Achievement! NNCC Announces 2018 High Scorers

NNCC would like to congratulate the following 2018 certificants for achieving the highest scores on their certification examination:

• Christy Ann Crenshaw, Shelbyville, KY: Certified Clinical Hemodialysis Technician (CCHT)
• Kayla Ann Mergl, Sayville, NY: Certified Clinical Hemodialysis Technician (CCHT)
• Christian Zane Ryun, Irvine, CA: Certified Clinical Hemodialysis Technician (CCHT)
• Jun C. Tapay, Fort Atkinson, WI: Certified Clinical Hemodialysis Technician – Advanced (CCHT-A)
• Yuliya Baran, Rochester, NY: Certified Dialysis – Licensed Practical Nurse (CD-LPN)
• William J. DeGaetano, Copperstown, NY: Certified Dialysis Nurse (CDN)
• Susan E. Jones, Pittsfield, MA: Certified Dialysis Nurse (CDN)
• Amber N. Weaver, St. Louis, MO: Certified Nephrology Nurse (CNN)
• Gerrald C. Angeles, Chino, CA: Certified Nephrology Nurse-Nurse Practitioner (CNN-NP)

Leadership Update: Welcoming New NNCC Officers

Three individuals will assume their new roles at the upcoming NNCC Board of Commissioners meeting in Amelia Island, FL, April 6-7.

	Theresa Mottes, MSN, RN, CPNP-AC, CDN, will step in to her position as NNCC president to serve a 2-year term. Mottes, who has more than 25 years of pediatric renal replacement therapy experience, will work with the NNCC Board to steer the operations, goals, and visions of NNCC to best serve certificants. Mottes is currently an acute care nephrology nurse practitioner at Texas Children's Hospital.
	Sandra Bodin, MA, RN, CNN, will fill the president-elect slot, and will also serve a 2-year term. Bodin has more than 20 years' experience as a nephrology nurse and is currently a Manager, Dialysis Access Initiatives, for the Medical Office at FMS. She is a past president of the American Nephrology Nurses Association (ANNA).
	Karen Solcher, APRN, NP-C, CNN-NP, will step into a commissioner position on the Board. Solcher is a nephrology nurse practitioner at Stormont-Vail Health, Topeka, KS. She has been an advance practice item writer for NNCC since 2013, and is also a board member on that committee. Solcher has 15 years of nephrology experience and is an ANNA member.

Apply Today for a Career Mobility Scholarship   

NNCC offers scholarships for the following groups:

• Technicians and LPN/LVNs (Five $3,000 scholarships) 
• Advanced Practice Nurses (One $5,000 scholarship)
• ANNA (CDN and CNN) Active Members

Research Needed to Improve Quality of Life for Patients on Chronic Hemodialysis

Health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in patients on chronic hemodialysis has not improved significantly in the last 20 years due to their symptom burden and treatment challenges. More studies are needed to address these issues and provide improved quality of life.

(International Urology and Nephrology, 3/19/19, full text, free, online)

Secondhand Smoke Linked to CKD

Exposure to secondhand smoke was associated with both a higher prevalence of CKD and the development of incident CKD among non-smokers, according to a recently published study. (Healio/Nephrology, 3/7/19)

Reaping Benefits of Food-Related Studies

Two experts discuss key articles and findings on important food- and beverage-related studies over the past year. (Healio, 3/18/19)

‘Food is Medicine’ Initiative Calls for Better Public Health Through Nutrition

A coalition of educators, Congressional leaders, and other organizations have embarked on a national effort to raise awareness of the tremendous impact of food on American’s well-being and identify solutions. (Tufts University Friedman School of Nutrition Science & Policy, 1/2019)