NEW ORLEANS – The Association of Women’s Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses’ (AWHONN) Annual Convention welcomed more than 3,000 professionals to the New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center this week, from Saturday, June 24 – Wednesday, June 28. The five-day event featured more than 240 exhibitors and more than 70 educational sessions that energized and supported nurses to translate knowledge into action.
On Tuesday evening, attendees were invited to a screening of “Five Awake,” the winner of Best Louisiana Film Feature at the 2016 New Orleans Film Festival. The film chronicles the journey of five determined Louisiana women throughout their collective mission to champion state legislation that would protect victims of domestic abuse and save lives. Following the screening, the five women featured in the film participated in a live Q&A session. Donations collected for Every Woman, Every Baby during the screening were designated to develop resources enabling nurses to intervene in cases of domestic violence.
AWHONN continued their partnership with Huggies® and the nonprofit, National Diaper Bank Network, for the Wipe Out Diaper Need Drive to help ensure that the one in three families that struggle to buy diapers have access to the diapers they need. Donations of professional shoes and purses were also collected to benefit Dress for Success. Bins for both causes were available at registration.
Since 1969, AWHONN has been the foremost authority promoting the health of women and newborns and strengthening the nursing profession through the delivery of superior advocacy, research, education and other professional and clinical resources, reps said. AWHONN represents the interests of 350,000 registered nurses working in women's health, obstetric and neonatal nursing across the United States.
This was the first AWHONN Annual Convention to be held in New Orleans. The meeting is anticipated to bring more than $3.5 million in economic impact to the city.
