N479 Professional Activity Evaluation Form

Your Name: Trysha Hicks Date of Activity: April 11-14, 2018 Faculty name: Darlene Lacroix

Describe the community service/professional activity/s you attended or participated with

(be specific about the purpose and your role):

The professional activity I attended and participated in was the Western Institute of Nursing

Conference in Spokane, Washington. In this activity, I served a variety of roles as I was

presenting my honors thesis in the method of a poster; I attended a variety of lectures and

symposiums to learn about current research being conducted in the nursing field; I utilized this

time to network not only with other students, but also future employment opportunities.

Where was this held and what was program/activity length?

This activity was held at the Davenport Hotel in Spokane, Washington. It was a 4 day

conference, of which I attended for the entire time.

Discuss the value of this experience to you (be specific).

This experience was invaluable to me. As an undergraduate student, I was extremely lucky to be

selected to attend and participate. There was only a handful of pre-licensure students who were

receiving this opportunity and U of A was one of the main schools that supported BSN students to

attend. The majority of attendees were either DNP or PhD students or faculty members throughout

the Western US. In addition, having the opportunity to share my honors thesis and research with

other scholarly nurses was an exciting experience. I loved attending the speeches and symposiums

where researchers presented their studies and gave inspiring speeches about the role of nursing.

For example, I just attended a symposium regarding the “advancements in acute and critical care
of nursing” where I learned about important studies regarding risk factors for pressure injuries, the

power of journaling in the critical care setting, and where genetic testing is taking us, especially in

regard to neonatal care. On Thursday, I attended a symposium that discussed the negative effects

of abuse that young girls suffered and its sustained effects on their lives and relationships.

Followed by a presentation on the festival drug of ecstasy and the dangers this drug and behavior

poses and how we can positively educate young people from a nursing standpoint if we take the

right approach. These are just an example of some of the speeches and presentations that I attended

throughout this 4-day conference. I loved every minute of it. Lastly, this experience was amazing

as I was able to talk with professional nurses from so many aspects of nursing and I was able to

see what my future could hold: as a researcher, a nurse practitioner, a faculty member, or just a

leader in the nursing field in general. I always like having the opportunity to further explore my

options in nursing and this was perfect for that.

Would you recommend this specific communnity/professional experience in the future;

why or why not? (Describe)

I would definitely recommend this to any honors student in the future who is interested in

presenting their material, learning from others, and building those networking connections early.

I wish that more undergraduate students had the opportunity to participate in conferences and

learning opportunities like this as it was so informative, revolutionary, and quite frankly,

inspiring to see what the future holds for nursing. As the future of nursing, all undergraduate

students could benefit from having exposure like this.

Brochure or proof of attendance obtained? YES!

Signature on validation of clinical hours form obtained? YES!