The preparations for the Ninth Biennial Conference of the National Association of Indian Nurses of America (NAINA) are in full swing. The two-day conference will be held on October 4 and 5th at Crown Plaza Hotel in Albany (New York). The conference objectives and topics are based on the theme: “Synergy in Action: Innovate, Inspire, Integrate”.
NAINA stands as the representing voice of the tens of thousands among the 4.7 million nurses in the healthcare arena. The primary goal of NAINA is to provide service to and bring all the nurses and nursing students of Indian origin under one umbrella. With twenty chapters across the nation, NAINA stands as the sole national organization of Indian nurses with thousands of nurses enjoying the benefits of its membership. In the mainstream, NAINA is closely associated with American Nurses Association, CGFNS International, National Coalition of Ethnic Minority Nurses Organization, and National Council of State Board of Nursing. As we witness Indian Americans all across the life spectrum in the country, the Indian American nurses have already established their presence in healthcare. You will Indian nurses at bedside, in outpatient clinics, nursing leadership, nursing education, hospital administration, university faculty, and research. They are ambitious; they uphold a vision of high-quality healthcare. They believe that higher education can equip them with advanced knowledge, critical thinking skills, upward career opportunities, professional respect, and healthcare progress.” Suja Thomas, the president of NAINA emphasized. Suja, a nursing administrator and an adjunct professor, is also in the governing team of CGFNS International. The leadership team of NAINA also represents nursing professionals with expertise from diverse fields.
The conference, after the inaugural ceremony and keynote addresses, will be split in four concurrent sessions at the
same time and will bring out new research outcomes and evidence- based practice initiatives that could empower and embolden nurses with knowledge and skills to bring back to their home practices. Attendees of each session will get continuing education credits that could be used for maintaining their specialty certifications and help nurses to achieve promotional initiatives like Clinical Ladder. Tara Shajan, a nursing director at Health and Hospitals Corporation of New York who is the National Convenor and the treasure of NAINA pointed at the networking opportunities that NAINA conference provides to the attendees. “Besides the valuable continuing education credits, you get opportunities to network with bedside nurses from all specialties, scholars, nurse practitioners and educators from California to Main and Florida to Minnesota. You can inspire and get inspired!”
Dr. Colleen Irwin-Walsh will be the keynote speaker on the first day. She is the Associate Director of Evidence Based Practice at the Department of Veterans Affairs Health System, Washington DC whose Cardiac guidelines have been implemented by all VA System hospitals nationwide and will be presenting on the topic: Driving Nurse Excellence: 
Integrating Research, and Technological Innovation for Enhancing Practice.” Mukul Bhakshi, Chief of Strategy and Governmental Affairs, will be another guest speaker. Dr. Debbie Hatmaker, Chief Nursing Officer of American Nurses Association, and Dr Kelly Foltz-Ramos, director of simulation & innovation and assistant professor at University at Buffalo School of Nursing will be the guest speakers on Saturday, the second day. Dr. Glenda B. Kelman, chair and professor of nursing at Russell Sage College Troy will do the keynote presentation on “Overcoming Imposter Syndrome in the Age of Technological Innovation in Nursing Practice.” The concurrent sessions will follow.
Early registration to the conference is underway. Ambili Nair, president of Indian American Nurses Association of Albany, the host of the conference, and the chapter convenor emphasized the benefits of early bird registration: “by being a participant at the conference, you are also participating in the discussion in transforming the future of nursing.” Registration can be done at https://nainausa.org/biennial-conference-24-registration
A Conference Souvenir will also be published at the conference. Dr. Shyla Roshin, the chief nursing officer at South Beach Psychiatric Center in Staten Island is the chair of the souvenir committee. She said more information on submission of contributions to the conference is available at https://nainausa.org/conference-24-souvenir.