Hello
I am working very hard to bring my department up to speed on current best practice for central line placement. We are not a dedicated vascular access team so we do much more than PICC lines (unfortunately). We have been told that we can apply for education money for classes or "opportunities". I see that both AVA and the INS have regular conferences and publications. Can anyone recommend one over the other? Why?
A large portion of any education is very likely to come out of our own pockets and we will not see a pay raise for any certifications (like CRNI). All efforts will be purely for our patients and our own resumes. Being the frugal tape saving nurses we are, we don't want to waste time or money.
I appreciate any input!
Martha
Making a choice may be based on what you would like to learn. I would suggest reviewing each organizations educational program brochure. They do a good job of describing the topic, indicate the speaker and credientials.
You may find it beneficial for some of your staff attend different meetings and then share the info. Also = both organizations sell audio sets of the programs = another good way to get the info.
Ann Zonderman
Ann Zonderman, BSN, JD, CRNI
It is not a question of INS versus AVA. Each organization has different missions and memberships, although there is some overlap. INS is made up of mostly nurses from all areas of healthcare including hospitals, home care, etc. The topics are inclusive of all 9 content areas identified in the blueprint for the CRNI exam. INS focuses on the wide scope of infusion therapy. AVA is multidisciplinary and focuses on the vascular access. You will find nurses, physicians, pharmacists, engineers, etc at AVA. I consider both necessary for my practice of education and consulting, however I have never seen these 2 organizations as one against the other. As Ann said, I would advise you to carefully assess the programs of each and determine which meets the most important learning needs. You may wish to send some of your staff to each meeting instead of all staff to one exclusively. I firmly believe that infusion therapy and vascular access can not be separated. They are totally married to each each other out of necessity, so both are needed to have a well rounded education. Lynn
Lynn Hadaway, M.Ed., RN, NPD-BC, CRNI
Lynn Hadaway Associates, Inc.
PO Box 10
Milner, GA 30257
Website http://www.hadawayassociates.com
Office Phone 770-358-7861
Both INS and AVA have many local Networks. Check and see if their is one in your area. In Illinois their is a AVA network call IVAN (Illinois Vascular Access Network) we have 4 meetings a year and one is an all day conference like the national conferences, we provide CEs, food, national speakers, and a vendor fair. Its a great alternative, some of the speakers are the same as at INS or AVA. They cost much less without the travel and even membership is a fraction of the cost.
I would encourage your staff to become involved in both organizations, as they each have a different focus, vascular access only vs. infusion related. Each website has information on local chapters. The local chapters have inexpensive (or free sometimes) educational programs from 1 hour to all day seminars. There may be one or more in your area. In addtion, they have the detailed agendas for the national meetings each year. You may find the INS program is better for your team one year, or less expensive to attend because it is closer, and the AVA meeting may be a better fit in another year.
Chris Cavanaugh, RN, BSN, CRNI, VA-BC
As the INS is the only nationally recognized purely nursing organization for the nursing specialty of infusion therapy I recommend attending one of their meetings. If you and your staff are interested in obtaining the CRNI certification, once again the only nursing certification recognized nationally, then these are the meeting which will provide you with the most current education and evidenced based sessions.
Marvin Siegel RN CRNI
Director of Clinical Services
Town Total Health
NY, NY
NOTE....First test in December 2010....Visit the AVA web site for more detailed infor! www.avainfo.org
About VACC
The Vascular Access Certification Corporation (VACC) is an independent non-profit organization dedicated to the validation, through certification, of a specialized body of knowledge for all professionals working in the field of vascular access.
The certification through VACC will be multidisciplinary in scope to include the broad range of health care professionals and clinicians actively engaged in the practice of vascular access. Candidates for certification will include (but not be limited to):
• Registered Nurses
• Advanced Practice Nurses
• Physicians,
• Physician Assistants,
• Radiology Professionals,
• Cardiovascular Professionals
• Respiratory Care Professionals,
• Licensed Practical (or Vocational) Nurses,
• Other Clinicians actively engaged in the practice of vascular access
VACC's Testing Partner
Prometric, our testing partner, administers more than nine million exams in their testing locations in more than 160 countries. Prometric is working closely with VACC to ensure that we are administering a legally defensible and psychometrically sound exam. The company provides a pleasant testing environment and will ensure the integrity of the testing process. Registration and test administration are computerized for the applicant’s convenience. View the Prometric website at: www.prometric.com.