Volume 11, Issue 1
Summer 2011
President’s Letter
Dear IONE members,
Can you believe that 2011 is half over? Already IONE has
participated in many exciting activities. There is so many energizing
opportunities for nurses happening right here in our state. There’s
never been a better time to be a nurse in Indiana.
With the release of the Institute of Medicine (IOM) report in
November 2010, IONE and other state wide organizations have been
working diligently to push forward the recommendations put forth by
the IOM in their report, The Future of Nursing: Leading Change,
Advancing Health.
With more than 3 million members, the nursing profession is the largest
segment of the nation’s health care workforce. Working on the front lines of
patient care, nurses can play a vital role in helping realize the objectives set
forth in the 2010 Affordable Care Act, legislation that represents the
broadest health care overhaul since the 1965 creation of the Medicare and
Medicaid programs. A number of barriers prevent nurses from being able to
respond effectively to rapidly changing health care settings and an evolving health care system. These barriers
need to be overcome to ensure that nurses are well- positioned to lead change and advance health.
In 2008, The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) and the IOM launched a two-year initiative to respond to
the need to assess and transform the nursing profession. Through its deliberations, the committee developed four
key messages:
Key Messages

Nurses should practice to the full extent of their education and training.

Nurses should achieve higher levels of education and training through an improved education
system that promotes seamless academic progression.

Nurses should be full partners, with physicians and other health care professionals, in
redesigning health care in the United States.

Effective workforce planning and policy making require better data collection and an improved
information infrastructure.
In February 2011, the Future of Nursing: Campaign for Action, a Robert Wood Foundation initiative,
requested applications for 10 State-wide Action Coalitions to assist with moving these key health care
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workforce-related issues forward at the local, state and national level. And I am proud to say that Indiana
was one of the ten states chosen to participate. With a very short timeline and with the input from IONE,
INWDC, Nursing 2000 North, Nursing 2000 Central and IHA representation, a proposal was developed
that clearly showed that Indiana had many initiatives in place to support the work of nursing and the IOM
report. Below is a national map outlining the Regional Action Coalitions. There has already been a lot of
work done throughout the state to develop teams that will address the above recommendations.
AONE 2011
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Position Statement on Accreditation for Schools of Nursing in Indiana
Support by
Indiana Organization of Nurse Executives (IONE) {Nursing 2000, Nursing 2000North, INWDC/ICN, IHA, ILN, Indiana Deans and Directors, ISNA, Tri-Council}
June, 2011
The Indiana Organization of Nurse Executives (IONE) {et. al.} recognizes and supports the need for an
educated professional nursing workforce in the state. Evidence supports a future nursing shortage as a
result of faculty shortages and the increasing average age of nurses. Health care transformation requires
the professional nurse to be competent in care management and coordination, patient education, quality
improvement and patient safety principles, working in multidisciplinary teams, the use of evidence-based
practice and the use of health information technologies. Without a more expansively educated
professional nursing workforce, the nation’s health is at risk.
IONE supports the Institute of Medicine’s (IOM) Report on the Future of Nursing to lead change and
advance healthcare. Nursing education must prepare the professional nurse to meet the patients’ diverse
and complex needs, advance practice, and provide safe, quality patient care in a variety of healthcare
settings.
IONE recognizes the need for innovation to educate the future nursing workforce. IONE values the
rigorous accreditation process for nursing programs which serves the public interest by assessing and
identifying programs that engage in effective educational practices. Accreditation provides a standard
platform to demonstrate mastery of core skills and competences needed for nursing education.
Whereas:
IONE supports the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE) and the National League for
Nursing Accrediting Commission (NLNAC) as a common core of standards for quality nursing
programs. IONE understands that nursing programs have a two year waiting period before applying for
nursing accreditation and may experience a backlog. Once a nursing program is accredited, graduates
may be subsequently recognized as graduates of an accredited program.
IONE supports that all nursing programs successfully achieve accreditation by the following three (3)
accrediting agencies:

The State Board of Nursing (SBN).

The regional or national accrediting agency recognized by the US Department of Education.
Indiana is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of
Colleges which is one of the 6 regional accrediting agencies in the US.

