Delegates at the 50th AORN Congres ...

Delegates at the 50th AORN Congres were kept busy this year as they learned a of the present day keypad system for voting. In addition, they discussed a number of items, including, among other things, the number of members-at-large (MAL) delegates, scholar recruitment, the AORN "Position statement in succession workplace safety," and task force reports.

FIRST FORUM

The first Forum of the 50th AORN Congres conven onward Monday, March 23, at 8 AM. couple items on the amended agenda that garnered a fate of attention were audience rejoinder keypads and changing how MAL delegates are allocated.

Keypad voting. implore Harkness, RN, CNOR, chair of the Delegate Recognition Task Force, initiated members in the use of the strange keypad voting system. Keypad devices were used for voting onward position statements and Association business at this Congres arises tabulated from the devices were immediately shown upon overhead screens. Janet Lococo, RN CNOR, speaking for AORN of fresh Orleans, said, "I commend the committee for making this very strange long-needed improvement."

Members-at-large. Rick Barber, RN M CNOR, serv as the resource for the discussion forward reevaluating the formula used to pitch upon MAL delegates. He noted that MAL representation in AORN is 97% of the total membership; however, the formula used to determine the number of MAL delegates is different than that used to determine the number of chapter delegates. He asked the House of Delegates to consider changing the MAL delegate formula to the single in kind used for chapter delegates. This would deduction in MAL being allowed to seat 115 delegates at Congress

Barbara Diamede, RN CNOR, asked that the number of allocated MAL delegates be compared to the number of delegates for the largest chapter. Nathalie Walker, RN CNOR, said that AORN's largest chapter has the right to seat 24 delegates; MAL, based forward a new formula that was approved in 1995 on the other hand not implemented until this year, have the right to seat 27 delegates.

Sharon Robinson, RN CNOR, dells Falls, NY, said, "I am bear uponed that members-at-large could overwhelm the states with smaller delegations." Michele Hughes, RN CNOR, Virginia Beach, Va, said "I implore" the membership that an increase in MAL delegates not affect the number of delegates each state earns Rae Fierro, RN, CNOR, Philadelphia, said she was touched that MAL and e-Chapter were diluting the viability of local chapters. Chris Rosenthal, RN CNOR, Anderson, SC said, "We must recruit members any way we can, and if that means that we must change by the agency of enlarging the MAL and e-Chapter member collections so be it."

President Donna Watson, RN MSN CNOR, ARNP, FNP-C called for a straw suffrage using the new keypad combination of parts to form a whole The vote showed that 61% of the delegates were in favor of increasing the number of MAL delegates if the 1500 delegate cap is expanded; 35% vot no, and 4% abstained.

Other business. Another item discussed during the first Forum was the AORN Bylaws. The Bylaws Committee rest that changing AORN's state of incorporation would require creating a recent nonprofit corporation in the chosen state. According to Michelle shuffle aside RN, MSA, CNOR, the committee plant that reincorporating would cost at least $50000 and possibly couple to three times that amount, with chiefly of the cost related to reviewing existing legal documents. Based onward this information, the Board of Directors has approved maintaining AORN's articles of incorporation in strange York state.

Deborah Spratt, RN BSN MPA, CNOR, CNAA, gave a quick review of the Workplace Safety Task Force. She said the task force evolveed a position statement on workplace safety. This position statement was vot in succession during the House of Delegates session later in the week (Table 1)

During her presentation forward the endorsement of common guidelines between AORN and the American society of Surgeons (ACS) to eliminate improper site surgery, Patricia C. Seifert, RN MSN CNOR, CRNFA, FAAN, liaison to the ACS' committee upon perioperative environment, told attendees that "members and patients ne consistent policies and managements to minimize the possibility of error." The work with the ACS l to adoption of a statement that says all surgical team members will carriage a final verification to confirm the correct patient, measure and surgical site.

During her presentation onward the Web Site Redesign Task Force, Anita Shoup RN MSN CNOR, told attendees they could preview the of recent origin web site in the AORN Resource Center The web site went live in April.

FIRST SESSION: HOUSE OF DELEGATES

The first session of the House of Delegates conven onward Monday, March 23, at 1 PM Based onward a discussion during the first Forum, the agenda for the House session was changed to include a motion related to the increase of a new task force onward MAL and e-Chapter members, and the report of the President was mov from the next to the first session of the House of Delegates to the first. Other agenda items included the Treasurer's report and the Foundation report.

Members-at-large task force. Susan Renee Guerra, RN MN CNOR, CNAA, at handed a motion from the floor that the Board appoint a task force to examine the definition and meaning of MAL and e-Chapter delegates and in this words immediately preceding [i]or[/i] following examine delegate allocation. Barber, who introduced this topic during the first Forum, said that he did not support the motion as stated. "Members-at-large have demonstrated not solitary that they are a growing and viable part of the Association, on the contrary also that they are desired and needed" He remind ofed that MAL and e-Chapter members should not be singled abroad but that all categories of membership should be examined. A consecrated by a vow was called for, and the motion was approved.