MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIRPERSON
Renewed Allegiance March 2016 Judy Kirk, MS, RD, CSR, CDN, FNKF
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T THIS TIME, we begin the 2016/2017 Executive Committee terms. In my last message, I introduced you to the new incoming Chair, Laura Holden. Due to circumstances beyond our control, I will be extending my term as Chair for one more year, and Laura will be extending her term as Chair-Elect for one more year. We are pleased to be serving you our membership in these capacities for another period. I will now introduce you to the Executive Committee for 2016/2017. Here is a brief introduction, for further information please refer to the National Kidney Foundation (NKF) Web site; view professional/dietitian/council election information. A region list is there as well if you are unsure which region you reside. In region 1, the new representative will be Meredith Marinaro from Farmington, Connecticut. Meredith has been a renal dietitian for 10 years and active with her local Council on Renal Nutrition (CRN) for 5 years. She is passionate about patient and professional education. Our region 1, alternate representative is Sharon Zalemski from Buffalo, New York. Sharon completed a term as region representative and did an outstanding job for us; we are pleased she is extending her commitment to the CRN Executive Committee. In region III, Kristen Nonahal from West Bloomfield, Michigan is coming back for a second term as region representative, and Cynthia Clancy from Saint Ann, Missouri is coming back as alternate region representative. Kristen’s goal is to reestablish chapters in states where local CRN has closed and see chapters establish Web sites and have links on our NKF Web site. Cynthia would like to continue being a support to Kristen and region III offering communication opportunities for the CRN local chapters and their members. We are grateful to Kristen and Cynthia’s continued volunteer work. In region V, the new representative is Leah Beaird from Gilbert, Arizona. Leah has 10 years’ experience in renal nutrition and has been active in her local CRN. She is a
Rochester Regional Health System, Rochester, New York. Financial Disclosure: The author declares that there are no relevant financial interests. Address correspondence to Judy Kirk, MS, RD, CSR, CDN, FNKF, Rochester Regional Health System, Rochester, New York 14621. E-mail:
[email protected] Ó
2016 by the National Kidney Foundation, Inc. All rights reserved. 1051-2276/$36.00 http://dx.doi.org/10.1053/j.jrn.2015.12.006
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strong advocate of CRN, and her goal is to help local CRN chapter’s network and share best practices. Fay Moore is the alternate representative from Sun City, Arizona. Fay has 201 years’ experience and plans to use her experience to foster CRN efforts through her role on the executive committee. The executive committee will be looking for nominations for 2017/2018 regions 2 and 4 representative and alternate representatives as well as Chair-Elect and Secretary/Treasurer. As a region representative, you are required to participate as a funded member at the annual Spring Clinical Meeting and Conference. In the case that a region representative is unable to attend, the alternate representative will be asked to step up. You are requested to participate in several conference calls throughout the year, assist with nominations for future executive committee members, CRN awards, region activity reports, and liaison to the local CRN councils to communicate actions taken and policies adapted by the CRN executive committee. Region 2 is lead for professional education development, and region 4 is lead for membership development. The Chair-Elect position works closely with the Chair to learn the operations of the executive committee so they can prepare for their leadership role of Chair in the next year. The Chair coordinates the efforts of the CRN executive committee and is responsible for writing chairperson messages for the Journal of Renal Nutrition, Renalink, and the Renal Nutrition Forum. The Secretary/Treasurer position is the scribe for the minutes of the meetings and updates to the CRN handbook and a lead for the CRN awards. If you or someone you know is interested in learning more about the CRN executive committee and how to be on next year’s ballot, please contact me. I have exciting updates to tell you this month. Newly available resources include online glomerular filtration rate calculator, see www.kidney.org/professionals/ kdoqi/gfr. Also, A New Normal: Life on Dialysis— The First 90 Days, this can be found in the online store item 11-10-0307 at www.kidney.org/store. If you have not already done so, I recommend checking the NKF Professional Education Resource Center. This resource has been recently revamped and is a great resource at http://education.kidney.org/. In my next message, I will introduce the CRN award recipients who will be recognized in April 2016 at the Spring Clinical Meeting in Boston, Massachusetts. It is never too
Journal of Renal Nutrition, Vol 26, No 2 (March), 2016: pp 126-127
RENEWED ALLEGIANCE
early to think of a colleague who you would like to recognize. Here are some ideas when considering a nomination: someone who has participated in national and/or local CRN activities, publications, educational material activities, invited lectures, professional renal nutrition activities, special awards, and your summary statement of their contributions.
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As always, I appreciate and welcome all your comments, concerns, and feedback. I look forward to a productive year continuing to move forward on communication and enhancing the value of CRN membership for you in your professional life. I look forward to seeing many of you at the Spring Clinical Meeting next month in Boston, Massachusetts.