One of the two nationally recognized nursing accrediting bodies: the National League for Nursing
Accrediting Commission (NLNAC) AND/OR the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education
(CCNE).
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A listing of accredited nursing programs in the State of Indiana may be accessed on the Nursing 2000
website (www.nursing2000inc.org) and the Indiana Nursing Workforce Development Center website
(www.indiananursingworkforce.org)
Guidelines to consider in applying to Indiana Schools of Nursing may be accessed on the Nursing 2000
website (www.nursing2000.org).
District Up pdates
Northern District Report
NIONE has had a good year in terms of meetings but lackluster in terms of membership. We are hoping
for more members and attendees at meetings. We have had excellent meetings so far this year, when
weather did not interfere, with plans for meetings in August (nursing education focus) and October (topic
to be determined). We are trying moving around to various sites in our district to have meetings.
Last October we had a wonderful presentation on Health Care Reform. None of us can get enough of
hearing about the impact, good and bad. This topic will drive a lot of what we experience over the next
few years.We had a very well attended meeting in April with Lynda Narwold from the Indiana State
Board of Nursing presenting. She provided an excellent overview of the board functions and the issues
facing the board. A lot of the issues are related to impaired nurses and re-licensure. We discussed
Schools of Nursing as well and the process for Board approval of programs. We had a great question and
discussion session. It appears not much will change at the Board with practice since it involves
legislative changes. However, Lynda encouraged us to work through ISNA and Ernie Klein for being a
voice for change. Our June meeting was dedicated to the Future of Nursing work. A panel discussion
occurred on local impact and we had a great discussion on these issues and Indiana pride at being a RAC
state.
Our area has seen some health care agency changes with purchase, mergers and changes in nursing
administration. It appears there are more RN job openings in our area than we have seen in quite a
while.This has been balanced by some area hospital layoffs. The schools of nursing report vibrant
enrollments.
Respectfully Submitted, Marta Makielski, NIONE President
SOUTHWESTERN DISTRICT
SWIONE along with the University of Southern Indiana College of Nursing and Health Professions
hosted the eighth annual Nursing Leadership Conference which was held at USI on April 6, 2011. The
conference title was: Blueprints for Creating Cultures of Excellence: Tools, Tactics, and Strategies for
Leaders in Nursing. The featured speaker for the conference was Pamela Klauer Triolo, PhD, RN,
FAAN. Dr. Triolo is nationally recognized for her research, leadership and consultation in creating
cultures of excellence. The breakdown of attendees appears below:
Total Registrations = 301
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Number of IONE participants = 44
Number of participants from Indiana = 253
Number of facilities represented = 29
Total number of counties represented = 34
Total number of Indiana counties represented = 20
Respectfully Submitted, Kay Vaught, SWIONE President
LICENSE PLATE COMMITTEE
RN License Plate Numbers Soar
If you think that you are seeing more RN license plates on the road this year, you are correct. The RN license
plate continues to have great popularity and ranks 13th out of 83 available Bureau of Motor Vehicle (BMV) specialty
plates at the end May 2011. We have moved up from 15th position over the last 2 months and there are at least
3,558 plates that have been sold year to date giving us a 58% higher volume of sales over 2010. Keep
encouraging your colleagues, friends and family to buy a plate and support the nursing profession in this unique
way.
If you are interested in a low number plate (1-99), please contact the license plate chairperson, Marijane
Smallwood, at mbsmall@hendricks.org. Your name is then submitted to the BMV and the plate is reserved for
you.
Educational scholarships are awarded by the license plate fund as well as grants to promote the nursing
profession. $45,000 was awarded this year in grants to SWIONE, NEIONE, INWDC, Nursing 2000 North and
South.
The American Organization of Nurse Executives Annual Meeting and Exposition was held April 9-13, 2011 in San
Diego, California. Seventeen tuition reimbursement scholarships were awarded to assist IONE members to attend
the national meeting. IONE has always awarded educational scholarships each fall at our annual meeting to
nursing students seeking advanced nursing degrees in administration at an Indiana college or university. IONE is
slated to award at least 6 scholarships this fall for $3000 each. If you are currently enrolled in a graduate program
and interested in receiving a scholarship, please speak to your program chair to see if you qualify for this award.
Additionally, five scholarships to attend our annual fall meeting in Nashville, Indiana were awarded at the IONE
spring meeting.
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If you are interested in receiving a grant from the license plate fund, please make sure to submit your request by
August 31, 2011. Details regarding grant application are available at our website, www.indianaone.org under
license plate.
Respectfully submitted by:
Marijane Smallwood, RN, MSN, NE-BC
IONE License Plate Committee Chairperson
Program Committee
Early 2011 was spent planning our Spring Conference. On March 4th IONE held a workshop focused on
Impacting the Patient Perception of Quality Care. Two speakers from the StuderGroup shared pertinent
information regarding HCAHPS and the Hackensack Journey in improving and maintaining high quality
patient satisfaction scores. A panel showcasing best practices from organizations across the state
concluded the day. A few of the take a ways for the audience included; leadership patient rounding,
discharge follow up calls, start with a win, and a culture of always - every patient every time.
Complimentary access to the Studer website and materials was granted to each workshop participant for
30 days. Door prizes were awarded to the following workshop attendees:
Free Registration for Fall Conference:
Peggy Findley – Schneck Medical Center
Jo Morton – Hendricks Regional Health
Sherri Crawford – Community Hospital East
Aileen Owens – IU Health West Hospital
Brittney Mullaney – IU Health Physicians Pendleton
HCAHPS Handbook: Hardwire Your Hospital for Pay-for-Performance Success
Teresa Kasey - Floyd Memorial Hospital
Karen Bowers – Wishard Health Services
LeaAnn Varvel – Hendricks Regional Health
Donna Tucker – Marion General Hospital
Deb Lyons - Community Hospital East
The spring conference was a great success with positive feedback on evaluations.
The Program Committee shifted gears and began working on the Fall Conference in April. The keynote
speaker for the Fall Conference is Dr. Steve L. Robbins. Dr. Robbins is an expert in diversity and
inclusion, find more information on his website at www.slrobbins.com. Please plan on joining us in
Brown County for the Fall Conference on October 19th – 21st.
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