Official section of the national gerontological nursing association

A word about our new president-elect 

President-elect Cindy Shemansky, MEd, RN, C, LNHA, is the director of education at the Masonic Home of New Jersey, a 527-bed, skilled long-term care facility. She began her career as a nursing assistant and currently is licensed as a nursing home administrator in the State of New Jersey. She recently completed training at the End-of-Life Nursing Education Consortium and presented several breakout sessions at the 2002 convention.

Cindy has been a member of NGNA since 1987, serving as a director-at-large and the vice president in 2001. Before her service on the board, she was an active member of both the Education and Convention Planning committees. She chaired the 2002 Program Committee for the enormously successful convention in Chicago. In 1997, she received NGNA's Innovations in Practice Award for her Preceptors in LTC Program, and last year she was awarded NGNA's Distinguished Service Award for her contributions to gerontologic nursing and was named an NGNA Fellow.

The board of directors, recognizing Cindy's unwavering advocacy for staff nurses and tireless efforts in fundraising, honored her this year with a scholarship in her name that will provide funds to help staff nurses attend the annual meeting. Contributions for the scholarship can be made to the national office.

Back on the home front, Cindy founded the Central Jersey Chapter of NGNA in 1999. Currently, that chapter has more than 180 members and is one of the most active in the organization. In addition to NGNA, Cindy is widely involved with other professional organizations dedicated to improving health care for older adults. She is an advisory board member for the Foundation of Long-Term Care's Peer Mentoring Project; advisory board member for Learning Harbor, a Web-based learning company; a member of the Education Committee for the New Jersey Association of Non-Profit Homes for the Aging; the Education chair and website administrator for the New Jersey Chapter of American College of Healthcare Administrators; and the Gerontology Committee Chair and website administrator for the Trenton Regional Association of In-Service Nurses.

Cindy has written many publications and has presented at regional, state, and national conferences, including the NGNA, National Nursing Staff Development Organization, American Society of Aging, Medical College of Pennsylvania, and New Jersey Directors of Nursing Association. NGNA is proud to be represented by such an inspiring leader. Congratulations, Madame President-elect!

GN section coeditors named 

Treasurer Robin E. Remsburg, PhD, APRN, BC, and Immediate Past President Edward Latham, RN, have been named coeditors of this section to replace former President Ann Schmidt Luggen, PhD, the NGNA section's editor since its inception. Ann's many fans need not despair because she will not be going very far. She will be editing a new section in the journal for geriatric nurse practitioners.

Houston, the Bayou city 

Make your plans now to attend the 2003 NGNA Convention at the J. W. Marriott on Westheimer by the Galleria in Houston, Texas, October 10-12.

Since the Allen brothers first established the city on the banks of the Buffalo Bayou, Houston has grown tremendously. The J. W. Marriott is located within the Uptown/Galleria area of the city: four square miles of first-class hotels, lush green acres, haute couture, gourmet restaurants, fine art, and of course fabulous shops. The diversity of this area is a natural draw for visitors. The Galleria itself is a world marketplace for international retailers and draws tourists from all over the world.

Adjacent to the area is the Richmond Entertainment District. With its bright lights and festive storefronts, Richmond Avenue is known for its wide variety of great restaurants and live bands. The East End extends to the Ship Channel. This district holds much of Houston's long-time favorite restaurants, ranging from Asian to barbecue to Mexican to Greek. The Montrose area—a gathering place for artists, actors, musicians, and students—also is known for some of the most celebrated restaurants in the city, featuring cuisine from around the world. The Heights is an area well known for its history and beautiful Victorian homes. Houston's first planned community, established in 1887, The Heights boasts some of the oldest homes in the city.

The famous Museum District is considered one of the top three centers of cultural activity in the country. The area boasts the Houston Museum of Natural Science, complete with an IMAX Theatre, the Museum of Fine Arts, the Holocaust Museum, the Children's Museum, and the Contemporary Arts Museum, all within easy walking distance of each other. The Medical Center is the world's largest medical complex. Situated on 675 acres, the center's 42 institutions and 13 patient-care facilities compare in size to many mid-sized American cities.

Watch for more information about Houston and the 2003 educational program in future issues of (Geriatric Nursing ) and NGNA's newsletter.

Certification update 

Gerontologic nurses interested in becoming certified in 2003 should think about calling the American Nurses Credentialing Center soon. Deadlines for taking the examination occur several weeks before the test dates. The catalog is available on the ANCC website at www.nursingworld.org . ANCC's phone number is (800) 284-2378. Don't forget: NGNA members get a discount on registration fees, so make sure your NGNA membership card is available when you submit your application.

For licensed practical nurses and licensed vocational nurses, the Certification Examination for Practical and Vocational Nurses in Long-Term Care (CEPN-LTC) is offered at more than 150 ASI test centers nationwide. You can choose the date you wish to take the examination, but you must make the reservation at least 3 days before the date you plan to take the test. If you have questions about eligibility or administration procedures, contact the ASI Candidate Care Center at (800) 240-2376. To request a candidate bulletin and a copy of the CEPN-LTC Test Plan, write to the National Council of State Boards of Nursing, Department SSD, 676 N Saint Clair St, Suite 550, Chicago, IL 60611-2921.

Nursing organizations alliance 

Vice President Debra Marks Conley, MSN,  APRN, BC, CS, represented NGNA at the inaugural meeting of the Nursing Organizations Alliance in Indianapolis in November 2002. The alliance was formed in November 2001 in Salt Lake City by merging the National Federation for Specialty Nursing Organizations and the Nursing Organizations Liaison Forum, an entity of the American Nurses Association. This merger was accomplished by consensus and election of a coordinating team. The coordinating team members are as follows:

Executive directors and elected officials from 55 nursing organizations met to begin the work of creating a solid alliance that will enable nurses to speak with one voice. The alliance will provide a vehicle for nursing organizations to build consensus and rally support for nursing and health care issues. Speakers at the conference included Tim Porter-O'Grady, EdD, FAAN, Leah Curtain, MAMS, ScD(n), RN, FANN, Frank Shaffer, EdD, RN, FAAN, and Mary Wakefield, PhD, RN, FAAN, all of whom spoke of their excitement about the formation of the alliance and the opportunity it has to provide a powerful voice for health, health care, and nursing.

The current alliance members are as follows: