Media contacts:
Holly Korschun, 404/727-3990, hkorsch@emory.edu
October 11, 2001


 



Global Nursing Partnerships Conference Addresses International Nursing Shortage



ATLANTA---International nursing experts and healthcare planners from around the globe will meet at The Carter Center in Atlanta Oct. 15-19 to tackle the global nursing workforce crisis. The international nursing conference, "Global Nursing Partnerships: Strategies for a Sustainable Nursing Workforce," is the first ever global invitational forum involving representatives from both governments and nursing associations, including government chief nursing officers, national and international nursing association leaders, and human resource directors/health planners.



Secretariat for the international conference is the Lillian Carter Center for International Nursing of Emory University's Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing. Representatives from more than 50 countries are expected to attend. Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and Archbishop Desmond Tutu will take part in the official dedication of the Lillian Carter Center for International Nursing, named in honor of President Carter's late mother, a nurse and a Peace Corps volunteer.

Key planning partners for the international conference include the World Health Organization; the International Council of Nurses; the Lillian Carter Center for International Nursing; the Commonwealth Health Ministers Steering Committee for Nursing & Midwifery; the Chief Nurse of the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland; the Chief Nurse of the Government of Canada; and the Director of the Division of Nursing, Bureau of Health Professions and Health Resources and Services Administration, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

"This is the first global opportunity of this magnitude for leaders in national nursing associations, governments, and human resource organizations to join together to address human resource issues," said Emory Nursing Dean Marla Salmon, who directs the Lillian Carter Center. "This conference will help establish crucial partnerships and provide new opportunities for development and networking with peers." Dean Salmon is a former director of the U.S. Government Division of Nursing and immediate past chair of WHO's Global Advisory Group of Nursing and Midwifery.

Conference participants will address networking issues, form strategic alliances and build skills in policy, advocacy and problem solving. The first three days of the conference will consist of working meetings including network forums for government chief nursing officers and national nursing association and development of strategic partnerships. The last two days of the meeting will take place at The Carter Center, where national human resource directors and health planners will join the chief nurses and nursing leaders to address key nursing workforce issues confronting countries around the world.

"The global nursing shortage, acute in many regions, can only be solved through serious and strategic partnerships between national nursing associations, government representatives and human resource planners," explained Judith Oulton, chief executive officer of the International Council of Nurses.

Although chief nursing officers and national nursing associations have met regionally over the past several years, the Global Nursing Partnerships Meeting will be the largest international gathering of nursing leaders and the first to focus on building partnerships.

"This conference will provide a forum for stakeholders to strengthen their capacity to respond to critical issues impacting health, such as the global shortage of nurses and midwives. It will help to build a common strategy to improve health that underscores the importance of outreach and alliance building at all levels-local, national and international," said Dr. Naeema Al-Gasseer, senior scientist for nursing and midwifery, World Health Organization.

"Given the present nursing workforce crisis globally, this conference will address issues vital to the health of all people," Dean Salmon says.

Major funding for the conference was provided by Emory University; the Government of Canada through the Canadian International Development Agency; the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland; Agencies of the Department of Health and Human Services (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Food and Drug Administration, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Health Resources and Services Administration-Division of Nursing); International Council of Nurses; World Health Organization; Cerner Corporation; and Sigma Theta Tau International.

NOTE TO MEDIA: Media are invited to cover the conference on Oct. 18 and 19 at The Carter Center. A live web cast of the main conference sessions will be available at www.nursing.emory.edu beginning at 9:00 a.m. EDT, Oct. 18. The web cast also will be archived at the web site. To register for the conference and to request program materials, please contact Holly Korschun, Health Sciences Communications Office, Emory University, 1440 Clifton Rd., Atlanta, GA 30322, 404-727-3990, hkorsch@emory.edu.

Click Here for the Grady Nursing Conference Program


Return to October Index






For more general information on The Robert W. Woodruff Health Sciences Center
call Health Sciences Communication's Office at 404-727-5686,
or send e-mail to hsnews@emory.edu





Copyright © Emory University, 2001. All Rights Reserved.