Interest in issues related to the scope and practice of Advanced Practice Nursing (APNs) were first generated in 2003 at the 12th annual symposium in Scottsdale AZ in response to the keynote address of Anne Hamric RN, PhD who is recognized internationally for her work in the development of advanced practice nursing. A meeting was scheduled the following year to determine membership interest and possible development of a SIG to meet the needs of this group. There was an overwhelming response to this meeting, so the APN SIG was born and had been active since this time.
The Advanced Practice Nurse SIG has been instituted with the approval of the Board of Directors to meet the unique educational, mentoring, and professional needs of nurses currently working as APNs, those enrolled in APN programs, and nurses and coordinators who are interested in the APN role and/or considering pursuing an advanced degree. During the first meeting of the SIG, nearly 40 enthusiastic international participants developed a mission statement, proposed several short and long term goals and projects for the group. Previous committee chairs have included Beverly Kosmach-Park of Pittsburgh and Darlene Long of Denver. As the new Chair of the APN SIG as appointed by the current Board of Directors, I will seek to continue to advance this special interest group.
The APN SIG activities and goals are to:
- Create a forum for discussion of advanced practice in transplant nursing
- Mentor students and those interested in advanced practice nursing
- Contribute to development of educational materials for APNs as requested by the ITNS Board of Directors
- Plan and implement workshops for APNs for the annual symposium
- Collaborate with the Research SIG and Education Committee as requested by those chairs for APN-specific topics
- Serve as consultants for educational materials or programs as needed
- Serve as a support group for transplant APNs
- Collaborate with other APN organizations and graduate nursing programs
If you are interested in belonging to this SIG or have any questions about the group and proposed activities, please send an email to the SIG Chair for more information:
Chair 2010-2011
Jeffrey Arnovitz, MSN, CNP, CCTC
Email: arnovij@ccf.org
