Board acts to prepare AORN for the future

AORN Journal, Oct, 2004 by Charlotte Guglielmi

The AORN Board of Directors met July 14 to 16, 2004, at AORN Headquarters in Denver before the 2004 Focus on Leadership conference. Two goals promulgated by President William J. Duffy, RN, BSN, MJ, CNOR, for this year are to celebrate the value of the perioperative profession and to reach out to grassroots members. In light of these goals, Board members encouraged committee and task force members who were in Denver for the Focus on Leadership conference to sit in on the Friday session of the Board meeting. Many members took advantage of the opportunity to witness the Board in action.

BOARD AGENDA

During the meeting, the Board approved a recommendation from the Corporate Compliance Committee requiring that all AORN committees and task forces open all meetings with a verbal disclosure of any potential conflict of interest members may have related to agenda items. In addition, at the recommendation of the Finance and Audit Committee, the Board approved the Dec 31, 2003, auditor's report. The Board also addressed several other agenda items, including

* member access,

* an industry-sponsored patient education initiative,

* specialty assemblies,

* guidance statements, and

* Congress.

Member access. In response to a charge from the House of Delegates related to member access, (1) the Board reviewed recommendations from the Member Access Task Force. The Board approved a three-pronged approach to begin work on the first phase of an enhanced member access plan (Table 1).

Industry-sponsored patient education initiative. The Board also considered a request from Ethicon Endo-Surgery, Cincinnati, for AORN to endorse a new patient education initiative. The initiative, which is called the Smarter Patient Campaign, focuses on five points Ethicon believes every patient should know before surgery but may not know to ask about. After discussion, the Board decided not to endorse the initiative at this time because some aspects of the campaign related to reprocessing are not consistent with the "AORN guidance statement: Reuse of single-use devices." (2) Additionally, the Board was not clear on how the campaign would comply with position statements on reusable supplies disseminated by AORN's surgical partners. The Board did offer to collaborate on limited portions of the campaign. AORN Treasurer Paula R. Graling, RN, MSN, CNS, CNOR, and Board member Susan K. Banschbach, RN, BSN, CNOR, who are members of Ethicon advisory panels, abstained from voting on this agenda item.

Specialty assemblies. The Board approved forming two new specialty assemblies, one for ophthalmology nurses and one for military/government perioperative nurses. Board members also approved a recommendation to decrease the dues for the RN First Assistant Specialty Assembly to $15 per year, which would make the dues for all specialty assemblies the same.

Guidance statements. Consistent with the Board's agenda regarding practice issues and ensuring that AORN is the indispensable resource for perioperative nurses, the Board also examined several issues concerning guidance statements. Board members

* approved the "AORN guidance statement on safe specimen identification, collection, and handling in perioperative practice settings";

* approved bringing the revised position statement "Resolution on necessity for nursing student participation in perioperative nursing" to the House of Delegates in April 2005; and

* expanded the charge to the National Committee on Education to include all facets of orientation in its guidance statement.

Congress. Board members also addressed having a Life-styles Pavilion at the 2005 Congress in New Orleans. Based on a review of the cost projections, the space available, and the proximity of the convention center to the Riverwalk and local vendors, the Board decided not to hold this type of event in New Orleans. The Lifestyles Pavilion will be reviewed annually, however, as part of the Congress planning process.

NEXT MEETING

After adjourning the meeting, Board members had an opportunity to network with chapter leaders who attended the AORN reception and Headquarters tour as part of the Focus on Leadership conference. This allowed Board members to support President Duffy's vision for the Association and reinforced their commitment to be accessible to grassroots members.

The next Board meeting will be held Nov 4 to 6, 2004, in Atlanta. Suggested agenda items should be sent to President Duffy at Headquarters, 2170 S Parker Rd, Suite 400, Denver, CO 80231-5711.

TABLE 1

Board of Directors' Proposal for Member Access

The following is a brief outline of the first phase of an enhanced member access plan.

1. Create national dues, which will take away the multiple decisions members must make. These dues would

a. include membership in a local representative body (ie, chapter, e-chapter) or as a member-at-large, if Bylaws criteria are met, and membership in a specialty assembly;

b. rebate a portion of the national dues to the member's local chapter or e-chapter to support local perioperative nursing activities;