr. Loretta Ford will be formally inducted into the very prestigious National Women’s Hall of Fame on October 1, 2011. Dr. Ford was nominated for this honor by AANP and AANP Fellows. Inductees are selected every two years based on their lasting contributions to society. From a group of over 200 nominations, a national panel of judges conducted a rigorous scoring process and selected 11 women for induction. The induction will take place in Seneca Falls, NY, the birthplace of the American Women’s Rights Movement in 1848. “Each of these women have demonstrated fortitude, perseverance, intelligence and hope,” said Christine Moulton, executive director of the National Women’s Hall of Fame. “Their experiences provide both an example for each of us to emulate and a challenge for each of us to embrace.” Read about this year’s inductees at www.greatwomen.org. Dr Ford now resides in Florida. We are most proud of all that she has accomplished for nursing, patients, and health care overall.

You Inspire Us Dr. Ford and We Love You!

From the Conference Committee

The FNPN Annual Conference was held at the end of July at the Wyndham Resort in Orlando Florida. We had a record crowd of over 200 in attendance, and almost 40 exhibitors. We wish to thank everyone who attended.

Our special guest speaker was Dr. Loretta Ford, the founder of the Nurse Practitioner movement. Her lecture was wonderful and upbeat. As many of you know, Dr. Ford is going to receive a lifetime achievement award in October. In honor of this, FNPN presented Dr. Ford with a wonderful cake and a paper mache figure made especially for her.

Dr. Ford was also gracious enough to sign autographs for a donation to PAC. The line was long, but according to Pat Perry, well worth the wait.

Doreen Cassarino, President of FNPN, presented Dr. Christopher Saslo with the Award of Excellence for his dedication to FNPN and his relentless efforts in the advancement of Nurse Practitioners.

We wish to thank everyone who helped make this conference a success!

Education Updates

The following important educational opportunities have been posted for January and February; be sure to check back on our website at www.FNPN.org for additional updates and additions!

Sep 16
5th Annual Polk County Advanced Practice Education Symposium
Friday, September 16 2011 at 4:00pm ET in Lakeland, FL

Oct 08
Leading the Way to the Future: 2011 SGCNPC 5th Annual Educational Conference
Saturday, October 08 2011 at 8:00am ET in Fort Myers, FL

Oct 14
8th Annual West Palm NP Clinical Conference
Friday, October 14 2011 at 4:00pm ET in Palm Beach Gardens, FL

Nov 07
U.S. Psychiatric and Mental Health Congress
Monday, November 07 2011 at 8:00am PT in Las Vegas, NV

****Save the date**** October 14, 2011 **** 5th Annual Nurse Practitioner Council of West Palm Beach Conference****Featured speakers and guests are Pam Kennedy, Sophie Skover, Dawn Farrel and many other speakers on vital topics to aid you in your practice.****

FNPN Spotlight

In this newsletter, FNPN wanted to bring attention to the accomplishments of a Florida ARNP. Her name is Heather Flanagan and she is a resident of Riverview. Flanagan works in a doctor’s office that specializes in breast cancer surgery. As a nurse practitioner, Flanagan saw a need to provide women with information about their diagnosis. Flanagan took it upon herself to create a breast cancer website for women, mybreastcanceranswers.com. While many websites have information that is too technical to be of practical use to women, “My breast cancer answers” puts information in a format they can understand. Teaching them to be their own advocates with easy-to-read, factual information that explains the things they need to know about their diagnosis. The website discusses a variety of topics, such as the different types of biopsies that are available and what women need to do to get a quality mammogram.

In addition to launching her website, Flanagan has been busy starting a breast cancer support group at the Campo Family YMCA in Valrico. Flanagan also hopes to start a foundation for breast cancer patients needing help. Her overall mission is to help breast cancer patients maintain control of their lives.

Job Announcements!

There have been many new job postings around the state on our web site at www.FNPN.org for those of you that may have an interest. On our new website, the most recent postings are on the front page. A new feature will allow postings to be visible for 90 days. Please feel free to pass this along to your colleagues who may be interested in it as well, or who may have an interest in finding out more about our network. For those of you that have found jobs on our website, please be sure to let us know!

Do you know an employer who might find the FNPN Job posting a worthwhile site? If so, please be sure to tell them about the website and the fact that on average 20 or more jobs are posted each month. The traffic to our website is incredible and we have more and more folks seeking employment through this site than ever before. Let them know you saw it on the FNPN Website!

Membership Update

Armando Riera-Membership Chair

Dear Members,

In order for us to have our voices heard in Tallahassee, we will need to increase our membership, at the same time working hard to retain current members. One of our goals this year will be to actively work on recruiting new members to FNPN to make our organization stronger.

Renewal Reminder-Membership in FNPN runs on an annual basis Jan-Dec. Please renew your membership today. Membership in FNPN can be as a group or individual member.

Individual members belong and receive many benefits as part of their membership-frequent communication during the legislative session (or special sessions), a paid lobbyist based in Tallahassee, access to posted job opportunities, access to posted upcoming conferences and many more benefits. If you belong to your local NP group you are not an FNPN member until you join FNPN individually, group and individual membership are two separate levels of membership. I encourage you to visit our newly redesigned web page today www.FNPN.org and while you're there you can renew online.

Group Presidents- please renew today and continue to be an integral part of our growing organization. We value our group members as this creates a vital network of NP groups throughout the state. These groups help disseminate information about trends, issues and changes impacting NP's at the state and national level. As a group member we will also assist with conference planning and obtaining approval for CEU's if offered. We will also assist with promoting your conferences and activities and can provide assistance or link you with support in web design.

FNPN now has several options for membership:

2 year Renewal (2011 & 2012) - $ 100
1 year Renewal (2011) - $ 60
Student/Retired 2 year Renewal (2011 & 2012) - $ 50
Student/Retired 1 year Renewal (2011) - $ 30
Student group membership waive first year member fee Free!

To pay by check click here

To pay by credit card click here

As the Chair of the Membership Committee I am always open to suggestions and new ideas. If you have any questions, please contact me. This year, when joining/renewing, we also ask you to consider ‘bringing a friend’ to the registration table and helping build our organizations to where they should be. With the numbers of Advanced Practice Nurses nearing 15,000 in Florida, we should have a strength that can overcome any push from our medical community. We hope you will let us nurture that side of you if you need it and engage those around you to do the same. Please be sure to contact us should you have questions about legislation, membership, education and more. Our Executive Assistant, Regina, is always available either by phone, computer and even skype!

Thank you in advance for all your support.
Respectfully,
Armando Riera, MSN, ARNP-BC
FNPN, Membership Committee Chair
ARiera@jhsmiami.org

From your AANP Representative

Doreen Cassarino MSN, ARNP, FNP-BC, BC-ADM

The Call for Nominations for the 2012 AANP State Award for Excellence will open on August 23, 2011. This prestigious award is given every year to honor NPs and NP advocates in each state. The State Award for NP Excellence, founded in 1991, recognizes an NP in a state who demonstrates excellence in their area of practice. In 1993, the State Award for NP Advocate Excellence was added to recognize the efforts of individuals who have made a significant contribution toward increasing the awareness and acceptance of NPs in their state. (NPs are eligible to receive Advocate awards for contributions not related to their practice, i.e. legislative leadership, etc.) Award recipients are honored at venues in their state during the year and are recognized at the AANP National Conference. For more information contact Beverly McLemore at bmclemore@aanp.org.

FNPN PAC Update

Marifrances Gullo - PAC Chair

The purpose of the FNPN-Political Action Committee (PAC) is to promote the ARNP profession through advancing the outcome of political issues or legislation. This is accomplished by contributing to the support of worthy candidates for State or Local offices who we believe have demonstrated their support of the principles to which this professional organization is dedicated. To further their purpose the PAC is empowered to solicit and accept these voluntary personal contributions (up to $500 per year per person). These contributions are used to attempt to influence the selection, nomination, or election of any individual to any State or Local office. Your decision to make a PAC contribution will help to continue our efforts wherever possible. Contributions can be made @ www.FNPN.org via Pay Pal…or your check payable to FNPN-PAC sent to 4637 Golden Apples Tr. Port Orange, FL 32129. Let’s make things happen together! Thank you for your support!!

Around the State and Around the Nation

National Council State Boards of Nursing has a document on why consumers need to be involved in NP scope of practice laws? Click here to read more https://www.ncsbn.org/Why_consumers_need_to_be_involved.pdf.

Florida Advanced Registered Nurse Practitioner Key Messages and Talking Points
These key messages, developed by a committee of the Florida Coalition of Advance Practice Nursing, should be communicated at as many venues as possible, including public meetings, letters to the editor, presentations to community groups, in classes, etc. Click here to read these talking points. http://fnpn.enpnetwork.com/nurse-practitioner-news/3609-florida-coalition-for-advanced-practice-nursing-talking-points-and-key-messages.

Faces of Courage
We currently are working on a calendar of breast cancer patients who have been body painted. These calendars will make great gifts for the holiday season, so please keep us in mind. That website is www.bodiesofcourage.org. If any of you are interested in having either gallery of photos at your events/hospitals/conferences please let me know. We love to getting them out in the community and educating people from the survivor’s side of the disease.

FloridaHats
The Florida statewide taskforce FloridaHats, is a transition program for medically complex youth who are aging out and transitioning from pediatric medical homes to adult practice settings. The Director of the program is interested in reaching out to ARNP's. Also there is a Health Service Directory for Young Adults on their website. The website is www.floridahats.org. There is a wealth of information for professionals and clients in need of learning how to navigate the medical system. This a task force funded by Childrens Medical Services and Florida DOH. Any questions please call Judy Rosenberg 813-390-8522 or reach me at the email address jrosberg@verizon.net

News You Can Use

The Florida NP Network has taken the next step to keep our members informed. Keep abreast of changes in your practice around the state and around the nation. You can join us today on Facebook under Florida Nurse Practitioner and Twitter under FloridaNP. We hope to hear from you.

