MEDIA ADVISORY: International nursing conference showcases the role knowledge
plays in improving patient care

TORONTO, Oct. 17 /CNW/ - About 400 nurses will gather in Toronto this week for an international conference that will highlight the knowledge they bring to the health-care system and the difference that knowledge makes for their patients and for shaping public opinion.

The three-day conference is being organized by the Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario (RNAO). The theme for this first-ever gathering is "Knowledge - The Power of Nursing." Nurses who represent a variety of care settings including acute, elder, primary and community health will attend along with nurses who specialize in clinical practice, research and education.

RNAO Associate Director, Karen Ellis-Scharfenberg says she's excited about bringing together nurses from across Canada and other countries such as Kenya, Cuba, Israel, Portugal, United Kingdom and the United States to share the evidence and best clinical practices that lead to better health outcomes.

The conference is being held in Toronto at the Intercontinental Hotel and the Metro Convention Centre, Oct. 18-20, 2010.

Keynote speakers include:

    
    The Story of Our Lives: Women Empower Women
    Lorrie Williams, BA, MA, MSM
    Councillor, City of New Westminster, BC
    President - Canadian Harambee Education Society

    Margaret Loice Maywaka, RN
    Community Health Nurse and Nurse Tutor
    Education Department
    Kenyatta National Hospital, Kenya

    Mobilizing Public Opinion: The Power of Nurses
    Maude Barlow, National Chair of the Council of Canadians

    The Social Construction of Caring in Nursing:
    An Inside Look at Nurses' Work
    Doris Grinspun, RN, MSN, PhD, O.Ont., Executive Director, RNAO

    Florence Nightingale's 21st Century Legacy
    Deva Marie Beck, RN, PhD, NIGH International Co-Chair
    Barbara Dossey, RN, PhD, AHN-BD, FAAN, NIGH International Co-Chair
    

For more details on specific sessions, click on:

http://www.rnao.org/Storage/72/6682_Knowledge,_the_Power_of_Nursing_Conference_-_Program.pdf

The Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario (RNAO) is the professional association representing registered nurses in Ontario. Since 1925, RNAO has lobbied for healthy public policy, promoted excellence in nursing practice, increased nurses' contribution to shaping the health-care system, and influenced decisions that affect nurses and the public they serve.

For more information on the conference or about RNAO, visit our website at www.rnao.org. You can also check out our Facebook page at www.rnao.org/facebook and follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/rnao.

For further information: To arrange an interview with Doris Grinspun or any of the nurses involved in the conference, please contact: Marion Zych, Director of Communications, Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario (RNAO), 158 Pearl Street, Toronto, ON, 416-408-5605 (office), 647-406-5605 (cellular)