Judy Kauffmann, DNP, MSN, RN, CNN

Are you exhausted at work? Do you experience chronic stress and fatigue that impairs your ability to be as great as you can be? These are all symptoms of burnout, and you are not alone. As a leader, it is critical to be aware of burnout and its consequences. It is also critical that you manage your personal health. Learn more about how to avoid and minimize burnout during this session.

Alexia Georghiou, MA

Being a member of a marginalized group affects workplace experiences, including engagement. Marginalized groups often face overt and subtle discrimination and higher mental and emotional taxation, both in and outside of work. An inclusive, employee-centered culture is an investment that will pay off in many ways, but it requires time, resources, and a collaborative and synchronized effort to establish. This session will focus on how a culture of inclusion can – and will – develop when organizational leadership works at its best.

Kathleen Belmonte, MS, RN, FNP-BC, MBA

Developing a cohesive and effective team is one of the most challenging – and sometimes time-consuming – tasks a leader will encounter. This task is more complicated when it has to be accomplished virtually and teams are not in the same room. This session will uncover some of these challenges and provide tips for fostering teamwork and collaboration.

Brenda Jahnke, MSN, RN, CNS

Because patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) have an increased risk of death from cardiovascular disease, recognizing the pathologic processes of cardiomyopathy and complications that can result in uremic cardiomyopathy is key for nephrology nurses. This session will address the epidemiology, pathophysiology, diagnosis, and treatment recommendations (including types of dialysis) for cardiomyopathy in patients with CKD. The relationship of uremic cardiomyopathy to mineral and bone disorders seen in CKD also will be discussed.

Shannon Lang, MSN, RN, AGACNP-BC

This session will focus on assessments to use and findings that point to a patient developing hypotension during and after dialysis. A highlight will be a discussion of the evidence-based treatment for hypotension in dialysis patients.

Zorica Kauric-Klein, PhD, APRN-BC

This session will address the management of complex hypertension. Etiology, evaluations, treatment, and desired outcomes will be the focus as we explore this complex and challenging complication. Case study presentations will be used to demonstrate patient care.

Raymond Townsend, MD

This session will focus on the challenge of caring for a patient with chronic kidney disease who experiences hypertension resistant to treatment. Causes, assessment, and management from medical and nursing perspectives will be addressed.

Stephanie Elliott, MS, RN, CNN

Staffing practices in the acute dialysis setting vary significantly between hospitals across the country. This session is will address the need for standardized practices in the acute dialysis specialty and the roles and experience levels of nurses and technicians working in the acute environment. The session also will provide tips to help nurses and nurse managers successfully advocate for safe staffing levels at their hospitals.

Barbara Odom, BSN, RN, CDN

The use of extended work shifts and overtime has escalated as hospitals cope with a shortage of registered nurses. The prevalence of extended work periods can impact patient safety. This session will focus on the need to address safe work hours in the workplace and describe ways to address workplace bullying and violence.

Patricia Patterson, BSN, RN

This session will feature a patient’s journey from in-center hemodialysis to home hemodialysis, including adjustments to the dialysis prescription to enable the patient to feel healthy and energized rather than drained and exhausted. Steps throughout the journey, such as self-cannulation, will be shared so nephrology nurses can appreciate the perspective from the “other side of the bed.”