- Email: [email protected]
Calcium Awareness Increasing
Diabetes Education Program’s nationwide “Be Smart About Your Heart” campaign. Campaign materials include a motivational tip sheet to help patients track blood glucose (sugar), blood pressure and cholesterol numbers. For more information about the campaign, including tip sheets, posters and print ads, visit the NDEP website at www.ndep.nih.gov. To order free copies of the materials, call (800) 438-5383.
Calcium Awareness Increasing ost women ages 50 and older (83 percent) who now use a biophosphate for osteoporosis believe that “taking a calcium supplement is very important in addition to getting calcium from dairy or food,” according to a new survey commissioned by The Alliance for Better Bone Health and conducted by Harris Interactive. However, these same women aren’t following their own advice, according to pollsters.
M
New Online Prenatal Education Program ealthEast Care System based in St. Paul, MN, says it will be the first in the nation to offer expectant parents online prenatal education. The online curriculum is an alternative to the “Preparation for Childbirth” classes that are held at all three of HealthEast’s acute care hospitals in Minnesota. Online childbirth education allows expectant parents the opportunity to learn about labor and birth on their own computer, at their own pace, while still offering additional support in-person. While most of the curriculum is provided online, some aspects of the curriculum are accomplished in person. Online learners will be invited to attend an on-site class that includes instruction on relaxation techniques and breathing exercises, a tour of the maternity department and an opportunity to ask questions. The online course covers the same information as Preparation for Childbirth classes and is divided into seven sections: pregnancy basics, preparing for birth, labor basics, stages of labor, managing and coping with labor, interventions and postpartum information. To review a demo of the course, visit www.healtheast.org and click on “community education.”
H
Alexa Newell is editorial administrative assistant at AWHONN in Washington, DC. Write to her at [email protected]
334
AWHONN Lifelines
Volume 9
Issue 4
“It’s important for women to develop a bone health regimen that includes appropriate calcium intake each day, and it’s also important for women to take calcium properly so that it doesn’t interfere with the effectiveness of their bisphosphonate therapy,” said Robert P. Heaney, MD, FACP, FACN, of the Osteoporosis Research Center at Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska. “Women should talk with their health care provider and ask about a bone health regimen that’s right for them.” Adequate daily calcium is important for maintaining bone health even for women taking a prescription osteoporosis therapy, like a bisphosphonate. Taking calcium correctly is also important since effectiveness of a bisphosphonate decreases if calcium is taken within 30 minutes. Despite this, of the women surveyed by Harris Interactive, one in four (26 percent) take calcium within 30 minutes of their bisphosphonate. Getting Enough Calcium: The Surgeon General’s Report on Bone Health and Osteoporosis states that the average adult dietary intake of calcium is approximately 700 mg daily, which is below the U.S. recommended daily allowance (RDA) of 1,200 mg for women over 50. “It’s important for women to close this gap by getting an additional 500 mg of calcium either through diet or by supplement, on a daily basis,” said Heaney. Suggestions for Taking Calcium: Women aged 50 years and older should get a total of at least 1,200 mg of calcium through dietary intake and, if necessary, a calcium supplement. Calcium, whether from diet or supplements, is absorbed best by the body when it’s taken in doses of 500 mg or less. Calcium should not be taken at the same time as a bisphosphonate; bisphosphonate effectiveness decreases if calcium is taken within 30 minutes.
