Archived President's Messages Maureen McLaughlin Spring 2007 - Fall 2006
Spring 2007 Mayflower Volume 18 Issue 2
Goals for the New Year
Maureen McLaughlin, BSN, RN, CPAN
Reflection and Anticipation
The beginning of the New Year is often a time for reflection and anticipation. As I write this column during the New Year’s
weekend, I reflect back on MASPAN’s accomplishments, as well as my own, during 2006. In addition, because we are in the
process of our end of the year evaluations at my hospital, I am also identifying my goals for 2007: one personal, one
professional, and one department related. I will carry that theme into this column and urge you all to reflect on your goals for
2007.
MASPAN, 2006
In another column, you will read an outline version of my end of the year report. However, I want to spend some time
reviewing the amazing achievements of MASPAN during the past year. As you all know, we culminated a long journey to be
the single, best component of the year by being awarded ASPAN’s Gold Leaf Award, recognizing our accomplishments for
2005. As a component President, that award is truly both an honor and something like a life-time achievement, although that
lifetime was but a few short years. I began our journey to the Gold Leaf award before I was even the president-elect, so to
receive it during my presidency was such an exciting event, both personally and as a component leader.
But MASPAN’s achievements did not end there. The Gold Leaf Award was a milestone, but it is not an end of our journey- it
was a benchmark of where we need to be, where we need to remain, and in a few more years, it will be the beginning of
another journey as we strive to be awarded the Gold Leaf for a second time.
In 2006, we were able to offer to our MASPAN members, for the first time, a free conference! Our September conference was
free to all MASPAN members. We were delighted to have nearly 100 attendees, ample vendor support, and overall we had an
outstanding day! We are finally able to report that we have an active education committee, meaning that there is more than
one person planning our conferences. This is truly an accomplishment, as many components struggle with recruiting new
members to the board. Under Ann Marie’s leadership, Kathy DeLeskey and Karen Annetti and I have met and planned both
the last conference and the upcoming conferences for 2007. In addition, MASPAN sponsored a very successful ASPAN
Seminar on pediatrics in the fall and we will continue to sponsor similar seminars through-out the upcoming years. Again
many thanks to those who ventured out in the horrible weather last fall to attend the Seminar!
The membership of MASPAN continues to grow! We have increased our membership by approximately 30% for 2006! Where
did you all come from??? And WELCOME!!!! We are so delighted to welcome new members to our organization and we look
forward to seeing you in 2007. I am also delighted to report that one of our members, Ellen Stokinger, has submitted a
willingness to serve form expressing an interest in membership activities, and will be assisting Ellen Sullivan with her
membership duties. Our finances continue to move forward in a very stable pattern, due to the cautious stewardship of Kathi
Saball, our Director of Finance. Despite the loss of revenue from registration fees for the fall conference, we were able to
still report a profit due to Kathi’s recruitment of vendor support. We have a tidy balance in our checking account, reserve
account and scholarship fund, and I think that we can definitively state that we have recovered successfully from our
struggles during the last decade.
Our communication has only grown- in addition to continuing to publish four newsletters a year, Kathy Menard, our web
mistress, has created and maintained our web page. I think that anyone who accesses our web page would agree that it is user
friendly, pleasant to the eye, and very informative.
Maureen, 2006
I had a wonderful year as the MASPAN President. While it is true that this role brings with it a fair amount of work and
requires a time commitment that is often hard to maintain, the rewards so far outweigh any detractions. I was delighted to see
so many MASPAN members at National Conference last year and we had an awesome evening gathered together in the
Presidential suite in Orlando. I chatted with many members whom I had not met before and I had a wonderful evening. Many
of the new friends that I made communicate with me on a regular basis. The MASPAN board also was able to relax over food
and beverages on more than one occasion this past year, which was also great. We traditionally meet five times a year at
board meetings where it is mostly all business, so it was great to spend some social time with my fellow board members. I
enjoy their company, their wit, their stories from work, their pet stories, and whenever we are together, it is guaranteed to be
a fun afternoon or evening.
