Leadership meetings...

Last Wednesday, I flew to Orlando, Florida for a meeting marathon.

Twice each year PHA's Board of Trustees meets face-to-face.  Often, because there are connections between our board, Scientific Leadership Council and PH Resource Network Executive Committee we hold these meetings in sequence.  It's a lot of work but builds connections across PHA's various leadership structures and saves on travel costs.

All three meetings (plus a few committee meetings) were held in sequence this time for a special reason.  Our meeting site was also a test of the site for our 2012 International PH Conference and Scientific Sessions (June 22-24, 2012).  The Renaissance Orlando at Sea World looks like it will be a great host for our community.

The PH Resource Network was the first of the meetings, held all day on Thursday. A big part of that conversation was the 2011 PH Resource Network Symposium which will include almost 30 sessions for allied health professionals.  Another important discussion was held around the group's rapid growth.  PH Resource Network is a professional association within PHA for allied health professionals.  With over 900 members they have grown to include many specialties (pharmacists, respiratory therapists, physicians assistants, nurse practitioners, and so on) beyond the RNs who were the original members.  Building programs and a welcoming environment within the group's umbrella is becoming increasingly important.

On Friday, PHA's Scientific Leadership council met for a rich and full day.  Their focus was a review of our current research programs, our medical education programs and providing more valuable information for patients and their families in how to work with their medical professionals.

The PHA Board met on Saturday and Sunday, discussing our goals for the year and much of our organization's wide-ranging programming.  An interesting aspect of the Board is that it interlocks all components of PHA for better and broadly viewed decision making.  Patients and family members participate with physicans from the SLC and allied health professionals from PH Resource Network.

The board was able to meet with members of the Orlando support group and a dozen support group leaders from around the state.  Fifty-two support group members attended.  There is no question they will be great hosts for our Tenth International PH Conference..as will Dr. James Tarver and his great team at the Orlando Medical Center.  Dr. Tarver attended the board meeting with his nuse practioner (and PH Resource Network executive committee member, Melisa Wilson.

The entire board was very excited about the meeting possibilites we saw in the hotel.  It will be great to come back to the state in which PHA was founded for our 2012 Conference.

I'd like to write a lot more but I have an early flight to San Francisco tomorrow for the Fourth International Neonatal & Childhood Pulmonary Vascular Disease Conference.  PHA will be filming many of the sessions to provide pediatric medical education on PHA's Online University website.

We do keep moving...

Symposium 2009: learning & building...

In 2003, PHA hosted our first Symposium for nurses and other allied health professionals.  Sixty or so attended a well-received program.  Wind the clock forward to September 24-26, 2009...

Last week, about 400 allied health professionals came from throughout the U.S. and as far away as the U.K., Ireland and South Korea to hear 68  faculty and speakers provide top-level education and motivation for those working in the field.  It was a great 3 days and, as we start to sort through the evaluations, the question always comes up...did the meetings have an impact?

What we're hearing informally and through the evaluations is giving us a strongly positive answer.

After hearing Dr. Keith Swetz' (Mayo) plenary presentation on the Role of Supportive Care and Palliative Medicine in the Care of PAH Patients, one registrant wrote, “Because of Dr. Keith Swetz’s session on Palliative Care, we have decided to make this concept a part of our pulmonary rehab comprehensive education program.”

.Many of the sessions drew positive comments, including this one, “The Physiology of Left and Right Heart Disease with Mickie Gilbert and Dr. James Tarver was fun, funny and presented lots of complex material in a way easy to understand. Mickie did a great job. This session alone was worth the cost of hotel and flight.”

A well-appreciated session was Caring for the Caregiver by PHA Board Member, Steve White: “Rev. White’s ‘Caring for the Caregiver’ session gave me permission to have lunch without guilt, vacation and other days off without guilt. His tip to take ‘ten minutes away from everything’ was advice I needed to hear. Now I must fit those 10 minutes into a new plan for my own well-being. Thank you, Rev. White!”

Since last week's Conference, PH Resource Network's volunteer base has seen a real jump in committee memberships...another great advantage of bringing the community together.

The PH Resource Network leadership, especially the Symposium Committee, did a great job providing valuable information and building the value of their important structure within PHA.  Their work is a benefit to our entire community in the fight against PH.

Click here to play a PH Resource Network video