Board of Directors
President
Carole Kenner, DNS, 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.
Executive Director
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.
Secretary
Karen New
Email | karennew@optusnet.com.au
Biography: Karen is a clinical nurse in neonatology at the Royal Brisbane & Women’s Hospital, Brisbane Australia and is currently a full time PhD candidate at the School of Nursing and Midwifery, The University of Queensland. Karen’s research focus is in investigating the timing of transfer of premature infants from incubators to open cots.
Karen has been a member of monitoring and registration group of The Cochrane Collaboration since 2003 and became Co-Convenor in October 2009. She has recently taken on the role of secretary of the Perinatal Society of Australia and New Zealand, the peak multi-disciplinary scientific society for perinatal care. Karen has been involved in the Neonatal Nurses Association of Queensland Inc. since 1998 and has served in numerous executive positions and became President-Elect of the Australian College of Neonatal Nurses in 2008 and will begin her term as President in May 2010. Karen has a passion for ‘anything neonatal’ and evidence based decision making!
Treasurer
Debbie O'Donaghue
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.
Director at Large
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.
Director at Large
Catherine McPherson, RN, BScN
Email | Katemac@shaw.ca
Biography: Catherine McPherson is a Registered Nurse who is currently employed as the Clinical Charge Nurse for the Caritas Health Group at the Grey Nuns Hospital Intermediate Care Nursery in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
Catherine received her RN from the Royal Alexandra Hospital School of Nursing and her BScN from the University of Alberta. She has worked in Neonatal Nursing for 20 years in Level II and III Nurseries in a variety of positions. She has served on diverse Nursing and local Community Boards in varied roles including the National Association of Neonatal Nurses (United States) and the Alberta Association of Neonatal Nurses (Canada). Catherine has been an invited speaker at conferences across North America.
Her research interests include Impact of Developmental Care in the NICU, Comparison of Sound and Light and Breastfeeding.
Director at Large
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.
Director at Large
Tina Pollard
Email | tina.pollard@addenbrookes.nhs.uk
Biography: Tina has been in Neonatal Nursing for 21 years and started her neonatal career as an Enrolled Nurse progressing through to become an RGN with a Specialist qualification in 1992.
In 1994 she undertook training to become an Advanced Neonatal Nurse Practitioner and worked in that role for 5 years before moving into management which initially entailed assuming the role of the Lead Nurse for a busy DGH in the Midlands. Tina undertook her post registration Children’s training in 2003 and gained a BsC (HONS) in Children’s Nursing which enabled her to look beyond the boundaries of neonatal care provision for the babies and families.
In 2006 Tina was appointed to her current role which is that of Clinical services manager for Neonatal Services at Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge. This is a challenging role but she works with a great team of both nursing, midwifery and medical colleagues and she enjoys her role and job tremendously.
In addition to Tina's day job, she has the privilege of being the current Chair of the Neonatal Nurses Association in the UK and she also sits on the Dept of Health Neonatal Taskforce that was set up following the National Audit Office report from 2007 and subsequent parliamentary select committee inquiry. In her 21 years in neonatal care provision she has sustained and built on her personal and professional commitment to the ongoing provision of best quality care for the babies and families that we are privileged to care for by ensuring that as a team we ensure our staff are adequately prepared, trained and supported to deliver on a consistent basis.
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