I continue on in my pursuit of my masters’ degree in nursing at Boston College. That chapter in my life continues to both
challenge and reward me simultaneously and I truly don’t know why I waited so long to return to school. I am also pleased to
report that I am finally dual-certified! Lagging far behind my fellow board members, I sat for the CAPA exam in November,
along with many other perianesthesia colleagues. The preparation was an excellent review for me and I have been able to
carry that knowledge into my educational role at Lahey Clinic. I will also be hosting what I hope to be the first of many
informational sessions on certification at Lahey later this month. I look forward to sharing with anyone who will listen the
benefits of certification and of how proud I have always been to state that I am a certified perianesthesia nurse!
MASPAN, 2007
I will turn over the leadership of this wonderful component to Anne Halliday in March of 2007. She will continue to lead
MASPAN for the next two years. We will continue to offer two conferences a year and are looking for alternate sites for our
conferences. We want to come visit you! We will also host another ASPAN seminar in the fall. We look for continued
membership growth, financial stability, health for all, and the educational enrichment of our members.
MASPAN Members, 2007
I urge you all to identify three achievable goals for 2007: one personal, one professional, and one department related. Make
them realistic, fun, enriching, and above all, attainable.
Personal
Personal goals are just that: personal. Mine have nothing to do with weight loss, although I could stand to lose some pounds.
Rather, I want to strive to drink at least eight glasses of water a day and to walk at least two miles a day. The latter is
certainly more achievable since the arrival of my newly rescued dog, Romeo. We enjoy a very brisk walk every morning, often
guided by the moon, and I have ample time to reflect on subjects like my newsletter articles!
As many of you know, I feel passionate about education and I urge you all to consider advancing your education. Have you
always wanted to return to school but don’t quite know how? Too busy with children, work, after-school activities, or do you
simply feel that you are too old to go back? I was “yes” to most of the above a few years ago but registered for ONE course-
pathophysiology- and the rest is history. I am now a matriculated graduate student and I hope to receive my Master’s in
nursing in a few years. Take one course and see where it may take you. Education is never wasted and there is simply so much
to learn!
Professional
Professional goals can include reading one article from the Journal of Perianesthesia Nursing per month, or any other health
related journal that interests you. I read many nursing journals in addition to the JOPAN and am constantly learning new
things that I can bring into my practice.
Certification is another huge professional goal and if you have not yet certified, please consider making that your
professional goal for 2007. If you have any questions about the certification process, how to prepare, when you should take
it, how to apply, please do not hesitate to contact me and I will be more than happy to guide you.
Attendance at a MASPAN conference is another achievable goal. Our conferences are offered twice a year at two separate
locations. I feel that they are affordable and very educational. If you have not yet attended one of our conferences, make that
an achievable goal for 2007.
What about an ASPAN conference? Never been? Too far away? Too expensive? There are scholarships available, both from
ASPAN and MASPAN to assist you. One of our MASPAN members is the recipient of the 2006 scholarship for national
conference attendance and she will be able to attend the 2007 National Conference in Anaheim. The 2008 National
Conference is in Texas and the 2009 conference is in Washington, D.C. While that is really more of a long range plan that a
goal for 2007, I urge you to consider attending a national conference and to use the time in 2007 to plan. There are so many
scholarship opportunities available and even financial assistance from employers, if you but seek them out.
Department related
What do you talk about when you are at work? Do you compare recipes, discuss your weekend, your children’s sports, or do
you share with your perianesthesia colleagues some research article that you read or the discuss with them what you learned at
a MASPAN conference? While the former is more than acceptable and we all need to find time at work to discuss non-nursing
related subjects, I urge you, for your 2007 department related goal, to share with your colleagues the following: the fact that
you are a member! How many people that you work with even know that you are a member of MASPAN? Membership alone
is a professional and perhaps personal achievement. Share it with others!!!! Bring the newsletter into work and post it or even
just read it in front of your colleagues. Make the MASPAN and the ASPAN website a favorite on the computer at work and
encourage the staff to access them. Post our conference flyers at work and see if a group can go- Treat yourselves and go out
to lunch afterwards! Enrich the practice of your colleagues by sharing with them some of the educational and professional
benefits of your MASPAN membership.
