Board addresses committees, task forces, specialty assembly reports, and collaborative position statement - Board Report - Association of periOperative Registered Nurses' board meeting

AORN Journal,  May, 2003  by Sharon A. McNamara

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The AORN Board of Directors met at Headquarters in Denver from Feb 21 to 22, 2003. Board meetings are conducted as open discussions, and AORN staff members actively participate in the dialogue. All Board members were present at the meeting, as were Executive Director Tom Cooper, CAE, and various staff members.

At this meeting, the Board of Directors approved the minutes from the Nov 7 to 9, 2002, Board meeting, and the Dec 12, 2002; Jan 9, 2003; and Jan 22, 2003, Board conference calls. Approving these minutes formalizes the business of these on-site and telephone meetings.

COMMITTEES

The Board accepted the AORN Membership, Awards, Legislative, Recommended Practices, Scholarship, Nominating, and Nursing Practice Committees' annual reports, as well as the annual report of the National Committee on Education (NCE). The NCE received approval for "A Primer for Perioperative Education," which is a kit that will be developed to assist chapters with strategies for recruiting students and working with nursing schools to provide perioperative clinical experience for students.

TASK FORCES

Annual reports from the Bariatric, Board Structure, Code of Ethics, Delegate Recognition, Web, Disaster Preparedness, and Workplace Safety Task Forces and the Presidential Commission on Patient Safety were accepted. The Disaster Preparedness and Workplace Safety Task Forces were approved to continue for the 2003-2004 year, and each will have a page on AORN Online with links to outside resources. A motion by the Education and Occupational Status of the Surgical Technologist and Surgical First Assistants Task Force to disband was approved. A recommendation for the creation of a succeeding task force was defeated. Members of the Workplace Safety Task Force asked to maintain the same membership for 2003-2004. This question was referred to then President-elect, Betty Shultz, RN, CNOR. As President-elect, Shultz had the responsibility to choose committee and task force members.

SPECIALTY ASSEMBLIES

Annual reports from the Cardiothoracic; Leadership; Neurosurgery; Nurse Educator/ Clinical Nurse Specialist; Nurses in Business, Industry and Consulting; Orthopedic; Pediatric; Perioperative Nursing Informatics; RN First Assistant; Rural/Small Hospital; Advanced Technology: Lasers and Minimally Invasive Surgery; and Ambulatory Surgery Specialty Assemblies were accepted. The Advanced Technology: Lasers and Minimally Invasive Surgery Specialty Assembly's request to have its name changed to Lasers & Minimally Invasive Surgery Specialty Assembly was approved. The members of this specialty assembly believe this name change sends a clearer message about the assembly's membership, function, and services provided. The Ambulatory Surgery Specialty Assembly's motion to approve the business plan for a safety manual for ambulatory surgery centers also was approved.

PERIOPERATIVE NURSING DATA SET

Changes and additions that were proposed to the Perioperative Nursing Data Set (PNDS) were approved. These revisions relate to the sections on nausea and vomiting, pain control, participates in decisions, and respect (ie, outcomes 032, 029, 023, 028).

AORN FOUNDATION

The AORN Foundation's annual report was approved, as was a list of education and research initiatives targeted for a new fundraising campaign. Campaign dollars will support education initiatives related to

* expansion of the "Perioperative Nursing 101" course,

* developing a school of perioperative nursing,

* human factor training, and

* conceptual approval by the Board of Trustees for the development and implementation of a collaborative nurse manager leadership and management training program pending results of a business plan analysis.

Research to support evidence-based standards of practice, the PNDS, and benchmarking will be the priority in funding, with studies to support perioperative nurses at the clinical interface. Continued support for AORN activities in patient safety, workplace safety, and disaster preparedness completes the Foundation's list of priorities. Foundation staff members will work with various AORN Headquarters staff members to identify additional opportunities for activities and funding for the improvement of perioperative nursing and nurses to meet critical current and future needs. The Board also approved the addition of two Foundation Board positions for 2003.

FINANCE AND AUDIT COMMITTEE

A motion was made and approved to change the end of AORN's fiscal year from June 30 to December 31. This change will place the Association in a position to manage its financial numbers better. Rationale for this change included

* it puts AORN's bottom line in a positive position for the majority of the fiscal year because Congress, which generates a lot of the Association's revenue, will fall at the beginning instead of the end of the fiscal year;

* budget preparation is taken out of the busy pre-Congress timeframe;

* forecasting will be more accurate;

* the audit will take place in February; and