News and Initiatives

Dear AALNC Members,

I spoke at the Denver Forum of how our association is indebted to the countless volunteers who have made AALNC what it is today.  It is through the hard work of such dedicated individuals that I can share with you the following exciting news and initiatives:

1.  AALNC’s Code of Ethics and Conduct with Interpretive Discussion was updated this year.  At least every three to five years, such documents put forth by AALNC need to be reviewed and, if necessary, revised to ensure they remain current for the specialty practice.   See the announcement on AALNC’s homepage for a link to the revised AALNC Code of Ethics.

2.  As part of the AALNC Board of Director’s ongoing effort to support local chapters, a new Chapter Leader Discussion Forum was created on the AALNC website.  This new resource offers a way for chapter leaders to communicate directly with each other to share experiences, pose questions, explore ideas, etc.  Chapter leaders: to access this forum, sign in to the AALNC website and select “Groups” under “My Profile.”

3.  The “Ask an LNC” column on the AALNC website is a new member benefit designed to answer frequently asked questions about working in the legal arena, the management of medical-legal tort claims, and/or the specialty practice of legal nurse consulting.  This resource is not only valuable for newer LNCs but also for experienced LNCs who have questions about a different practice setting, etc.  To view this column, click “Ask an LNC” from the menu bar on the left of AALNC’s website.  New questions and answers are being added regularly, so check back frequently!  To pose a question, email info@aalnc.org.  Answers are provided by an experienced, board-certified LNCC. 

Warmly,

Julie Dickinson

President, AALNC

Julie.dickinson@aya.yale.edu

860-208-6670

Exhibiting at American Health Lawyers Association (AHLA)

Dear AALNC Members,

This year, our association is exhibiting for the first time at the American Health Lawyers Association's annual meeting in New York City.  AALNC Board members Susan Carleo, RN CAPA (Director at Large) and Varsha Desai, BSN RN CNLCP LNCC (President Elect) are representing our association.  As pictured below, they are educating the attorneys and other attendees about AALNC, the LNC Locator, and LNCC board certification.

Warmly,

Julie Dickinson

President, AALNC

Julie.dickinson@aya.yale.edu

860-208-6670

Awareness Initiatives

Dear AALNC Members,

In my last blog post, I relayed that AALNC was exhibiting at the Critical Care Nurses’ conference in Denver.  Later this month, the association will be exhibiting at AHLA (American Health Lawyers Association) in New York City.  I therefore want to share more information with you about AALNC’s awareness initiatives, how they tie into the association’s strategic goals, and how they benefit the association and you, as members.

AALNC’s strategic plan contains two objectives related to awareness:  raising clinical nursing and legal/attorney awareness.  Both have benefits for AALNC members as well as for the association.

To further the first objective, the AALNC Board of Directors chose to exhibit at National Teaching Institute & Critical Care Exposition (NTI/AACN) which was held in Denver in May.  Kim Beladi RN BSN LNCC, AALNC Director at Large, represented the association.  This event was attended by over 6,000 nurses from across the country, and Kim educated attendees about legal nurse consulting, AALNC, the LNCC^© board certification, and much more.  In addition, Patricia Davis MSN RN, AALNC Director of Programs; AALNC Education Committees; Wendie Howland MN RN-BC CRRN CCM CNLCP LNCP-C LNCC, Editor of the Journal of Legal Nurse Consulting (JLNC); and the  JLNC Editorial Board are identifying ways our association can partner with clinical nursing associations on joint educational programing.  All of these clinical nursing awareness initiatives benefit the association by exposing potential members and/or potential customers to the specialty practice of legal nurse consulting and to our organization, mission, LNCC^© certification, and various products and services.  Increased members and customers translates into enhanced networking opportunities at the Forum and in the LNC community, richer discussions on social media, more job opportunities (e.g. insurance companies, LNC firms, subcontracting), even greater educational opportunities, more results when using the LNC Locator^©, etc. - all of which are valuable to AALNC’s members.

