New NANN Board and NANNP Council Members Elected

The NANN and NANNP elections concluded on June 30, and we are pleased to announce the names of the four board members and three council members elected for the 2010-2012 term, which will begin following the annual conference in Las Vegas, September 19–22, 2010.

NANN Board of Directors

Secretary-Treasurer: Gladys Mabey, MN RN

Gladys Mabey, MN RN, served as NANN Special Interest Group (SIG) Director-at-Large from 2008 to 2010 and will now take her place as Secretary-Treasurer. She is the director of women and infants services at Banner Estrella Medical Center in Phoenix, AZ. Glady’s extensive experience in developing and managing large and complicated budgets makes her well qualified for this role. Gladys believes that strong attention to member engagement will create synergy around the organization’s values and in turn will result in professional growth for those who become involved in NANN.

Director-at-Large: Carol Wallman, MS RNC NNP-BC

Carol Wallman, MSN RN NNP-BC, served as NANN Director-at-Large from 2008 to 2010 and will continue in this position. She is a neonatal nurse practitioner (NNP) and coordinator of NNP education at the Children’s Hospital in Aurora, CO. Carol says, “As NANN continues to grow and be the professional voice shaping neonatal nursing, it is my vision that our current NANN members find they receive more from the organization than they expect and also that those who are not members realize the great benefits they are missing by not being a member.”

Special Interest Group Director-at-Large: Elizabeth Damato, PhD RNC CPNP

Elizabeth (Lisa) Damato, PhD RNC CPNP, will be taking her place on the board as SIG Director-at-Large. She has been an active volunteer in several nursing organizations and has represented her state nursing organization on its perinatal advisory committee to the Department of Public Health. She served as chair of NANN’s Research Committee from 2008 to 2010. Lisa is an associate professor of nursing at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, OH. She believes that NANN’s primary commitment to members should be to provide resources that support and encourage evidence-based nursing practice.

Staff Nurse Director-at-Large: Julianne Dahl, MSN RNC-NIC

Julianne Dahl, MSN RNC-NIC, will fill the newly created position of Staff Nurse Director-at-Large. She is a staff nurse at Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood, IL, and is active in unit- and hospital-based committees in the areas of quality improvement, peer education, product evaluation, clinical documentation, and the clinical ladder. Julianne is also active in the Chicago Area Association of Neonatal Nurses. She is looking forward to bringing the voice of the bedside nurse into discussions and planning at NANN’s board meetings.

NANNP Council

District 1: Terri Cavaliere, DNP RN NNP-BC

Terri Cavaliere, DNP RN NNP-BC, will represent District 1 on the council. She is a neonatal nurse practitioner and clinical assistant professor at North Shore University Hospital, Manhasset, NY, and Stonybrook University, Stonybrook, NY. Terri serves as vice president on the board of the National Certification Corporation, sharing her expertise in the areas of nurse practitioner certification, competencies, and recertification. She served as chair of the task force that created the 2002 Education Standards for Neonatal Nurse Practitioner (NNP) Programs and was a member of the task force that revised those standards in 2009. Terri believes that the current challenges in health care create tremendous opportunity for NNPs to assume a leadership role in the planning and implementation of new practice paradigms, allowing NANNP to be in the vanguard of organizations addressing critical issues that affect health care and professional practice.

District 2: Lee Shirland, MS APRN NNP-BC

Lee Shirland, MS APRN NNP-BC, has served on the NANNP Council since it was founded in 2007 and will continue as representative for District 2. She is the neonatal advanced practice service coordinator at Cape Fear Valley Health System in Fayetteville, NC. Lee also serves as executive director of the Carolinas Association of Neonatal Nurse Practitioners. Lee believes that NANNP must expand the benefits of membership to meet members’ professional needs, continue to work on setting national standards for NNP practice, and increase legislative advocacy at the state and national levels.

District 4: Bridget Cross, MSN RN NNP-BC

Bridget Cross, MSN RN NNP-BC, will represent District 4 on the council. Bridget is a neonatal nurse practitioner at Texas Children’s Hospital in Houston, TX. She is a founding member of the Texas Association of Neonatal Nurse Practitioners and has served as its president and secretary. Bridget notes that “NANNP’s vision and leadership are imperative in ensuring that the unique voice of the neonatal nurse practitioner is heard in order to address the issues impacting advanced practice nursing in education, policy, and clinical and professional practice.”

NANN thanks all members who ran for leadership positions as well as the members of the NANN and NANNP Nominations Committees, who identified a slate of such strong candidates. We look forward to an excellent year with a talented, expert group of leaders!