Susan Halli Demeter and Lisa Maher, PCNA’s current and incoming board Presidents, reflect on PCNA’s three decades of service to the cardiovascular nursing community and peek ahead to the future.

From its inception as the Lipid Nurse Task Force in 1992, PCNA has been unwavering in its mission of helping nurses work effectively with their patients and colleagues to reduce the risk for cardiovascular disease and stroke. 2024 marks the 30^th anniversary of PCNA’s annual Cardiovascular Nursing Symposium and a time to give three cheers to 30 years of providing high-quality educational and networking opportunities. The event continues to offer in-person and virtual attendees the chance to learn, grow, reflect, refresh, and renew our commitment to helping prevent and effectively manage cardiovascular disease (CVD). 

Cardiovascular Care is Everywhere

There is still much work to be done in the field of cardiovascular prevention and care, with global deaths from CVD increasing to 19.8 million in 2022.[i] Additionally, CVD continues to contribute to disability, hospitalizations, and skyrocketing health costs.

Cardiovascular care now spans most healthcare settings, from primary care to the emergency room, oncology clinic to diabetes education setting, home health, and hospital rooms. It is no longer addressed only in the cardiology clinic, cardiac hospital unit, cath lab, and cardiac rehab.

Additionally, CVD is affecting patients at younger and younger ages, requiring healthcare professionals who work with young adults, teens, and even children to be aware of how to help patients prevent or manage diseases that were once limited to adults and older adults.

While the landscape of health care has changed dramatically since the first PCNA conference in 1993 (consider home health monitoring, telehealth, direct-to-consumer marketing, and AI, among other factors), some things have remained constant—not the least of which is the dedication and high-quality care provided to patients by nurses across the spectrum of care. The annual Cardiovascular Nursing Symposium program provides nurses and other healthcare professionals with current updates on various cardiovascular-related topics to help improve patient outcomes in clinical practice.  

Content for Clinicians, Researchers, and More

Many factors for reducing CVD risk are modifiable, both on a personal and larger community- and policy-based scale. Who better to tackle this ongoing health crisis than nurses, who continue to be the top trusted profession?[ii] We can’t think of a better way to stay connected and up-to-date than at a 2 ½ day conference where participants can learn from subject matter experts from across the globe.

Since its inception, PCNA’s Symposium has relied on faculty who are thought leaders, cutting-edge researchers, world-class clinicians, and representatives from across the field of CVD, including nurses, physicians, pharmacists, other allied health professionals, and patients. These individuals educate, engage, empower, and energize the audience, spurring changes to help move the needle toward better cardiovascular health.

The 2024 symposium is no exception, with blended content across the cardiovascular spectrum. The program continues to provide guideline-based information and actionable best practices that cardiovascular nurses and other health care professionals can immediately apply in their work settings. Sessions range from diagnosing heart murmurs to developing advocacy skills, understanding the latest guidelines to promoting safety in the workplace, and health equity to artificial intelligence. These topics, plus many more, will be presented by experts in the field who will provide engaging, case-based content.

In the Room, or Across the Globe

The 1993 conference set the stage for successful in-person conferences that are held across the U.S. As nursing schedules increased in complexity, PCNA added a virtual attendance option to the live meeting in 2017. Individuals who cannot attend the Cardiovascular Nursing Symposium in person can still attend from their workplace, home, or other convenient location.

Whether physically in the room or attending from anywhere across the globe, symposium participants have access to educational sessions with CE contact hours, the chance to learn from colleagues presenting abstracts and posters, opportunities for interaction with world-renowned faculty, access to a network of like-minded individuals intent on reducing the risk of CVD, and time to celebrate others in the field through annual awards.

What’s Ahead?

Each year, it takes a team to put together PCNA’s Annual Cardiovascular Nursing Symposium to meet the needs of cardiovascular nursing professionals.

The need will continue well into the future as health care continues to shift, guidelines for cardiovascular disease detection and management are updated regularly, efforts blossom to address access to care, and the need increases to effectively partner with patients and colleagues to improve patient outcomes and optimize clinical encounters.

Here’s to the next 30 years!

Get Involved!

We invite you to join us as PCNA embarks on the next 30 years of annual symposia.  

1. Don’t let your friends and colleagues miss the chance to learn, laugh, and leave the 2024 Symposium sessions re-energized. Invite them to check the schedule and register for in-person or virtual attendance.
2. Submit suggestions for topics and speakers for future programs to info@pcna.net.
3. Don’t wait 12 months to learn what’s new and to get inspired. Check out other learning opportunities through PCNA chapters, on-demand learning, and other PCNA events throughout the year.
4. Volunteer with PCNA, whether you are just getting started or are more tenured in your career.
5. Mark your calendar and plan to attend the next Symposium, which will be held April 10-12, 2025, in Orlando, Florida.
6. Get ready for next year by sharing your work and what you’ve learned by submitting an abstract about an innovation project, original research, or graduate capstone.
7. Prepare for 2025 by nominating yourself or someone you know for a PCNA award.

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[i] Mensah GA, Fuster V, Murray CJL, Roth GA, and on behalf of the Global Burden of Cardiovascular Disease and Risks Collaborators. Global Burden of Cardiovascular Diseases and Risks, 1990-2022. J Am Coll Cardiol.2023;82(25):2350-2473. https://www.jacc.org/doi/10.1016/j.jacc.2023.11.007

[ii] Gallup. 2023 Honesty and Ethics Poll. https://news.gallup.com/poll/608903/ethics-ratings-nearly-professions-down.aspx. Accessed February 26, 2024.