Board of Directors
Chief Executive Officer (CEO)
Carole Kenner, PhD, RNC-NIC, FAAN
Email | C.Kenner@coinnurses.org
Biography: Carole has over 20 years neonatal/perinatal/pediatric experience. She has taught for 18 years, developed masters level programs in the United States and abroad and has lectured in over 20 countries.
She is the author/editor of many textbooks and is a four time winner of publishing awards including the American Journal of Nursing Book ofthe Year. Dr. Kenner received her BSN from the University of Cincinnati, an MSN from Indiana University with a specialty degree in Perinatal Clinical Nurse Specialist-CNS/Neonatal Nurse Practitioner-NNP. In 1988 she received her doctorate from Indiana University in curriculum design and higher education and is currently Dean and Professor of the University of Oklahoma, College of Nursing.
Chief Financial Officer (CFO)
Mary Blankenship Pointer
Email | M.Pointer@coinnurses.org
Biography: Mary Blankenship Pointer, a native of Oklahoma City began her banking career in 1977.
Mary currently serves as Vice President of Business Development at UMB Bank in Oklahoma. Her two main passions are healthcare and education.
President
Karen New, RN PhD
Email | karennew@optusnet.com.au
Biography: Karen is a
Nurse Researcher and Clinical Nurse (neonatology) at the Royal Brisbane & Women’s Hospital. Adjunct Lecturer at the School of Nursing and Midwifery, The University of Queensland. Co-convenor of the Monitoring and Registration Committee of The Cochrane Collaboration, President of the Australian College of Neonatal Nurses, President of the Council of International Neonatal Nurses. Karen’s research interests include thermoregulation, neurodevelopmental care and pain management of infants in neonatal care units.
Treasurer
Debbie O'Donoghue
Email | Debbie.O'Donoghue2@cdhb.govt.nz
Biography: Debbie is currently the Neonatal Nurse Manager of the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit in Christchurch New Zealand.
Debbie has a background in neonatal and paediatric nursing and midwifery both with New Zealand and the United Kingdom. She has post graduate qualifications in child and family health and nursing leadership and management. Debbie is the current Chairperson of the Neonatal Nurses College of Aotearoa (New Zealand) and has a special interest in advancing neonatal nursing practice and nurses’ professional development.
Non Executive Directors
Patricia O'Flaherty
Email | poflaherty@CMNRP.ca
Biography: Pat is a graduate of the University of Ottawa School of Nursing, Ottawa Ontario, Canada and completed her Neonatal Nurse Practitioner course at the State University of New York Health Sciences, New York, USA. She is currently practising as a Neonatal Nurse Practitioner within a regional program providing care at each of the Level II and III NICUs in Ottawa.
Pat has over 35 years of neonatal nursing experience including bedside, neonatal transport, educator, research and clinical manager roles. She is one of the founding members of the Canadian Association of Neonatal Nurses and Board of Directors. She also co-chairs a working group to develop Canadian Neonatal nursing standards and have neonatal nursing recognized as the specialty it is with the Canadian Nurses Association.
Areas of interest include knowledge transfer, simulation, practice change, transport and discharge processes as well as electronic documentation.
Ruth Davidge
Email | ruth.davidge@kznhealth.gov.za
Biography: Sr R. Davidge received her 4 year nursing diploma in General Nursing (community and psychiatry) and Midwifery through the Natal College of Nursing in 1993.
She has been involved in neonatal nursing for 12 years having qualified as a Neonatal Nurse at Johannesberg General Hospital in 1996. She is currently the unit manager and clinical coordinator of the NICU at Greys Hospital Pietermaritzburg Kwa-zulu Natal South Africa. She has been an invited speaker at a number of local meetings and conferences and is currently involved with establishing The Neonatal Nurses Association of South Africa.
Trudi Mannix
Email | trudi.mannix@flinders.edu.au
Biography: Trudi is a Registered Nurse and Midwife, and has been a neonatal nurse since 1982, and came top of the class in completing the Neonatal Intensive Care Certificate in 1984 at the then Queen Victoria Hospital in Adelaide, South Australia. Since 1987 Trudi has been teaching neonatal nurses in special care and intensive care programs. In 1986 Trudi established the first Association for Neonatal Nurses on South Australia (ANNSA), and was the inaugural President of ANNSA. In 1995 Trudi accepted the position of President of the national body, the Australian College of Neonatal Nurses (ACNN). She is currently the Professional Officer for ACNN, a position she has held for 4 years. In the past, she has been the support person for Neonatal Nurse Practitioners seeking accreditation in South Australia. She is also a section editor and reviewer for the Cochrane Nursing Care Field: Neonatal Care, and chairperson of the Journal Management Board of the Neonatal, Paediatric and Child Health Nursing journal.
In 2009 Trudi graduated as a Doctor of Education, and began life as an academic in the School of Nursing and Midwifery at the Flinders University in Adelaide. She now teaches care of the preterm and sick newborn to undergraduate midwives, as well as research skills to undergraduate and postgraduate nurses and midwives. She remains committed to the evidence-based care of the newborn, and her interests are parental stress, bonding and attachment, critical thinking, neurodevelopment, education, clinical handover and practice development.
Jacquie Koberstein RCompN, BHScN, PGDip in Neonatal Nursing
Email | Jacquie.koberstein@lakesdhb.govt.nz
Biography: Jacquie is currently working as a Registered Nurse and a Clinical Nurse Manager in a Level 2 Neonatal Unit in Rotorua, New Zealand.
She has worked with Neonates for 25yrs in both Level 2 and 3 units as a Registered Nurse, Clinical Nurse Manager, Clinical Nurse Educator and
relieving in the Children’s Homecare service.
She just completed her Masters in Health Science in Nursing this year and is a committee member of the Neonatal Nurses College of Aotearoa. Jacquie
has been in Rotorua for 22 years balancing nursing with farming in South Waikato.
Liaison to NANN
Sherri Brown
Email | sbrown2126@kc.rr.com
Biography: Sherri is currently a staff nurse in the NICU at the University of Kansas Hospital. She received her BSN at the University of Missouri-Columbia Sinclair School of Nursing, and has almost 30 years experience in neonatal/pediatric nursing. Sherri has worked in neonatal transport and also as a clinical nurse educator in a large children's hospital in the midwest, but her true love has always been atthe bedside caring for these tiniest patients.
In 2007 she discovered a new passion and a new direction when she was a member of a nursing delegation to China. After that experience, she went on another medical education delegation to Rwanda in 2008 where she found a great need for nursing education and training. As a result of that trip, she founded a non-profit organization whose purpose is to provide aid and education to the underprivileged, impoverished and often forgotten people of the world. The organization currently helps with support to two children's homes in Rwanda, and along with her colleagues in the NICU at the University of Kansas Hospital has "adopted" the NICU in Kigali, Rwanda as a sister unit for the purpose of sharing nursing practices, education and clinical training.
Among the current projects of the organization is the raising of support to build a clinic in Gitarama and the development of a nursing leadership practicum in Rwanda for senior nursing students from the United States.
Past Secretary
Kaye Spence AM, RN, RM, BEd, MN, FCN
Past Treasurer
Michael MCIlhone
Past Director at Large
Shahirose Premji
Past Director at Large
Catherine McPherson, RN, BScN
Past Director at Large
Tina Pollard
Email | tina.pollard@addenbrookes.nhs.uk