2025 Annual Convention

September 11-12, 2025
Benton Convention Center
Winston-Salem, NC

2025 Annual Convention Digital Brochure

Get ready for the 2025 Annual Convention, packed with two days of engaging educational sessions and valuable networking opportunities!
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Continuing Nursing Education Credit

Contact Hours
Up to 27.25 Contact Hours (CH) available for FULL registrants (12.25 CHs for onsite participants and 15 CHs for breakout session playbacks and virtual posters.)

Breakout Session Playbacks
Miss a session or poster you really wanted to see? We provide recordings of all breakout sessions and posters to attendees — and you can get CHs for all of the concurrent sessions from the day(s) you are registered. You will receive an email about a month after Convention with all the info. Keynote and General sessions are not included.

Full Agenda

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 11
8:00 AM.................

Continental Breakfast
8:00 - 8:45............. Atrium Health Members Reception
8:45 - 9:30............. First-time Attendee Orientation
9:30 - 9:45............. Welcome to the 118th NCNA Convention!
9:45 - 10:45........... KEYNOTE | Critical Thinking, Communications, Grit: Unleash the Never Give Up Mindset (1.0 CH)
Scott Lesnick, CSP
10:45 - 11:45.........

GENERAL SESSION | Playing the Right Cards: The Impact of Value-Based Care on Nursing Practice through the Lens of UNO (1.0 CH)
Stephanie Turner, MSN, RN
11:45 - 12:30 PM... Exhibit Hall | Posters Group A (0.75 CH)
12:30 - 1:45........... Awards Luncheon
1:45 - 2:45............. Exhibit Hall | Posters Group B (1.0 CH)
2:45 - 3:00............. Refreshment Break
   

BEGIN BREAKOUT SESSIONS
A - Practice                       C - Leadership
B - Education                    D - Self-Care
   
3:00 - 4:00.............

Breakout Sessions I (1.0 CH)

I-A | Barbershops, Blood Pressure, and Bridges: A Community-Driven Solution for Hypertension
Dr. Charmaine L. Duckie, DNP, RN, MSRN-BC, NEA-BC

I-B | Transforming Clinical Expertise into Teaching Excellence: A Faculty Development Model
Ellen Zimmerman, MSN, RN; Katie Neligan, MSN, RN, CNL, PCCN

I-C | Sprouting Leaders: Accelerating Growth Through an Intentional Succession Strategy
Dr. Shawana Burnette, DNP, RNC-OB, NEA-BC, CLNC, FAWHONN

I-D | “Switching It Up”: Changing Nursing Specialty with Success
Dr. Tomika Williams, PhD, AGNP-C, CDP
4:00 - 4:15............. Break
4:15 - 5:30.............

Breakout Sessions II (1.0 CH)

II-A | Butterflies as a Symbol of Comfort Care: Improving Interdisciplinary Communication
Serena Burdick, BSN, RN, MEDSURG-BC; Savannah Horvick, BSN, RN

II-B | Empowering Nurses for LGBTQ+ Health Equity: Best Practices for Inclusive Care and Education
Dr. Mark C. Hand, PhD, RN, CNE

II-C | Nurturing the Mindset of An Empowered Leader
Clarisa Thomas, BSN, RN

II-D | From Surviving to Thriving: How Mentorship Transforms Nurse Resilience and Retention
Renee Olsen, BSN, RN, PCCN; Caleb Violette, BSN, RN
5:30 PM................ NCNA Networking & Engagement Reception

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 12
7:15 AM................. Exhibit Hall & Continental Breakfast
8:00 - 8:45............. GENERAL SESSION | 2025 Updates from the North Carolina Board of Nursing (0.75 CH)
8:45 - 9:30............. GENERAL SESSION | 2025 Legislative Updates (0.75 CH)
9:30 - 9:45.............

Break
9:45 - 10:45...........

Breakout Sessions III (1.0 CH)

III-A | Mitigating Maternal Mortality: Implementing an Innovative Approach for Case Reviews in an Electronic Database
Lori Lovelace Elks, MSN, RN, CPHQ, CMSRN

III-B | Podcast 101: Exploring a New Medium for Dissemination of Information
Dr. Stephanie McDonald, DNP, MSL, RN, NEA-BC; Dr. Carmen L. Shaw, DNP, RN-BC, NEA-BC, CPC

III-C | Policy Palooza: Uniting Ambulatory Nursing One Guideline at a Time
Dr. Kathy Shaffer, DNP, APRN, AGCNS?BC, C-ONQS; Nicole Lucas, MSN, RN, NE-BC

III-D | Caring Beyond the Surface: The Trauma-Informed Nurse
Kiersten Brelewski, MSN, APRN, AGCNS-BC
10:45-11:45........... Exhibit Hall | Posters Group C (1.0 CH)
11:45-1:40 PM....... Membership Forum | Working Lunch (1.0 CH)
1:40 - 1:55............. Break
1:55 - 2:15.............

Breakout Sessions IV (1.0 CH)

IV-A | The Rise of Acute Care Virtual Nursing: A New Frontier in Nursing Practice
Ava Bethea, BSN, RN

IV-B | Recognizing the Impact of GLP-1RAs on Healthcare and a Call to Action for Healthier Communities
Melissa Moreda, MSN, APRN, ACCNS-AG, CDCES, CNRN, SCRN

IV-C | Building the Future Nursing Workforce: Expanding Pathways from High School to DNP
Dr. Morgan Taylor, DNP, CPNP, BSN, RN, CCRN

IV-D | Focus On Your Core (And More): Easy Energy Bursts For Every Nurse
Mary E. Holtschneider, MEd, MPA, BSN, RN, NPDA-BC, NPD-BC, NREMT-P, CPTD
3:00 PM................ CLOSING KEYNOTE | Excellence in Nursing: Regaining Your Edge
Pam Collins, MSN, RN, CMSRN, MEDSURG-BC, NPD-BC

The 2025 Annual Convention schedule is subject to change. Last revised 4/7/2025.

North Carolina Nurses Association is accredited as a provider of nursing continuing professional development by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation.