What's better than a weekend with 500 certified registered nurse anesthetists (CRNA) in Charlotte, North Carolina? A weekend with 500 CRNAs who are educated, registered voters! Kimberly takes her election update on the road to discuss Election 2024: The Good, the Bad, & the Ugly (for CRNAs). Once again, North Carolina is a battleground state, and NC CRNAs will be battle-ready for November 5th, armed with information about the importance of voting every race, up and down the ballot: federal, state, and local.

It might be the holiday season, but New Year's resolutions are right around the corner, and we have an idea: Kimberly will lead a discussion with North Carolina nurses about the importance of representation in public policymaking. We'll explore the importance of nurses running for and serving in elected office, identify opportunities for nurses to increase their civic engagement, and provide resources to help them. Visit NCNA and register for the webinar here.

Lisa Summers and Sofia Aragon, the former mayor of Burien, Washington, will co-present the plenary session, " Taking Advocacy to the Next Level: Engaging Nurses in Politics," on Saturday, January 18, at 9 a.m. The political determinants of health (PDOH) are critical to achieving health equity but have received limited attention in academic nursing. Nurses are increasingly adept at advocacy yet remain sorely underrepresented in elected offices despite having a skill set well suited to run and serve constituents. Lisa and Sofia will explore the power of civic engagement, nursing representation, and PDOH through the lived experience of a nurse who has served in elected office. Educators will leave with new ideas for how to embed political advocacy and public service into their nursing programs and clinical practices.