August | September 2005
Save These Dates! DATE
LOCATION
EVENT
8/7-12
Alliston, ON
Canada RNAO Nursing Best Practice Guidelines institute—Leading and Shaping Clinical Excellence. Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario. Contact Kate Poirier at (416) 599-1925, Ext. 235 or [email protected]; www.rnao.org
9/12
Philadelphia, PA
Nursing Made Incredibly Easy Live! Go to www.cmiregistration.com/user/org/ category.jxp?org=553
9/16
Las Vegas, NV
“The Heartbeat of Women’s Health in 2005,” AWHONN Nevada Section’s Annual Neon Desert Conference 7.0 CEU’s. Contact: Benita Ryne, RNC at (702) 645-3142 or [email protected]
9/17-24
San Diego, CA
NeoPrep; www.aap.org
10/6-7
Bangor, ME
“Issues and Controversies in Perinatal Practice” Featured speakers: Lisa Miller, CNM, JD, and George A. Little, MD. Contact the Education & Training Center Registrar at (207) 973-7302
10/19-22
New York, NY
“Transcultural Nursing: Meeting the Challenges of Global Healthcare,” 31st International Transcultural Nursing Society Conference. Contact: Priscilla Sagar at (845) 569-3130 or [email protected]; www.tcns.org
10/19-22
Boston, MA
The Fetus & Newborn: State-of-the-Art Care, Pre-conference on Neonatal Pharmacology. Contact: Contemporary Forums (800) 377-7707, [email protected] or www.contemporaryforums.com
10/20
Washington, DC
The 14th Annual Cardiovascular Nurse and Technologist Symposium. Go to: www.TCT2005.com
10/21-23
Myrtle Beach, SC
Gerontological Nursing: Looking Toward the Horizon. National Gerontological Nursing Association. Contact: Leslie Long at (800) 723-0560 or [email protected]; www.ngna.org
10/27-29
Atlanta, GA
Contraceptive Technology: Quest for Excellence. Contact: Contemporary Forums at (800) 377-7707, [email protected] or www.contemporaryforums.com
10/28-30
Chicago, IL
Optimizing Global Health Through Nursing Science; contact: Olga at [email protected]
11/2
Columbus, OH
“Special Delivery: Prematurity” 4th Annual Perinatal Conference featuring Karla Damas, RN, MSPH, PhD, and Terry S. Johnson ARNP, RNC, MN. Contact: Linda Newhouse at [email protected] or (614) 566-5393
11/10-12
Scottsdale, AZ
Shaping Healthier Behaviors & Environments, 32nd Annual Meeting & Conference. American Academy of Nursing. Go to: www.aannet.org/meetings/ conference2005/
2/27-3/3/06 Auckland, New Zealand
**2006** Celebrating 10 Years of the Cochrane Menstrual Disorders and Subfertility Group—Jointly with the 11th National Women’s Minimal Access Surgery Course. Contact: Paul Walker at T: 64 9 835 1531, [email protected] or www.cmsl.co.nz/go/ecg
6/25-28/06
Baltimore, MD
AWHONN 2006 Convention; go to www.awhonn.org for more information
Ongoing
Call for location
The AWHONN Fetal Heart Monitoring Principles and Practices Workshop; www.awhonn.org
Get your next meeting or educational session listed in AWHONN Lifelines by faxing your information to: AWHONN Lifelines—Save These Dates: (970) 947-9784 or e-mail [email protected]. Announcements are included on a space-available basis.
AWHONN Lifelines
335
Calcium Awareness Increasing ost women ages 50 and older (83 percent) who now use a biophosphate for osteoporosis believe that “taking a calcium supplement is very important in addition to getting calcium from dairy or food,” according to a new survey commissioned by The Alliance for Better Bone Health and conducted by Harris Interactive. However, these same women aren’t following their own advice, according to pollsters.
M
New Online Prenatal Education Program ealthEast Care System based in St. Paul, MN, says it will be the first in the nation to offer expectant parents online prenatal education. The online curriculum is an alternative to the “Preparation for Childbirth” classes that are held at all three of HealthEast’s acute care hospitals in Minnesota. Online childbirth education allows expectant parents the opportunity to learn about labor and birth on their own computer, at their own pace, while still offering additional support in-person. While most of the curriculum is provided online, some aspects of the curriculum are accomplished in person. Online learners will be invited to attend an on-site class that includes instruction on relaxation techniques and breathing exercises, a tour of the maternity department and an opportunity to ask questions. The online course covers the same information as Preparation for Childbirth classes and is divided into seven sections: pregnancy basics, preparing for birth, labor basics, stages of labor, managing and coping with labor, interventions and postpartum information. To review a demo of the course, visit www.healtheast.org and click on “community education.”
