Communique to Nurse Leaders and Program Development SIG
I wanted to send an update to our SIG members from discussions at the ONS Leadership Weekend July
30th – Aug 1st. There are changes already being implemented for the SIGs, Congress, and ONS as we
move forward with technology, and the ability to meet the needs of our members. Leadership updates
were based on plans developed from an ONS SIG Task Force which consisted of volunteers and staff that
met in the fall of 2014 to develop a set of recommendations for the ONS Special Interest Groups (SIGs)
which would assure SIGs could adapt to the changing needs of members and leaders. Those
recommendations focused on optimizing structures and roles to ensure sustainability and a strong
contribution to ONS’s future programs. The task force identified a number of issues, challenges and
opportunities, then explored a variety of options. What emerged from the conversations was a vision
for knowledge communities that offer greater flexibility, broader appeal and lower administrative
overhead which will give voice to and build resources around emerging issues, shared interest/
discipline, helping each member to:
 “Find my people”
 “Answer my questions”
 “Solve my problems”
 “Teach others”
In a recent video Donald “Chip” Bailey Jr., PhD, RN, FAAN, Director at Large, discussed the take-a-ways
from this year’s Leadership weekend. The ONS Board of Directors has lifted the requirements for SIG
activities like newsletter publication, meetings, and annual reporting in anticipation of transitioning the
SIGs to ONS Communities. This was done so that the SIGs could focus on their own interest based
projects and find new ways of creating communities within the organization. The annual Congress is also
reinventing itself as the must-attend conference for oncology nurses. These changes provide new
options for SIG members to connect and learn at the annual meeting. While the requirements and
processes may have changed, the opportunities for peer-to-peer learning remain, as the ONS Board and
staff are committed to promoting subspecialty knowledge among oncology nurses. Here’s some key
information for you about this year’s Congress. As you and your SIG colleagues are planning for
Congress, remember that the ONS Foundation offers scholarships for oncology nurses to attend. In
addition, the Lilly Oncology Advancing Patient Care Project offers awards of up to $5,000 to nurses
seeking support for a professional development, patient care, and/or nursing leadership project. SIG
projects are eligible for this funding. “
Check out this video of Chip Bailey talking about the ONS Communities. What does all this mean for our
SIG? Plans are currently being made for the Nurse Leaders and Program Development SIG leaders to
conference with discussions on next steps for our SIG. If you are interested in being involved with those
discussions or feel that we should develop a SIG taskforce to plan for our future, please contact me at
thelbaker@msn.com or Tbaker@Renown.org. I look forward to your feedback.