What’s New at the Nurse Practitioner Association of Greater Rochester? (NPAGR)

January 2015

Happy New Year members! The NPAGR board has great plans for a productive year, supporting our members in providing quality care to your patients At our January board meeting on 1/18/15 the NPAGR board:

• Thanked outgoing President Heather Cook- Smith for her service as President in 2014
• Welcomed new President David Goede, President –Elect, Julie Albert and new secretary Maureen Daigler- Kluge.
• Discussed and crafted NPAGR Goals for 2015.
• Heard from NPA Regional Representative Dee Krebs and NPA Education Committee Chair Jane Tuttle with an update from the NPA Board meeting in Albany held on 1/17/2015, including updates on the Nurse Practitioner Modernization Act
• Received a Treasury Report from Laura Markwick ; the 2015 budget will be discussed at the next meeting
• Engaged with Legislative co-chairs Marilyn Dollinger and Mel Callan to propose a program this spring to discuss the Delivery System Reform Incentive Payment (DSRIP) Program ( a partnership among health systems to decrease Medicaid costs in NYS), which has implications for APRNs.
• The board discussed a concern brought to the board by member Lorie Stannard, who requested assistance as she tries to establish her own patient panel at her workplace. The board also discussed barriers to becoming enpaneled by insurance companies.
• Marilyn and Mel suggested a Community Round table program in May with Assemblyman Joe Morelle and representatives of insurance companies to explore barriers in achieving empanelment so that NPs can be recorded as patients PCP.
• Formulated a plan for 2015 programs, a discussion led by Program Chair Kathy Davis. • Monthly programs will be offered in 2015 which will include:

o New antibiotic therapy for C. Difficile
o DISRIP program ( tentatively scheduled on as a membership meeting with a dinner buffet on March 25 at the Rochester Yacht Club)
o Pain management
o Pulmonary hypertension
o We will continue to co-sponsor the GVNA legislative program in the spring (see below);
o Support the NPA conference in Niagara Falls through attendance and presentations
o Organize and present our Regional conference in November.

 

• Mark your calendars!

o 2015 Legislative Reception: Thursday, 2/26 and Trilby de Jong, CEO of Finger Lakes Health System will be our speaker.
o Capital Day will be on Wednesday April 22nd
o Check the website for more program updates; Future updates will provide specifics about the May Community Roundtable on empanelment

 

• Your board will be meeting monthly at St. John Fisher College in WSON 106 on the following Monday evenings from 6- 8 pm: 2/16, 3/16, 4/20, 5/18. If you have issues to add to the agenda or would like to attend, please contact President David Goede at David_Goede@URMC.Rochester.edu

 

Created and posted by NPAGR Communications Chair: Cynthia R. McCloskey, DNS, APRN, WHNP Associate Professor of Nursing and Graduate Program Director, Wegmans School of Nursing, St. John Fisher College