Happy 28th Birthday, SDONS!
February, 2014
SDONS...Welcome to 2014!
...A professional organization with a personal touch....
As we look toward Spring, 2014, here are assorted announcements, reminders and news....
Our monthly meetings bring us together to learn from our speakers about oncology topics,
but also to learn from one another as we discuss our practices. ONS, as you know, has
included your yearly local dues in the national dues you pay. So as of January, 2014, our
SDONS roster has now expanded to 315 members. We hope with our e-newsletter that
members who cannot come to meetings still are aware of our activities and opportunities
to learn and network
Below are highlights about all things SDONS, as we head into Spring, 2014:
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Save the Date: March 26, 2014, 6 p.m., SDSU (room TBA),....Our annual panel
presentation, first held in Spring 2012 before SDSU students and guests about oncology
nursing as a career, will be held again! Paula Muehlbauer, coordinator of the event,
reminds us to save the date and participate!:
SDONS will again be collaborating with SDSU CSNA for an oncology educational seminar
for nursing students throughout the county. This time we will focus on a Integrated
Medicine. After the main panel. attendees really want to hear from us on how we got into
oncology nursing, how to we stay energized and refocus and what we like about oncology
nursing!
If you are interested in helping with the event and/or sharing your story, please contact
Paula at paula.muehlbauer@gmail.com, A light dinner will be provided courtesy of
SDONS. (Our preliminary target guest list is 100 attendees.)
Notes from our annual January Board Retreat:
Our annual SDONS Holiday Vendor Faire in Dec. raised more than $1000 from our raffle
fundraiser. The proceeds go toward SDONS scholarships. A huge round of applause
and thanks go to Meloddie Neel Brooks and her team for coordinating a spectacular
evening to celebrate our chapter and our valued vendor and pharmaceutical
representatives. Check out our Photo Gallery below, featuring our many, many raffle
winners. Raffle winners sang their favorite holiday carol or correctly answered a question
from a special SDONS quiz..
The 2014 Vendor Faire is scheduled Thurs. Dec. 4, so mark your calendar. This
annual event welcomes SDONS members, potential new members and our supportive
community of industry friends and sponsors. Our Faire gets better every year...with a
special focus on the auction of donated baskets and gifts, toward building our SDONS
scholarship funds.
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Here are more announcements and reminders about our chapter…
This year consider nominating a colleague for a National ONS Award: Check out all the
awards (and the deadlines to nominate): http://ons.org/Awards/ONSAwards In general,
the deadline to submit for ONS awards is September 30, 2014.
Certification: We are interested in continuing to boost and celebrate certification of our
members. Please send an email to sd_ons@yahoo.com, letting us know about your
oncology certification (if you haven't already contacted us). If you haven’t been certified
yet, this year is a great time to get it done! During 2014 the fraternal group, the Free
Masons, will continue to offer scholarship support toward oncology certification for
California nurses. Go to www.freemason.org/byyourside for more information.
SDONS Support of Scholarships: As in the past, during 2014 our local chapter will have a
drawing four times this year for eight $400/each scholarships: Drawings will be held during
the monthly meetings in February, April, August and October. The next scholarship
drawing will be held at our February meeting. To enter the drawing, current SDONS
general members can send an email--by the Tuesday before the Thursday meeting--to
sd_ons@yahoo.com. In your e-mail, tell us what you would like to do with your
scholarship if you win. We will draw two names at the meeting. Winners need not need
be present at the meeting to win the scholarship. (Limit: One scholarship win per year.)
To be reimbursed the scholarship monies, receipts must be submitted to the Treasurer
within one calendar year from winning your scholarship. Also to receive your scholarship
check, submit a brief article about your learning experience for the SDONS e-newsletter
(to Ellen Carr, ecarr18@cox.net). In addition to our support of the eight $400-scholarships for non-SDONS Board members,
there are professional development scholarships of $500 for each SDONS Board and
Leadership Team members. These scholarships were created to encourage all SDONS
members to participate on the SDONS Leadership Team. With more SDONS members
involved in chapter leadership, leadership succession planning occurs! Receipts and an
e-newsletter article must be submitted to receive the scholarship monies. NOTE: Board
members are not eligible for the eight $400/each scholarship drawings.
As we continue through 2014, it's time to review and remind you about our monthly
chapter dinner No Show policy. We've posted the policy below so you can review it.
