Continuing Education
Symposia Programming
Monday, March 2
Breakfast Symposium:
Case Management of the Challenging IgG Patient—Clinical Considerations for the Most Effective and Safe Therapy
Supported by an unrestricted educational grant from Talecris Biotherapeutics
7:00-8:45 a.m.
Hilton Baltimore
Continuing Education Contact Hours: Pharmacy and Nursing—1.5
Education Overview:
Immunoglobulin G (IgG) therapy is used in the treatment of more than 100 immune-mediated disease states, despite having formal FDA approval for only four diagnoses. Understanding the basic function, and potential malfunction, of the immune system is critical to comprehending the role IgG can play in the treatment of numerous diseases. Now more than ever, as additional conditions are being identified every year for which IgG is demonstrating some efficacy (including potential new agents to treat Alzheimer’s, as well as Idiopathic Thrombocytopenia Purpura [ITP]), clinicians must better grasp how to administer and manage responses to this complex therapy. Join Dr. Siegel as he takes you on an interactive journey through the immune system and current treatment approaches with IgG.
Faculty: Jerry Siegel, PharmD, FASHP, Senior Director of Pharmacy, Ohio State University Medical Center, Columbus, OH
*Please Note: Dr. Siegel will utilize audience response technology to actively engage attendees around several complex case studies, providing guidance along the path from problem identification to resolution—such devices will be available on a first-come-first-served basis to the initial 300 participants in the room, so arrive early!
Breakfast Symposium:
Therapeutic Management of Resistant Gram-negative Infections in the Alternate Site Setting
Supported by an educational grant from Ortho-McNeil administered by Ortho-McNeil Janssen Scientific Affairs, LLC
7:00-8:45 a.m.
Hilton Baltimore
Continuing Education Contact Hours: Pharmacy and Nursing—1.5
Education Overview:
Changing patterns of drug resistance in gram-negative infections pose a clinical management challenge for clinicians. As new therapies are introduced to the market, selecting the most appropriate drug for each patient requires an understanding of resistance epidemiology and risk factors. Pharmacists and nurses caring for patients in the alternate-site infusion setting are increasingly involved in managing these infections after hospital discharge. This program is designed to address the treatment of resistant gram negative infections utilizing the principle of antimicrobial stewardship to maximize treatment outcomes while minimizing the impact on resistance.
Faculty: David Nicolau, PharmD, FCCP, Hartford Hospital, Hartford, CT.
Tuesday, March 3
Breakfast Symposium:
When “S” Does Not Mean Success—Looking Beyond Susceptibility When Choosing an Antimicrobial Therapy
Supported by an unrestricted educational grant from Cubist Pharmaceuticals
7:00-8:45 a.m.
Hilton Baltimore
Continuing Education Contact Hours: Pharmacy and Nursing—1.5
Education Overview:
Ascertain why the relationship between minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and antimicrobial effectiveness has become increasingly important, in light of recent research. Dr. Lodise and colleagues discovered that patients with Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) bloodstream infections who had a vancomycin MIC greater than or equal to 1.5 mg/liter were significantly more likely to experience vancomycin treatment failure than similar patients who had a vancomycin MIC of less than or equal to 1.0 mg/liter. This evidence-based educational program will explore the evolving epidemiology of MRSA, including emerging vancomycin resistance concerns. Learn, along with your colleagues, how to recognize the outcomes associated with reduced vancomycin susceptibility phenotypes—and review the antimicrobial alternatives for these patients.
Faculty: Tom Lodise, PharmD, Associate Professor of Pharmacy Practice, Albany College of Pharmacy, Albany, NY
Breakfast Symposium:
Maintaining Catheter Patency: A Patient-Centered Approach
Supported by an unrestricted educational grant from Genentech
7:00-8:45 a.m.
Hilton Baltimore
Continuing Education Contact Hours: Pharmacy and Nursing—1.5
Education Overview:
Catheters are a lifeline for many home infusion patients who depend on a reliable and always-ready access for their medication administration. Maintaining catheter patency is crucial for achieving therapy goals. This session will provide a pathophysiological look at catheters from the inside out, giving the participant a perspective on the patient-specific factors that must be considered to prevent an occlusion. Types of occlusion will be addressed, including specific steps that can be taken for prevention. And in the event prevention isn’t effective, management of each type of occlusion will be reviewed.
Faculty: Lynn Hadaway, M.Ed., RN, BC, CRNI®, President, Lynn Hadaway Associates, Inc., Milner, GA
Wednesday, March 4
Breakfast Symposium:
Smart Pump Technology—Improving Safety and Efficiency Across the Continuum of Care!
Supported by an unrestricted educational grant from Hospira Worldwide, Inc., Moog Medical Devices Group, and Smiths Medical
7:00-8:45 a.m.
Hilton Baltimore
Continuing Education Contact Hours: Pharmacy and Nursing—1.5
Education Overview:
Patient safety and organizational solvency are often two of the most paramount concerns that keep home care clinicians, managers and executives up at night. In the quest to create work environments that decrease the likelihood of errors, promote patient safety and minimize organizational risk, we must answer several difficult questions: How do we evaluate the processes that lead to medication error reduction? Can we identify and standardize the IV medications associated with the highest risk of harm in the alternate infusion setting? Is there a role for technology to assist in reducing the errors that we are so reluctant to report? Be present for this innovative symposium that will address pump technology in the inpatient and outpatient settings—including the factors which have led to recent improvements in device design.
Faculty: To be Announced
Wednesday, March 4
Box Lunch Symposium
12:15- 1:45 p.m.
Baltimore Convention Center
Continuing Education Contact Hours: Pharmacy and Nursing—1.5
NHIA is in the process of developing a 90-minute “Box Lunch Symposium” for the last day of the 2009 Annual Conference—ensuring you have a chance to eat, while further feeding your hunger for knowledge!