Posted by tasn

Dear Tennessee Nursing Students,

I’m sure many of you have been watching the news regarding swine flu and wondering what we, as student nurses, can do to help in the event that this situation becomes a public health crisis in Tennessee. I am registered through my health department as a public health volunteer and would like to encourage you to do the same. The health department would become the point of dispensing in the event of mass immunizations or prophylactic medications. Authorization for the release of Tamiflu from the national stockpile to the states that have been affected has already occurred.

I have included information on swine flu, a slideshow on the Tennessee Public Health Volunteer program including roles, the link to register to be a Tennessee Public Health Volunteer, and a link to take NIMS courses online (the site is down at the moment, though).

CDC fact sheet regarding swine flu:
http://www.cdc.gov/swineflu/key_facts.htm

To learn more about being a Tennessee Public Health Volunteer (slideshow):
http://health.nashville.gov/PDFs/VolunteerInformation.pdf

To register to become a Tennessee Public Health Volunteer:
https://thanvolunteer.health.state.tn.us/VolunteerMobilizer/

NIMS-related courses normally offered online (site is down as of 4/27/09) by EMI at http://www.fema.gov/emergency/nims/NIMSTrainingCourses.shtm include:

• IS-100.HC - Introduction to the Incident Command System for Healthcare/Hospitals
• IS-200.HC - Applying ICS to Healthcare Organizations
• IS-700.A - National Incident Management System (NIMS), An Introduction
• IS-701 - NIMS Multiagency Coordination System
• IS-702 - NIMS Public Information Systems
• IS-703 - NIMS Resource Management
• IS-706 - NIMS Intrastate Mutual Aid, An Introduction
• IS-800.B - National Response Framework, An Introduction

(NIMS provides a consistent, flexible, and adjustable national framework within which government and private entities at all levels can work together to manage domestic incidents, regardless of their cause, size, location, or complexity. This flexibility applies across all phases of incident management: prevention, preparedness, response, recovery, and mitigation.)

Thanks for being such a great team and don’t forget to wash your hands often! Feel free to pass this information to other student nurses or potential volunteers.

Thanks,
Heather McQuistion
Tennessee Associaton of Student Nurses President

Posted by tasn

Work with Tennessee’s future Nurses

Become a TNA/TASN Liaison

FAQ’s

What is a liaison?

• TNA member who acts on behalf of TASN in communicating information with members of TNA, TASN and faculty advisors
• Mentor to the TASN BOD

What are the requirements?

• Be a Registered Nurse
• Be a TNA/ANA member in good standing; some previous involvement in local district TNA activities helpful
• Be a National Student Nurses’ Association (NSNA) sustaining member (cost $50 for annual individual membership)
• Be dedicated to mentoring students in the professional roles of nursing

How often does the TASN Board of Directors meet?

• Monthly TASN business meetings in centralized location(s) or by teleconference
• Annual TASN state convention (usually September or October)
• TASN weekend planning retreat usually withing first month after state convention
• Mid-year NSNA convention usually in November
• Annual NSNA convention usually in April

For more information, please write tasnliaison@gmail.com or tasnliaison2@gmail.com.