H
Alexa Newell is editorial administrative assistant at AWHONN in Washington, DC. Write to her at [email protected]
334
AWHONN Lifelines
Volume 9
Issue 4
“It’s important for women to develop a bone health regimen that includes appropriate calcium intake each day, and it’s also important for women to take calcium properly so that it doesn’t interfere with the effectiveness of their bisphosphonate therapy,” said Robert P. Heaney, MD, FACP, FACN, of the Osteoporosis Research Center at Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska. “Women should talk with their health care provider and ask about a bone health regimen that’s right for them.” Adequate daily calcium is important for maintaining bone health even for women taking a prescription osteoporosis therapy, like a bisphosphonate. Taking calcium correctly is also important since effectiveness of a bisphosphonate decreases if calcium is taken within 30 minutes. Despite this, of the women surveyed by Harris Interactive, one in four (26 percent) take calcium within 30 minutes of their bisphosphonate. Getting Enough Calcium: The Surgeon General’s Report on Bone Health and Osteoporosis states that the average adult dietary intake of calcium is approximately 700 mg daily, which is below the U.S. recommended daily allowance (RDA) of 1,200 mg for women over 50. “It’s important for women to close this gap by getting an additional 500 mg of calcium either through diet or by supplement, on a daily basis,” said Heaney. Suggestions for Taking Calcium: Women aged 50 years and older should get a total of at least 1,200 mg of calcium through dietary intake and, if necessary, a calcium supplement. Calcium, whether from diet or supplements, is absorbed best by the body when it’s taken in doses of 500 mg or less. Calcium should not be taken at the same time as a bisphosphonate; bisphosphonate effectiveness decreases if calcium is taken within 30 minutes.
August | September 2005
Save These Dates! DATE
LOCATION
EVENT
8/7-12
Alliston, ON
Canada RNAO Nursing Best Practice Guidelines institute—Leading and Shaping Clinical Excellence. Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario. Contact Kate Poirier at (416) 599-1925, Ext. 235 or [email protected]; www.rnao.org
9/12
Philadelphia, PA
Nursing Made Incredibly Easy Live! Go to www.cmiregistration.com/user/org/ category.jxp?org=553
9/16
Las Vegas, NV
“The Heartbeat of Women’s Health in 2005,” AWHONN Nevada Section’s Annual Neon Desert Conference 7.0 CEU’s. Contact: Benita Ryne, RNC at (702) 645-3142 or [email protected]
9/17-24
San Diego, CA
NeoPrep; www.aap.org
10/6-7
Bangor, ME
“Issues and Controversies in Perinatal Practice” Featured speakers: Lisa Miller, CNM, JD, and George A. Little, MD. Contact the Education & Training Center Registrar at (207) 973-7302
10/19-22
New York, NY
“Transcultural Nursing: Meeting the Challenges of Global Healthcare,” 31st International Transcultural Nursing Society Conference. Contact: Priscilla Sagar at (845) 569-3130 or [email protected]; www.tcns.org
10/19-22
Boston, MA
The Fetus & Newborn: State-of-the-Art Care, Pre-conference on Neonatal Pharmacology. Contact: Contemporary Forums (800) 377-7707, [email protected] or www.contemporaryforums.com
10/20
Washington, DC
The 14th Annual Cardiovascular Nurse and Technologist Symposium. Go to: www.TCT2005.com
10/21-23
Myrtle Beach, SC
Gerontological Nursing: Looking Toward the Horizon. National Gerontological Nursing Association. Contact: Leslie Long at (800) 723-0560 or [email protected]; www.ngna.org
10/27-29
Atlanta, GA
Contraceptive Technology: Quest for Excellence. Contact: Contemporary Forums at (800) 377-7707, [email protected] or www.contemporaryforums.com
10/28-30
Chicago, IL
Optimizing Global Health Through Nursing Science; contact: Olga at [email protected]
11/2
Columbus, OH
“Special Delivery: Prematurity” 4th Annual Perinatal Conference featuring Karla Damas, RN, MSPH, PhD, and Terry S. Johnson ARNP, RNC, MN. Contact: Linda Newhouse at [email protected] or (614) 566-5393
11/10-12
Scottsdale, AZ
Shaping Healthier Behaviors & Environments, 32nd Annual Meeting & Conference. American Academy of Nursing. Go to: www.aannet.org/meetings/ conference2005/
2/27-3/3/06 Auckland, New Zealand
**2006** Celebrating 10 Years of the Cochrane Menstrual Disorders and Subfertility Group—Jointly with the 11th National Women’s Minimal Access Surgery Course. Contact: Paul Walker at T: 64 9 835 1531, [email protected] or www.cmsl.co.nz/go/ecg
6/25-28/06
Baltimore, MD
AWHONN 2006 Convention; go to www.awhonn.org for more information
Ongoing
Call for location
The AWHONN Fetal Heart Monitoring Principles and Practices Workshop; www.awhonn.org
Get your next meeting or educational session listed in AWHONN Lifelines by faxing your information to: AWHONN Lifelines—Save These Dates: (970) 947-9784 or e-mail [email protected]. Announcements are included on a space-available basis.
AWHONN Lifelines
335