The fall 2008 VA POCC meeting was held 11/28/07 at
the Virginia Historical Society in Richmond, VA.
President Janet Burckell called the meeting to
order at 1010 with a warm welcome for all attendees. She introduced the current
officers: Lisa Durish, president-elect; Gwen Harris, treasurer; John LaRosa,
secretary. Lou Ann Wyer was introduced as past-president, and thanked for her
continued involvement and support in the organization.
The vendors that helped sponsor this meeting were
also welcomed and thanked: Abbott, MAS, RNA, and Roche. Members were reminded
that 2008 dues could be paid today, to fill out ballots for the next slate of
officers, and to complete the evaluations at the end of the meeting.
The morning speaker was introduced next by Janet.
Navy Chief Joselito Jamero, after a brief biography of himself, spoke on the
topic titled Blood Program and Medical Laboratory Services in Health Services
Support [HSS] in the Theater of Operations. This was a very informative lecture
on the levels of care taken on the battlefields in Iraq and Afghanistan, and
covered areas from basic self-administered first aid to rehab back in the
states.
Ann Snyder of Baltimore was introduced next to
talk about the 2008 AACC meeting, to be held in DC 07/27/08 thru 07/31/08.
Important dates to jot down and remember are the POCC After Affairs event on
07/29/08 and the 6th Annual POCC Forum on 07/31/08. ASCLS will also
meet 07/29/08 thru 08/07/08. Ann mentioned numerous options for lodging and
transportation to make sure no one missed these opportunities.
Lou Ann Wyer next talked about the process for the
nomination and selection for the AACC POCC of the Year award. Everyone,
including vendors, was encouraged to become involved and nominate a worthy
individual that desires such recognition.
Lou Ann next talked about the new AACC Point of
Care Specialist Certificate Program. Surveys and focus groups have documented
the desire of POCCs to be recognized, and this program can provide a
certificate that the individual has passed the tests of eight study courses
related to point of care and laboratory testing. Numerous questions were asked
of Lou Ann regarding timeframes, renewals, costs, and the testing.
Lunch commenced and was a prime time to network
with colleagues. Completed ballots were counted.
The Business portion of the meeting began at 1310
with a request by Janet for the next meeting site in the spring. No site was
offered, but the group was reminded that hospital sites were usually free of
charge, while commercial sites were available for a fee. No sponsors stepped up
at this time to support the first 2008 meeting. Topics suggested for the
meeting included platelet resistance testing, aspirin, Plavix, etc. Cooximetry
was also added. A new feature for future meetings would be for POC programs to
spotlight
themselves in about a 15 minute session. The
attendees were also asked if they had any needs, but there were no responses.
The election results were announced:
All candidates were unopposed, there were no votes
of no-confidence, and Vickie Donnelly had one write-in ballot for the office of
President. Nineteen ballots were counted.
Each elected official then gave a brief biography
and introduction of themselves. The Business portion of the meeting concluded at
1325.
The last two sessions for the meeting were POCT
highlights at two institutions. Jackie Canaday gave a great detailed report on
the Sentara-Williamsburg facility and program. Cathy Owens followed with a very
informative and historical look at the Carilion Health Care System and POCT
program in Roanoke.
The meeting wrapped up at 1430 with another THANK
YOU for everyone by Janet, safe travel was wished for everyone, and the
evaluations collected.
