News Releases

2014 NEONI Fall Conference Focuses on Nursing’s Future

The Center for Health Affairs and its workforce initiative hosted the 2014 NEONI Fall Conference, “Nursing’s Future – The Workforce, The Expectations & The Technology,” Friday, Oct. 17 at South Point Hospital in Warrensville Heights, Ohio.

About 60 NEONI members and guests from the Northeast Ohio nursing community attended the 2014 NEONI Fall Conference. Attendees heard from keynote speaker Patricia J. Cirillo, Ph.D., president, Cypress Research Group, who presented "Nursing Forecast: A Picture of the Nursing Workforce in the State and the Region." Following Cirillo's presentation attendees conversed with two panels of their colleagues, facilitated by Cindy Danko, MSN, RN, consultant and liaison, The Center for Health Affairs. 

Panel 1 provided an overview of the state and regional picture of nursing. Participants included:

• Jane Mahowald, MA, RN, ANEF, executive director, Ohio League for Nursing
• Kathleen Gravens, Ph.D., RN, CPNP, director of nursing, Lakeland Community College (Click for slides)
• Patricia Sharpnack, DNP, RN, CNE, NEA-BC, ANEF, dean and strawbridge professor, associate professor, The Breen School of Nursing, Ursuline College (Click for slides)
• Claire Zangerle, MSN, MBA, RN, president and chief executive officer, Visiting Nurses Association of Ohio (Click for slides)

Panel 2 reviewed the impact of technology on quality and safety initiatives. Participants included:

• Ryan Everett, coordinator of quality improvement, The Ohio Hospital Association (Click for slides)
• Mary Jo Krivanek, RN, BSN, MPA, clinical nursing educator, Southwest General Health Center (Click for slides)
• Nelita Zytkowski, DNP, MS, BSN, NEA-BC, RN-BC, FHIMSS, associate chief of nursing officer, informatics, Cleveland Clinic Health System (Click for slides)
• Jill Evans, RN, MSN, manager, clinical informatics, The MetroHealth Medical Center (Click for slides)
• Deirdre Faranda, BSN, MPA, director of nursing informatics, The MetroHealth Medical Center (Click for slides)

“Our presenters provided a wealth of knowledge and fantastic topics for discussions throughout the 2014 NEONI Fall Conference,” said Pam Waite, MSN, RN-BC, MHSA, director of healthcare workforce and NEONI operations, The Center for Health Affairs. “We appreciate their time and efforts and are thankful for such a great turnout.” 

For more information about the 2014 NEONI Fall Conference, please contact Waite via email or at 216.255.3650.