Opportunities from the center for perioperative education

AORN Journal, Nov, 2005

AORN's Perioperative Nursing Course 101 is a comprehensive program for educating new perioperative nurses. The curriculum covers 27 crucial topics in a scripted, lecture format with PowerPoint presentations and is designed to be integrated with your facility's specific policies and procedures.

Perioperative Nursing Course 101 will help you develop confident, better educated, safety-conscious employees. The course includes overviews, reading assignments, glossaries, bibliographies, posttests, preceptor guidelines, handouts, slide presentations, a critical skills assessment checklist, a "Preparing the Preceptor" module with free contact hours, and more. For a free information packet, contact Laurie Clark at (800) 755-2676 x 280, or visit AORN Online at http://www.aorn .org /education/periop101.htm.

AORN CONFERENCES

10th Conference on Infectious Diseases Dec 6-8, 2005 Kimberly-Clark Corporate Facility, Roswell, Ga

Jointly sponsored by AORN, the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology, and Kimberly-Clark, this conference brings together a nationally recognized faculty of infectious disease, patient safety, and workplace safety experts to present the following topics:

* reducing infection rates and improving surgical outcomes,

* the latest information from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,

* keeping the OR functioning during construction,

* Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease and other emerging diseases,

* the effect of staff member fatigue on patient care, and

* the latest information on improving patient safety.

The conference is designed for perioperative managers, staff nurses, infection control practitioners, risk managers, and anyone concerned about protecting patients and health care providers from disease. To register, call customer service at (800) 755-2676 x 1, or visit http://www.aorn.org /events.

DISTANCE LEARNING

Visit http://www.aorn.org/education for the latest continuing education opportunities. AORN Journal Home Studies published since November 2002 are available online at http://www.aorn.org /journal/homestudy/default.htm. Home Studies are available in portable document format (PDF) to print and complete. Use these programs to earn contact hours and stay abreast of the latest nursing information.

Online courses. The following online courses complement AORN's Perioperative Management Resources seminars and manuals.

In Budgeting, you will learn

* basic cost accounting,

* essential steps in the budgeting process,

* components of capital and operating budgets, and

* steps to improve budget performance while providing safe patient care.

In Understanding and Interpreting Financial Statements, you will learn how to

* describe the key components of a financial statement,

* identify ways to use statistical data to improve day-today operational efficiency,

* describe the types of statistical data used to support budget development,

* discuss two types of statistical reports that nurse managers can use to evaluate purchasing decisions,

* show the proper use of various statistical techniques,

* define the importance of personnel budgeting, and

* use statistical data to support program development or maintenance.

The Meeting Management course will provide you with practical guidelines for planning and conducting effective and productive meetings. You will learn to

* state two vital purposes for meetings,

* identify rationales for choosing a particular meeting type,

* demonstrate how a meeting agenda outlines the purpose or direction of a meeting,

* identify several types of meeting processes,

* identify ways to facilitate positive group interaction,

* identify logical components of a meeting, and

* identify tools to evaluate a meeting's effectiveness.

The Performance Improvement (PI) course provides a basic knowledge of perioperative improvement activities that will allow you to meet regulatory requirements by analyzing performance gaps, planning and developing interventions for PIs, and evaluating the results of these improvements. You will learn how to

* list the objectives of a PI program,

* discuss different plans that can be used, and

* develop a PI plan to address a specific need.

The completed Budgeting, Understanding and Interpreting Financial Statements, and Performance Improvement courses each are worth four contact hours. The completed Meeting Management course is worth two contact hours. To register, visit http:// www.aorn.org/managers/online .asp. For more information, call customer service at (800) 755-2676 x 1, or visit http:// www.aorn.org/managers.> Preparing for the CNOR Examination--online version. This program will alleviate participants' fears of taking the CNOR examination by walking them through the examination's format. Subjects are related to clinical situations with which perioperative nurses are familiar. The program also provides effective test-taking strategies. This two-week, self-paced, online program will be offered Nov 7 to 21, 2005. Visit AORN Online at http:// www.aorn.org/events/cnoronline /default.asp for information.