AAACN and You: A Win-Win Situation

I want to first thank everyone who attended the 30th Anniversary American Academy of Ambulatory Care Nursing (AAACN) Conference in San Diego and making this conference one of the highest attended in several years. What an exciting time!

I have been a nurse for 30 years and an ambulatory care nurse for 28 of those years. I am very excited and honored to serve as president for this coming year. Thank you for having faith and confidence in my ability to lead such a wonderful organization and to follow in the footsteps of 28 magnificent past presidents, 18 of whom were present at the conference to celebrate our 30th anniversary. It was a very humbling experience.

There are several things about which I am passionate. One is AAACN. AAACN has been instrumental to my growth as an ambulatory care nurse, a professional, and a leader. Without AAACN, I would not be the nurse I am today.

As such, one of my personal goals is to increase the awareness of nurses functioning in an ambulatory care setting, that they are in fact ambulatory care nurses, and that they are leaders in whatever role or capacity they currently function. I had worked in the pediatric trauma center for 17 years and then was a supervisor in a primary care center. It was not until I attended my first AAACN conference in 1995 that I recognized that I was an ambulatory care nurse. We are real nurses with real issues and real solutions.

Furthermore, I would like these ambulatory care nurses to recognize AAACN as the source of knowledge and education for ambulatory care, and to take advantage of our advocacy and community to expand their knowledge base, networking opportunities, and their presence at the table of decision makers.

Talking about this to you is like preaching to the choir. You already recognize that you are an ambulatory care nurse. You already know the value of membership in a professional nursing organization and the value of membership in AAACN. You know why you joined and why you stay. You know the benefits you gain from membership, and you know the needs that are being met.

We need you to spread the word to colleagues, peers, and administrators. We need you to lobby for ambulatory care nursing as a specialty and AAACN as the professional organization that can meet the needs of ambulatory care nurses. We need you to be the voice of ambulatory care nursing and AAACN.

Another passion is volunteerism. Are you a volunteer leader? If not, I'm asking you to think about it today. AAACN needs volunteers. Our organization would not exist if not for volunteers. The annual program, the products we offer, and the services we provide would not be possible were it not for volunteers.

My mother used to say, "Money doesn't grow on trees." AAACN's products, programs, and the services don't either, nor do they fall out of the sky. They are the outcome of many countless volunteer hours and efforts of people just like you who work full time, who have families, other interests, and responsibilities. But these nurses are passionate about AAACN and its mission to advance the art and science of ambulatory care nursing, so they volunteer their time and energy, and share their ideas and enthusiasm with others who recognize the value of AAACN as a professional organization.

It's a win-win situation. You will enjoy an experience of a lifetime - a life and career-changing opportunity; you will form life-long friendships and gain a sense of pride about having an impact, seeing the fruits of your labor, and feeling the time you gave was time well spent. As a result of you volunteering, AAACN is able to provide quality ambulatory care products such as the standards, resource manuals, and certification courses that meet the needs of our members and our organization.

I recently read in the Association Management leadership journal that you can double the number of your volunteers by simply asking people to participate. Independent sector calls it "the power of the ask," citing statistics that show that the percentage of people who volunteer when asked is 71% compared to 29 % who volunteer on their own (Ellis, 2005). So I am asking you now to complete the Willingness to Serve form, to answer the email calls for volunteers, to volunteer your time in any way you can, to share your ideas and your visions for the future and the ongoing success of AAACN.

We have a lot to do over the next year. We have a new strategic plan with new goals for the future success of AAACN that include Knowledge, Education, Advocacy, and Community. We are going forward with the ideas that were generated from the leadership symposium and are ready to roll up our sleeves and work hard. We need you to put these ideas into action.

The theme for the 2006 annual conference is "Leading in a Culture of Change." As Major General Barbara Brannon said in her keynote session, "We need you as leaders to embrace change" (Brannon, 2005). We need you as leaders to volunteer and lead in this culture of change. For those of you who already volunteer, we need you to be accountable and do what you can to help in any way you can. For those of you who are not volunteers, we encourage you to get on board!