Summit of Sages Conference

NEWS RELEASE

Contact: Mary Pattock, School of Nursing, 612-624-0939

NURSES AT INTERNATIONAL SUMMIT TO EXPLORE HOW TO STRENGTHEN THEIR INFLUENCE IN HEALTH CARE
Mario Cuomo, Garrison Keillor to Headline University of Minnesota School of Nursing Conference

Minneapolis/St. Paul (October 5, 2004) - Nurse leaders from the U.S. and abroad, determined to strengthen the voice of nursing in health care discussions, are meeting in the Twin Cities next week.

The conference, A Summit of Sages, is hosted by the University of Minnesota School of Nursing and its Katharine J. Densford International Center for Nursing Leadership. It will take place October 10-12 at the Saint Paul Hotel, 350 Market St., St. Paul, MN.

Nurses are the backbone of the current healthcare system. Prepared in a discipline that is holistic, care-oriented and system-oriented, they propose solutions that result in higher quality care, more satisfied patients and lower cost. But they are under-represented in most health care decision-making circles, and their voices are often not heeded.

"We have a health care system that is in turmoil," says Joanne Disch, PhD, RN, FAAN, Director of the Densford Center and the school's Interim Dean, "and nursing has solutions for many of the questions we face. Nurse leaders need to focus and put the power of nursing out there with energy and conviction. This creative burst needs to happen soon, and that's what this conference is about." Disch says she expects the event to be "like the Big Bang-such a concentration of nursing wisdom and power that it will explode into new ideas and new creations."

Cuomo Keynote: Is Caring Out of Style?

Former New York Governor Mario Cuomo, will deliver the Sunday keynote, "The Paradox of Caring in Uncaring Times," asking whether care is going out of style, eclipsed by health industry economics. If so, what does that mean for nurses-and those of us they care for?

Humorist Garrison Keillor, who is a University of Minnesota graduate, will speak at the Monday evening banquet.

At the conference, six "sages" who made landmark contributions that changed the course of nursing-and of health care-will discuss their work and the dynamics that drove it. Participants, from hospital executives to researchers to community and clinical leaders, will apply their own wisdom and that of the sages to formulating approaches to today's challenges and opportunities.

Sages speaking at the conference are:

• Patricia Benner, PhD, RN, FAAN, Berkeley, CA: Benner extensively examined the process by which nurses move from novice to expert in their practice, illuminating the power of professional nursing;
• Claire Fagin, PhD, RN, FAAN, FRCN, New York City, NY: significantly shaped health care policy and the nursing profession as Dean of Nursing and Interim President of the University of Pennsylvania;
• Vernice Ferguson, RN, MA, FAAn, FRCN, Washington, DC: raised the stature of nursing throughout the U.S. by transforming the profession within the Veterans Administration;
• Marie Manthey, PhD, RN, FAAN, FRCN, Minneapolis, MN: developed primary nursing, a model of professional nursing that has taken hold internationally;
• Angela Barron McBride, PhD, RN, FAAN, Lafayette, IN: superb educator and authentic leader who elevated nurse mentoring to an art;
• Margretta Madden Styles, RN, EdD, FAAN, FRCN, Clearwater, FL: worked to harmonize the interests of nursing organizations worldwide, and strengthen nursing through professional self-regulation and credentialing.

Major conference sponsors are Evercare, a UnitedHealth Group company; and Creative Health Care Management.

Additional sponsors are Allina Hospitals & Clinics, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Minnesota, Fairview Health Services, HealthEast Care System, Health Partners, Mayo Clinic, Minnesota Hospital Association, Minnesota Nurses Association, Minnesota Organization of Leaders in Nursing, North Memorial Health Care, Powderhorn Phillips Cultural Wellness Center, St. Cloud Hospital, CentraCare Health System; Stratis Health, Zeta Chapter of Sigma Theta Tau International (the nursing honor society).

One of the program sponsors, Creative Health Care Management, will conduct pre- and post-conference workshops building on A Summit of Sages themes. Sessions will focus on clinical and leadership innovations and on creating strategies for putting the entire conference into practice at the local level. CHCM's workshops and Summit support are part of its 25 Year Anniversary celebration.

Additional information is available at www.nursing.umn.edu ("News and Events").

The Katharine J. Densford International Center for Nursing Leadership is both a think-tank and action center, located at the University of Minnesota School of Nursing. The Center fosters nursing leadership and promotes the nursing profession.

The University of Minnesota School of Nursing is ranked among the nation's top nursing schools. It is a leader in nursing research and has a combined undergraduate and graduate enrollment of approximately 700 students. The school produces 55 percent of the faculty in Minnesota's public and private nursing schools, advanced practice nurses and nurses who can assume leadership positions. The world's oldest continuing university-based school of nursing, it is one of seven schools and colleges comprising the Academic Health Center, one of the most comprehensive facilities for health professionals in the nation, fostering interdisciplinary study and research.

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