Please know our policy so that all SDONS members have the opportunity to attend our
dinner meetings...and we can be respectful of the generosity and commitment of our
steadfast dinner sponsors.
SDONS and the Leadership Team:
it's never too early to consider participating in leadership of our chapter, either by serving
as an officer, chairing or contributing your time and talents to a committee, or being part of
short-term team, focused on a particular SDONS-related project. To get involved in our
chapter, contact us through our yahoo e-mail: sd_ons@yahoo.com. Our Nominating
chair, Jane Underwood, also wants to hear from you, especially about running for an
SDONS office later this year. Her contact e-mail: jane.underwood2@gmail.com
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SDONS Officers and Commitee Chairs (Leadership Team)
Your 2014 SDONS Leadership Team is here to serve our membership. We welcome your
ideas and participation. 2014 SDONS Leadership Team members include:
President- Amy Nance-Thompson
President elect- Meloddie Neel Brooks
Treasurer- Eva Bariuan
Secretary- Kelly Bass
Program chair- Leah Marquardt
Membership chair- Sandi Weyerhaeuser
Community Outreach and Student Development chair- Paula Muehlbauer
Nominating chair- Jane Underwood
Fundraising chair - Dawn Huckabone
e-Newsletter- Ellen Carr
New Technologies Communications chair- Christine Izzo
Past president- Laura Spriggs
(To contact members of the SDONS Leadership Team, reach them at
sd_ons@yahoo.com. See below a photo of the 2014 SDONS Leadership Team (taken at
the Annual Retreat in Jan. 2014.)
2014 SDONS Board
and Leadership
Miscellaneous news & calendar
items...
Feb. 20, 2014, 6 p.m.: SDONS Dinner meeting:
Team Members
************************
*******
Topic: Survivorship in Multiple Myeloma
Speaker: Leslie Lauderman, Clinical Educator
Sponsor: Onyx Pharmaceuticals
Location: Vintana Wine & Dine
CEUs and Educational
Opportunities...
1205 Auto Park Way Escondido, CA 92029
Cross Street: I-15 Freeway
Oncology nursing classes and
(760) 745-7777
courses offered in 2014 are
RSVP by contacting sd_ons@yahoo.com Our
posted on the SDONS virtual
SDONS secretary will email response to you,
community site:
confirming your seat by Sun Feb 16.
http://sandiego.vc.ons.org/ Also
In accordance with PhRMA guidelines, this meeting
check out the regularly-posted
is for healthcare professionals only.
ONS Connect publication:
If you voted by Jan. 31 in the 2014 ONS National
http://www.onsconnect.org/2012
Election, remember to bring your ballot confirmation
/11
that you voted (sent to you on e-mail) to the meeting.
With that documentation, you can enter a raffle at the
39th Annual ONS Congress, May
dinner for a $50 gas card.
1-4, 2014, Anaheim. Link to
Congress website:
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http://congress.ons.org/
Congress early registration
deadline: Mar 6 2013. (Save
$100 toward registration!) For
more info:
http://www.ons.org/CNECentral/
Conferences/Congress
April 2, 2014. Special Dinner Presentation
Topic is "Understanding Mylefibrosis: A Perspective
for the Advanced Oncology Nurse".
Morton’s The Steakhouse
The Harbor Club
285 J Street
San Diego, CA 92101
Sponsor: ONS Edge and Incyte
Remember that
To register, go to
ONS offers numerous on-line,
www.onsedge.com/incytemyelofibrosis
conference and course
opportunities for CEUs. Go to
Seats are limited!
http://www.ons.org
or http://www.onsedge.com/ for
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more information.
Our future 2013 SDONS Leadership Team meetings
are scheduled Wednesdays--March 12, May 7, July 9
(subject to change), September 3 and November 5-at 6:00 p.m. at Amy Nance-Thompson's home. All
SDONS members are welcome to attend.
Contact Amy for details and directions.