AANP Foundation Scholarship & Grant Program
The American Academy of Nurse Practitioners Foundation (AANP Foundation) Scholarship & Grant Program is pleased to announce its 2011 offerings, available exclusively to AANP members. Please visit www.aanpfoundation.org for complete availability information, eligibility requirements, and application materials. The deadline to submit an application is October 24, 2011. $147,500 is available for funding…. $81,500 for MSNNP and Doctoral student educational scholarships and $66,000 for practicing NP and student NP project and research grants.

Primary Care Workforce in the United States
When fully implemented, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) will require most United States citizens to have health insurance. Understanding how these changes may further affect the evolution of primary care is valuable information for policy-makers. Learn more about meeting the nation's primary care needs from the Synthesis Report authors during a webinar on September 27, 2011. For more information click here http://links.mkt2511.com/servlet/MailView?ms=NDEwNzM2MQS2&r=MTYzMDgyNzY3ODgS1&j=MjQ3MjEzMzUxS0&mt=1&rt=0.

Mandatory reporting to E-FORCSE
We would like to remind everyone that Mandatory reporting to E-FORCSE, Florida's Prescription Drug Monitoring Program began Thursday, September 1, 2011. On September 1, 2011, any health care practitioner who has dispensed a Schedule II-IV controlled substance, as defined in section 893.03, F.S. (i.e., OxyContin®, Percocet®, Vicodin®, Klonopin®, Xanax®, and Valium®), is required to report dispensing information to the Prescription Drug Monitoring Program’s database within seven (7) days after dispensing, in accordance with section 893.055, F.S. This includes pharmacies licensed under chapter 465, F.S., and dispensing health care practitioners licensed under chapter 458, 459, 461, 462, or 466, F.S

Please visit http://www.hidinc.com/flpdmp and view the Dispenser’s Implementation Guide for step-by-step instructions on how to register as an Uploader, and how to upload your controlled substance dispensing information. The guide provides information regarding system registration and data collection requirements.

Please note: If you (or your software vendor) are making updates to your software which allow you to report to E-FORCSE through batch reporting, but your system will not be ready to report in this format on September 1, please use the Online Universal Claim Form method until your software updates are completed. Page 21 of the above-referenced Dispenser's Implementation Guide outlines the step-by-step process for reporting controlled substance dispensing information using this method. For technical assistance, please feel free to contact Florida's PDMP Helpdesk at (877) 719-3120 or email flpdmp-info@hidinc.com.

Our vendor, Health Information Designs, Inc. (HID) has their reporting test site up and running. If your system is ready to report, and you would like to submit a test file, please contact HID at 1-877-719-3120.

Important Information on Counterfeit-Resistant Prescription Pads Required for Florida Physicians Prescribing Controlled Substances

The National Association of Chain Drug Stores would like to bring to your attention Florida House Bill 7095 and House Bill 1319 that passed during the 2011 Legislative Session that will significantly affect the prescribing of controlled substances to Florida patients. Effective July 1, 2011, prescriptions written for controlled substances in Florida listed in Chapter 893, Florida Statutes, Section 456.42(2), should be written on counterfeit-resistant pads that are produced by an approved vendor or electronically prescribed. In addition, a written prescription for a controlled substance must also have the quantity of the drug prescribed in both textual and numerical formats, must be dated with the abbreviated month written out on the face of the prescription, and must be either written on a standardized counterfeit-proof prescription pad produced by a vendor approved by the department or electronically prescribed.

We urge you to inform prescribing providers within your organization to familiarize themselves with these state-specific requirements so that Florida patients are not denied crucial medications while the dispensing pharmacist seeks to contact the prescribing provider to confirm a prescription written on a noncompliant prescription form. We know that prescribing providers are often overwhelmed and constantly in motion, and that it could be difficult for a pharmacy holding a noncompliant prescription to contact the provider who wrote the prescription to inform them of these requirements.

The Florida Department of Health (“Department”) has compiled a list of approved vendors of counterfeitproof prescription pads, many of which are currently approved with the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration (ACHA), and this list has been posted on the Department’s website at http://www.doh.state.fl.us/mqa/counterfeit-proof.html. It is also important to note that vendors approved by the Department are required to provide monthly reports to the Department, documenting who purchased the prescription pad or blanks and how many were purchased.

Provider outreach on this issue is critical. We ask if you have not already informed your members of this mandate, that you notify them immediately. Thank you for your attention to this very important development that will significantly impact prescribing providers, pharmacies, and Florida patients and their access to prescription drugs. Please feel free to contact me Jill McCormack, director, State Government Affairs, via email at jmccormack@nacds.org or by phone at 703-837-4289 if you have any questions about this correspondence.