Conclusion
I wish you all a healthy, peaceful New Year. This is an interesting time of year, as we reflect back on the year so quickly
passed and look forward with anticipation to the year ahead. I look forward to meeting many of you in the year ahead.
Introduce yourself to me at a conference or send me an e-mail. Review your three attainable goals for 2007 and enjoy!
Maureen
Winter 2007 Mayflower Volume 18 Issue 1
THE MASSACHUSETTS SOCIETY OF PERIANESTHESIA NURSES 1983-2006
Maureen McLaughlin, BSN, RN, CPAN
In the spring of 1983, thirty-three “recovery room” nurses from five districts throughout Massachusetts (MA) gathered in
Worcester to discuss the formation of a state organization of perianesthesia nurses. Kathleen (Kay) Collins spearheaded this
endeavor with the assistance of several colleagues from the Western MA Recovery Room Nurses Association. Officially,
MASPAN was formed on June 4, 1983. The first President chosen to lead our organization was Kay Collins. The initial dues
were $10.00 and Mayflower was chosen as the logo. By the end of the first year, MASPAN had one hundred and ninety
members!
In April 1985, representatives of MASPAN journeyed to the ASPAN National Conference in New Orleans. At this time, they
received a component certificate and officially joined the American Society of Perianesthesia Nurses.
In April 1986, MASPAN proudly prepared to host the fifth ASPAN National Conference in Boston. In November of that same
year, the certification exam was also held in Boston.
As I prepared for our fall conference, I had the opportunity to examine the “history box”, lent to me by our secretary. It
contains all of the memorabilia for MASPAN: old meeting minutes, past newsletters, and correspondence. What I found
amazing is the similarities between the past and the present.
MASPAN began with a small group of dedicated perianesthesia nurses who shared a common vision. They believed in the
benefit of membership in a professional organization and they wanted to merge the small “districts” of perianesthesia nurses
in Massachusetts (MA) into one organization. At that time there were several groups of perianethesia nurses in MA. Some
were from the western part of the state, others in the greater Boston area, and some from the south. Thanks to the efforts a
few visionaries, MASPAN was formed and remains a strong organization today.
The vision of MASPAN, as seen on the back cover of this newsletter, is “to be the preeminent component organization for
quality in the perianesthesia specialty, providing exceptional professional development”. How do we as an organization
maintain and strengthen this vision?
In a prior article I highlighted the educational efforts of our education committee. Education remains a primary focus of our
Board meetings and MASPAN dedicates a lot of time attempting to enhance the professional development of our
perianesthesia colleagues through our educational offerings.
But there is more to fostering the professional development of a nurse than attending a conference. MASPAN sponsored an
ASPAN Seminar recently and I was struck by the dedication of both the perianesthesia nurses who attended and the MASPAN
Board members who arrived ready to share with the audience the benefits of membership in our organization. The weather
was horrible, with torrential rain and high winds, yet several of the Board members arrived to greet the attendees. During the
break, MASPAN board members were on hand to provide membership information, answer questions about our organization,
and sell our famous Gold Leaf of the Year t-shirts. Due to our efforts, we recruited several new members and I have no doubt
that they will be enriched by their membership with us.
The image of the professional nurse who is active in her/his organization is an essential part of professional development. I
am proud to be the President of this organization and I want to take a moment to personally thank all of the members of the
MASPAN Board of Directors for their dedication to the pursuit of our professional development, for their enthusiasm, for
their individual visions that help to grow together, and for their unceasing efforts at maintaining and strengthening our
organization.
Fall 2006 Mayflower Volume 17 Issue 4
Upholding the MASPAN Mission and Vision
Maureen McLaughlin, BSN, RN, CPAN
As the President of our Component, the Massachusetts Society of Perianesthesia Nurses (MASPAN), it is my responsibility
to ensure that MASPAN continues to meet the elements outlined in our mission and vision statements. The stated mission
of MASPAN is to advance (perianesthesia) nursing practice through education, research, and (the) promotion of ASPAN
Standards. To that end, the agenda for the Board of Directors (BOD) meetings that are held throughout the year deal with
those subjects.
