More Than 90 Will Volunteer
by Sara Michael
When the thousands of Magnet Conference attendees descend on Baltimore this fall, a team of Johns Hopkins Hospital nurses will be on hand as volunteers for the event and ambassadors for their hospital.
In the months leading up to the October event, volunteer organizers are beginning to plan the logistics for serving as one of five Maryland Magnet–recognized hospitals that will host the conference. The American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Magnet Conference brings more than 6,000 nurses to a city each year to share best practices and connect with colleagues.
“It’s really an opportunity to highlight Maryland and Baltimore, and the significance of the host hospitals as well,” said Patricia Dawson, MSN ’03, RN, assistant director of nursing clinical quality and Magnet.
Hopkins volunteers will be there to introduce speakers for each session and assist attendees in finding their way around the conference. They will also be helping coordinate a quilting project during the conference, where attendees can help stitch parts of a Baltimore-themed quilt.
Stephanie Wilmer, MSN ’04, RN, coordinator for quality and Magnet, estimated they have 717 volunteer hours to fill, which means about 90 volunteers working eight-hour shifts. Volunteers will mainly be unit-based Magnet program liaisons.
“Serving as host is very much about welcoming attendees to Baltimore and talking about your hospital and what you love about it,” said Wilmer.
The conference also gives the nurses an opportunity to network with other hospitals around the country that have also received or are on the journey to achieving Magnet status, which recognizes national excellence in nursing.
“You can talk to another Magnet organization from California or Colorado,” said Dawson. “It’s just the idea of being out there and meeting people who have like interests.”