2014 ONS Congress, Anaheim, California: May 1-4.
Early bird registration: by March 6. For more
information, http://congress.ons.org/ The Orange
County chapter has contacted SDONS, requesting
volunteers to help with Congress. If you are
SDONS Colleagues, Q&A
interested in volunteering, contact Carolyn Rondou at
#1
Carolyn.Hendrix@hoag.org. Volunteer opportunities
Charry Sagon interviews Erika
include:
Bahena
1. Where do you work? Kaiser
Permanante
2. What is your favorite thing
about being an oncology nurse
and what brought you to
oncology nursing? Build up
Tues. (Prior to Congress): Stuffing participant bags
Wed. (Pre- Congress): Room monitors, scan-n-go
area
Thurs through Sat: Room monitors, Scan-n-go area,
Local chapter table
Sun: Room monitors
relationships with the patient and
getting to know them well.
3. What do you like best about
the San Diego chapter of ONS?
Programs cover pathophysiology
of every disease process;
explanations of how drugs work.
4. What is your favorite activity
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Consider participating in cancer-fundraising walks.
SDONS Leadership encourages all SDONS chapter
members to participate in at least one fitness-related
fundraising event in 2014 for a cause you want to
support. Here are a few events to mark on your
calendars:
that has nothing to do with
oncology or nursing? Love to

The Undy 5000, Mar. 8, 2014
spend lots of time with the family
http://support.ccalliance.org/site/TR?fr_id=17
outdoors.
11&pg=entry
5. Tell us one surprising thing
about you that most people here

Leukemia and Lymphoma Society Walk the
don't know. At 15, I didn't know
Night, Nov. 7, 2014, Petco Park.
English. Now I am very fluent!
http://www.lightthenight.org/sd/

Susan G. Komen 3-day, Nov 21-23, 2014
http://www.the3day.org/site/PageServer?pag
ename=learn_about_cityl_SD_landing
SDONS Colleagues,
Q&A #2
Linda Clements interviewed
by Christine Izzo (above):
1. Where have you worked?
Sharp Memorial, Genentech and
Johnson & Johnson
about being an oncology nurse
2013 Gracia Award Winner:
Laura Spriggs...
and what brought you to
(NOTE: The Gracia Award, named in memory of
oncology nursing? I did an
Gracia Juarez, a past SDONS Secretary, is given to
externship in oncology in nursing
an SDONS member who represents
school and was drawn to the
integrity, leadership skills and personal growth--
character of the patients in
nurtured by involvement in SDONS and clinical
2. What is your favorite thing
oncology and how special and
oncology practice. The 2013 award was presented at
unique they were. I have been
the December 2013 Vendor Faire to Laura Spriggs,
practicing in oncology for 31
our 2013 SDONS president. (Photo above shows
years.
SDONS president Amy Nance-Thompson presenting
3. What do you like best about
Laura with the Award plaque.) Laura writes:
the San Diego chapter of ONS?
What are your reasons for
I was honored to be chosen for the 2013 Gracia
belonging? Networking; Seeing
Award. I started my nursing career as a nursing
other oncology nurses and what
assistant on a telemetry unit while I was in nursing
they are doing.
school, and worked for a year and a half doing night
4. What is your favorite activity
shift to get through school. My senior semester, I
that has nothing to do with
worked on a labor and delivery unit as a scrub-tech,
oncology or nursing? Traveling,
thinking I wanted to work in the OR. Luckily, after
wine tasting and spending time
graduating and working in the ICU, I was floated to
with good friends.
an oncology unit, where I fell in love with oncology
5. Tell us one surprising thing
patients.
about you that most people here
Doing travel nursing in oncology and 6 years later, I
don't know: In 1996, I was in
landed back home in San Diego, and came to one of
Atlanta during the bombing at the
the SDONS dinners. I remember being impressed
Olympic Park Plaza.
with the organization, the leadership, and thinking
that maybe, just maybe, I could be president of the
chapter one day. Jennifer Alisangco
Tschanz was SDONS president at the time, and I had
worked with her at UCSD. She asked if I would be
the Program Chair, which I was glad to accept.
Being Program Chair was my first experience
volunteering on the SDONS Board (Leadership
Team), and I am glad I did. I met so many nice
members and vendors, and I felt more connected to
the oncology community than ever. With SDONS's
SDONS No-Show
Policy
(for our Dinner
encouragement, I was elected President of the
chapter! Winning the Gracia Award was the highlight
of my year! Thank you to each of you as you
Meetings)
(SDONS Leadership Team
reviews and re-endorses the No-
encouraged, challenged and supported me up to this
point. I am excited to see who will win the Award next
year.
