nNurses often run up against the “because we’ve
always done it this way” attitude in the work
place, especially when questioning a practice or
proposing a new way of doing things. While
this mindset exists in many organizations, that
doesn’t mean nurses have to like it or accept it.
“Challenging the Status Quo,” the
AWHONN 2004 Convention scheduled for
June 26-30 in Tampa, FL., is about questioning
established ways of thinking and empowering
nurses to proactively chart a course for their
profession that will yield the most beneficial
outcomes for their patients and themselves.
Through preconference workshops, panel
discussions, learning labs and other education-
al sessions, the 2004 Convention will address
ways nurses can effectively challenge the status
quo, enhance their clinical knowledge and
skills, and deal with the many professional
issues related to caring for women and for
newborns. Topics include:
• Overcoming barriers to get things done
• Liability issues and risk management
• Pharmacology updates
• Pain management
• Nurse management and leadership
An impressive array of speakers is already on
board, including Brigadier General Wilma
Vaught, USAF Ret., the driving force behind
the creation of the Women of the American
Military Memorial in Washington, DC, and
Marianne Neifert, MD, known to millions
through her parenting books, magazine and
newspaper columns as “Dr. Mom.”
In addition, the 2004 Convention will
feature a wealth of additional opportunities
for professional development and fun,
including discussion of the hot clinical and
legislative topics of the day through roundtable
April | May 2004 AWHONN Lifelines 151
Through pre-
conference
workshops, panel
discussions, learning
labs and other
educational sessions,
the 2004 Convention
will address ways
nurses can
effectively challenge
the status quo
Challengingthe
Status QuoAWHONN 2004 Convention
Raising Critical Questions AboutNursing & Nursing Practices
breakfasts and the legislative lunch, interaction
with institutions and vendors in the exhibit
hall, career information and opportunities at
the job fair and the ultimate celebration
during the President’s Party. Automated CE
tracking will be available, and attendees will
have the opportunity to earn 30+ hours of CE
contact hours, including pharmacology CE
credit.
Located in beautiful and balmy Tampa, FL.
the AWHONN 2004 Convention is an ideal
opportunity to advance professional
knowledge while adding your voice to those
shaping the future of nursing—as well as
get in some beach time. The Tampa
Convention Center hugs the water; during
breaks you can stroll the water walk and
watch the dolphins swim in the bay.
Many of Tampa’s main attractions are
easily accessible from the convention center
and surrounding hotels either by foot, trolley
or streetcar. For complete details on the
AWHONN 2004 Convention, including
housing and travel information, details on
educational programming and links to the
Tampa convention and visitor’s bureau,
visit www.awhonn.org/convention.
Consumers Warned Not toFeed Infants Better ThanFormula Ultra Infant ImmuneBooster 117
FDA is warning consumers that Better
Than Formula Ultra Infant Immune
Booster 117, sold over the Internet as a dietary
supplement, should not be fed to infants. Even
though the manufacturer, NSP Research Nutri-
tion of Mt. Clemens, MI., labeled the product
as “a dietary supplement,” the FDA is con-
cerned that the product may be used as an
infant formula as a result of its labeling. If the
product is used as formula, there are no assur-
ances that it would support growth of infants,
that it contains nutrients essential for infants
or that is has been manufactured using good
practices. Also, the label lists a number of
ingredients that have not been evaluated for
safe use in infant formula.
AWHONN Launches 35thAnniversary CommemorativeWeb Page
In honor of its 35th anniversary, AWHONN
has posted a commemorative Web page at
http://www.awhonn.org/awhonn/?pg=872-
9440-14180. Here you’ll find details on the
organization’s anniversary celebration activi-
ties, a brief history of AWHONN and its
accomplishments, as well as a special 35th
anniversary logo.
Nurses can share their memories and
reflections on the last 35 years of nursing
and AWHONN by e-mailing 35years@
awhonn.org. Send us a few lines or a few pages
with your thoughts on the changes you’ve seen,
what being a nurse has meant to you, memo-
rable experiences you’ve had or how
AWHONN has influenced you. These reflec-
tions may be published on www.awhonn.org
for others to read and enjoy.
New Funding for PediatricHeart Disease Centers
The National Heart, Lung and Blood Insti-
tute (NHLBI), one of the National Insti-
tutes of Health (NIH), has awarded grants to
four centers to accelerate research aimed at
understanding heart development and treating
pediatric heart disease.
The research is part of a new program, the
Specialized Centers of Clinically Oriented
Research (SCCOR) program, which is designed
to foster multidisciplinary collaborations so
that basic research advances are rapidly trans-
lated to clinical care. This research also sup-
ports the NIH roadmap initiative unveiled last
fall by NIH Director Elias A. Zerhouni, MD.
Birth defects are a leading cause of infant
mortality. Cardiovascular malformations,
which are present in approximately 1 percent
of live births, are the largest contributor to
deaths from birth defects. Despite the enor-
mous strides researchers have made in under-
standing heart development at the cellular lev-
el, in many cases the underlying cause of the
cardiovascular defect is unknown. And while
clinical advances have made medical and surgi-
cal treatment of complex heart defects possible
The National Heart,
Lung and Blood
Institute (NHLBI),
one of the National
Institutes of Health
(NIH), has awarded
grants to four centers
to accelerate research
aimed at
understanding heart
development and
treating pediatric
heart disease
152 AWHONN Lifelines Volume 8 Issue 2