To further the second objective, AALNC will be exhibiting at the AHLA (American Health Lawyers Association) annual conference in New York City at the end of June.  Susan Carleo RN CAPA, AALNC Director at Large, and Varsha Desai BSN RN CNLCP LNCC, AALNC President Elect, will be representing the organization.  Comprised of over 12,500 members, AHLA’s focus is on legal issues in the healthcare field.  Because of the high concentration of attorneys at this conference who work on the types of claims in which LNCs can add value, exhibiting at this conference was an easy decision for the AALNC Board of Directors.  It offers the most return on investment for legal exhibiting, which is traditionally very expensive.  This is AALNC’s first time exhibiting at AHLA, and the Board is excited to see what opportunities and relationship may grow from this.  Furthermore, the AALNC Board will be strategically placing the LNC Locator^© ad in legal publications and websites as an additional means to increase attorney awareness.  These initiatives help to promote our specialty practice and provide an opportunity to illustrate the value LNCs can bring to attorneys and their cases.  These, coupled with increased awareness and usage of the LNC Locator^© tool, lead to more work opportunities for AALNC members.

Enjoy your summer!

Warmly,

Julie Dickinson

President, AALNC

Julie.dickinson@aya.yale.edu

860-208-6670

AALNC is exhibiting at the Critical Care Nurses conference in Denver!

Dear AALNC Members,

The NTI 2014 Critical Care Exposition is being held this week at the Colorado Convention Center in Denver and is attended by approximately 6,000 - 7,000 nurses.  AALNC Director at Large, Kim Beladi RN BSN LNCC, is exhibiting for AALNC!  This is part of our strategic plan to position AALNC as the industry leader by improving visibility to the clinical nursing community.

If you are attending the expo, please stop by AALNC's booth (#1167)!

Warmly,

Julie Dickinson

President, AALNC

Julie.dickinson@aya.yale.edu

860-208-6670

Goals and Initiatives

Dear AALNC Members,

As promised in my last blog post, I want to share with you the goals of the AALNC Board of Directors for the year ahead.  We will be working on the following in accordance with AALNC’s strategic plan:

• Increase the number of annual Journal issues
• Conduct a focus group to identify the educational needs of seasoned LNCs
• Roll out the first phase of the new online course
• Develop the second phase of the new online course
• Exhibit at the NTI (critical care nurses) conference this month in Denver
• Continue the free educational webinars about legal nurse consulting
• Explore ways to partner with other nursing organizations
• Evaluate the AALNC website to identify ways to make it more user-friendly and make the information more readily accessible
• Exhibit at AHLA (American Health Lawyers Association) in June in New York
• Pursue strategic placements of our LNC Locator ad
• Present to National Association of Legal Assistants
• Continue position on ABA’s Health Law Section’s Nurses and Allied Health Professionals Taskforce
• Continue position on DRI’s Nursing Home / Assisted Living Facility Litigation Seminar Steering Committee
• Continue position on DRI’s Medical Liability and Health Care Law Seminar Steering Committee
• And much more!

To accomplish these objectives, we are fortunate to have many talented volunteers who generously give of their time and expertise.  Leading these volunteers and driving our initiatives are the chairpersons and other association leaders listed below.  I would like to thank each of these individuals for their efforts and contributions to AALNC, and I look forward to working with them during the coming year.

• ALNCCB:  Anne Meyer
• Director of Programs:  Pat Davis
• Finance Committee:  Mary Sussex
• Forum Committee:  Carol Walsh
• JLNC Editorial Board:  Wendie Howland
• LNC Online Course Taskforce:  Karen Huff; Sharon McQuown; Mary Sussex; Elizabeth Zorn; and myself
• LNCC Review Course Task Force:  Karen Huff
• Nominating Committee:  Varsha Desai
• Products & Services Committee:  Erin Gollogly
• Research Committee:  Dana Jolly
• Scope & Standards of Practice Taskforce:  Elizabeth Zorn
• Webinar Committee:  Marjorie Pugatch

Lastly, and in line with AALNC’s focus on providing quality education, I am pleased to share with you that AALNC’s Provider Accreditation by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) Commission on Accreditation has been extended by an additional two years.

Warmly,

Julie Dickinson

President, AALNC

Julie.dickinson@aya.yale.edu

860-208-6670