Show policy: Jan. 2014)
Once a SDONS dinner meeting is
announced with invitation sent
out, RSVPs to the dinner
meetings are tracked by the
Chapter Secretary. The RSVPs
are compiled into a list. Once the
maximum number of seats are
filled, a WAIT LIST is compiled.
Each member is notified by email
whether they have a seat at the
dinner meeting or are placed on
From Oct. 2013 meeting, at the Prado, Laura Spriggs,
Ellen Carr and Kelly Bass
the WAIT LIST.
If you find you need to cancel-and it is the day of the meeting-please text or email your name
and the reason you are
cancelling to the Chapter
Secretary ((858) 442-5432;
kkbass@san.rr.com) or
Membership Chair ((619) 8513198;
Weyerhaeuser.sandi@gene.com)
. This will allow your seat to be
offered to a member on the WAIT
LIST.
Mystery ladies....Can you identify them? if so, enter
our "ID Your SDONS Colleague" Raffle. E-mail your
guess (both ladies identified) to
sd_ons@yahoo.com. (NOTE: Our two Ladies
If you truly have a last minute
cannot guess themselves....) Raffle prize is a
emergency, you must text or
surprise! We'll let you know....
email the Chapter Secretary or
the Membership Chair
immediately to notify us of your
cancellation so you are not
considered a no-show.
The first time a member noshows, he/she will receive a
reminder email from SDONS
regarding his/her failure to
cancel. Included in the email will
From Jan, 2014 meeting, Olga Garcia, Monsie
be the no-show policy as a
Mitchell, Meloddie Brooks and Isaac Frangie
reminder.
If a member no-shows a second
time within 6 months, the
member will be placed on WAIT
LIST-only status. This means
that any RSVP from this member
goes directly to a WAIT LIST.
Seating for this member will be
on a space-availablestatus....after all members in
good standing have had the
opportunity to RSVP. Once the
member shows responsibility--to
either attend the meeting as
RSVPd or cancel promptly-the member will regain the
privilege to RSVP for dinner
meetings.
Three or more no-shows will
result in the SDONS member no
longer being eligible for
scholarship drawings.
This policy addresses those
members who repeatedly send in
their RSVP and then fail to show
for the dinner meeting. It is not
meant to punish the member who
has that rare emergency situation
(within an hour or two of the
meeting) that precludes them
Raffle winner Carolyn Scott
from attending the meeting. The
SDONS Leadership Team has
established the NO SHOW policy
to reinforce professional and
courteous behavior--not only to
fellow SDONS members but also
the pharmaceutical companies
(gracious sponsors of our dinner
meetings), their reps who
coordinate the dinner
meeting and speakers, who
come to share their professional
knowledge with us.
Additional reminder: During our
dinner meeting presentations, all
members and guests should be
courteous...stopping side
conversations and remembering
to mute their cell phones. At the
very least, our speakers deserve
our undivided attention and our
Raffle winner Isaac Frangie
dinner sponsors warrant respect
for their support.
Christine (our Elf) delivering raffle prize to Freci
Portugal...
SDONS 2013 Leadership Team
(above)
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Photo Gallery:
Holiday/Vendor
Faire, 2013:
Francie, Laura, Amy and Meloddie...
Raffle winner Katie O'Brien and
Sandi Weyerhaeuser
Raffle winner Art Berg with Elf Christine Izzo
Our ugly holiday sweater winner,
Courtney Nelson (notice photo
bomb in background...)
Jennifer Byrne, raffle winner...
Leah and Olga....
....members caught celebrating
the season...
Tressa Petzinger a winner!
Dennis Kim receives raffle prize
from Christine Izzo
Joan Kitson-Hart
Raffle winner Margo
Raffle winner Francie
Jaurequi and Christine,
Mercado
Izzo (Elf)
SDONS is the local chapter of the Oncology Nursing Society. It is committed to promoting quality cancer
care through nursing research and education and community service. The SDONS meetings, in general,
are scheduled every 3rd Thursday of the month. Annually, SDONS provides approximately $5,000 in
educational scholarships and awards to oncology nurses.
For more information about SDONS, please contact sd_ons@yahoo.com.
And to submit articles, announcements or photographs for the SDONS e-newsletter, contact Newsletter
Editor Ellen Carr at ecarr18@cox.net.
Copyright © 2014
San Diego Oncology Nursing Society
(SDONS)