Boston + 9,000 nurses = NTI2018

The American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN) is well-known for its annual National Teaching Institute (NTI), but this year, in terms of sheer scope, it surpassed all other meetings I know of. With over 9,000 attendees, registration had to be closed for the first time ever. Imagine—there were almost too many people at the Boston Convention Center, one of the largest venues in the country.

The exhibits, as always, were never-ending, with sections for industry, education, organizations, recruiters, and publishers. And as always, the “newbies” could be identified by the bags of giveaways they carted off . . . as opposed to the NTI veterans, who merely scan badges and have info sent to them.

Obstacles as opportunities for change.

Monday’s opening address by AACN president Christine Schulman was heartfelt. Reflecting on her soon-to-end year as the president and its chosen theme, “Guided by Why,” she encouraged us to explore the possibilities of making real changes when we face obstacles. And she announced that AACN was planning to take on the fundamental issue of nurse staffing:

“Inappropriate staffing has gone on for far too long. It involves many factors . . . and needs a major shift in how we think about delivering patient care.”

Body language creates and projects confidence.

The next day’s keynote address by social psychologist Amy Cuddy (see her popular TED Talk, “Your Body Language May Shape Who You Are“) gave attendees some insight into how to feel more empowered by practicing and adopting a “power posture”: presenting oneself as standing tall, acting confident and able. She maintains that practicing this posture will promote real feelings of confidence. (How does this relate to nursing? Look for my editorial coming up in the July issue of AJN.)

Ways to challenge the status quo.

And on Wednesday, AACN president-elect Lisa Riggs opened the morning keynote session focusing on ways of challenging—and changing—the status quo. She noted, “It’s easier to act your way into a new way of thinking than to think your way into a new way of acting.” There was also a “reveal” of the theme she will use for her presidential year, “Our Voice, Our Strength.”

AJN’s interview with the two AACN presidents.

Below, you can listen to my interview with these two impressive women and hear their views on key issues, including staffing:

 

As always, there was something for everyone among the hundreds of concurrent sessions, exhibit hall CE sessions and exhibits, preconferences, sunrise sessions, and supersessions. It’s a bit overwhelming for first-timers—one young nurse I spoke with said she felt like she did when she went to Disney World as a child: “In awe of the crowds, the place, and so many people having a good time.” That sums it up nicely.

Is there a nursing conference you’d recommend?