On September 19, Texas Children’s Nursing Professional Development and the Shared Governance Interdisciplinary Education Council hosted Professional Day at Texas Children’s Medical Center Campus, Texas Children’s Hospital West Campus and Texas Children’s Hospital The Woodlands.
Approximately 572 participants attended the conference across the hospital’s three campuses – 353 at Medical Center Campus, 110 at West Campus and 109 at The Woodlands. The conference is designed to promote the enhancement of quality care and patient outcomes through evidence-based practice in the areas of pediatrics and obstetrics. The full day event included a pre-conference session, 95 podium and poster presentations, exhibitors, food along with nourishments and fun prizes.
“For the second time, the annual conference was open to the public and we had 31 external participants in attendance,” said Amanda Garey, Nursing Professional Development specialist who was integral to the organization of this event. “Traditionally, Professional Day had been primarily a nursing event, but we have expanded the event to include clinical staff from multiple disciplines who play a critical role in quality patient care and outcomes.” The conference attracted 416 nurses, 14 speech, occupational or physical therapists, 24 social workers, 53 respiratory therapists, five registered dietitians, 10 physicians and 62 other inter-professional clinicians. Professional Day brought over 150 podium and poster speakers from across the system and throughout the community to share their expertise.
Chief Nursing Officer Mary Jo Andre presented the keynote address which was shared to the community sites via telehealth platform. All of the conference speakers were acknowledged as subject matter experts in their fields and delivered the content based on latest trends and evidence. In total, 33 exhibitors and professional organizations supported this conference, which provides a platform for colleagues to collaborate, network, share knowledge and make professional connections.
The event awarded contact hours for nurses, physicians, social work, respiratory therapy, physical medicine and rehabilitation, and registered dietitians. Amanda Garey and Jill Stonesifer were the event leaders at the Medical Center Campus. Lauren Ivanhoe and Deborah Lee were the event leaders at West Campus and The Woodlands.
If you missed this year’s Professional Day, make sure you keep an eye out for the next save the date.