Education
I recently reviewed the history of MASPAN and in 1983, as MASPAN was in its infancy; the Board of Directors at that time
outlined the strategic plan for the organization. One of the future goals they listed was “to develop and sponsor educational
programs to promote the highest professional standards of Recovery Room Nursing for the better and safer care of the
patient.” I hope that 23 years later we achieve that goal.
Every BOD meeting addresses how MASPAN can best meet the educational needs of our members. We sponsor two
conferences a year and the topics that are selected for those conferences are based on member evaluations and surveys. We
arrange conference sites in a variety of locations designed to meet the needs of all of our members spanning a large
geographical area. We also choose sites that include free parking, free use of the facility, and easy access for our members.
We also do our own catering to reduce expenses. If we can keep our overall cost down, we can offer a very reasonable
registration fee to our members. In fact, for the first time this fall, we are offering a free conference to our members in honor
of MASPAN’s achieving the Gold Leaf of the Year Award for 2005.
Our Director of Education, Ann Marie McLaughlin, keeps very busy as we prepare for our conferences. Once the board has
determined the content and selected the speakers, Ann Marie creates the program flyer that is mailed to our members as well
as area hospitals. From personal experience, I can attest to the labor involved in attaching labels and stamps to hundreds of
forms. In addition to contacting the speaker, obtaining their content outline forms and biographical data forms (which is
often a challenge), she makes all of the arrangements for food service, tables with linen, clean-up arrangements, and most
importantly, coffee service. It resembles hosting a brunch for sixty people! In addition, she completes the Education Approver
form for ASPAN in order for MASPAN to provide contact hours for our programs.
We have also sponsored an ASPAN Seminar on an annual basis for the past few years. This year we have made arrangements
for ASPAN to come to Boston on October 28 to lecture on pediatrics. For the last two years we have sponsored the ‘Beyond
the Basics’ series and we may consider the new certification review seminars as an option for 2007.
We are pleased to welcome Karen Annetti to the education committee. She has been busy assisting Ann Marie in preparation
for the fall conference.
Education takes various forms, so in addition to providing education via our conferences; MASPAN also provides education
via our newsletter, the Mayflower. Various members of the board, as well as some contributing authors, provide educational
articles on a variety of subjects, including recent surgical advances, legal issues, hot topics, and governmental affairs. Our
website, www.maspan.org contains most of the content of our newsletter as well, so that we may also provide perianesthesia
education to a broader audience.
Research
Kathleen DeLeskey is MASPAN’s Director of Research. Her role involves research articles for the Mayflower, promoting
research within our component, and contacting our colleagues who are conducting research to encourage poster presentations
at our conferences. We were able to sponsor an entire conference dedicated to research and we always have current research
in mind as we plan our future conferences.
ASPAN Standards
MASPAN promotes the ASPAN Standards in a variety of ways. As individuals and as an organization, we adhere to, and
promote, the ASPAN Standards at every opportunity.
We offer the ASPAN Standards as a door prize at our conferences, and this fall, we will be offering the 2004 Standards as
door prize to a conference attendee who plans on taking the certification exam within the next year.
As an organization, we often receive questions regarding clinical practice issues that we are able to answer based on the
ASPAN Standards. We also reference the ASPAN Standards in many of our Mayflower articles and conference topics. Our
Clinical Practice panel has always been a popular conference topic.
Conclusion
This article is a very brief overview of only some of the areas that the MASPAN Board addresses on a regular basis. The
MASPAN Board represents a variety of perianesthesia practice areas and we always welcome MASPAN members to join us to
share with us their ideas and visions of how we, as an organization, can further the development and growth of our specialty
practice, perianesthesia nursing. Please consider joining us at a board meeting, or e-mail us with your questions, comments,
ideas, suggestions. Help us achieve and maintain our mission of advancing perianesthesia nursing practice.