2025 Nursing Conference Grant Winning Essays

The questions for this year’s application cycle were as follows: 

1. Please describe how you will share what you learn at this conference with colleagues. 

2. How will you incorporate what you learn from this educational offering into your practice? 

3. How will this conference advance your long-term career goals (beyond the attainment of continuing education hour requirements)? 

 

Essays were lightly edited for grammar, flow, and readability.  

 

Ashley Rodriguez

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Essay 1:  To ensure the information I gain at the AACN Critical Care Conference is shared and implemented effectively, I will utilize several strategies including a unit-based in-service, implement a poster highlighting key information from the conference that will circulate in the critical care units during all shifts, champion a pilot project or trial with the help of leadership and educator for an intervention or device that I acquired knowledge on at the conference, integration of conference insights into how I precept new nurses or mentor colleagues, especially related to evidence-based practices and critical thinking strategies and I will present conference highlights at our next Shared Governance while advocating for evidence-based changes that align with unit goals or quality improvement initiatives.

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Essay 2: Attending the AACN Critical Care Conference will allow me an opportunity to gain insight into the latest evidence-based practices, emerging technologies, and innovative strategies for patient care in critical care settings. This learning will foster the ability to incorporate key learnings into my practice by applying updated clinical guidelines and protocols learned at the conference (such as new sepsis management strategies and ventilator weaning protocols, ICU delirium) to improve care delivery and promote positive patient outcomes, foster effective communication and collaboration among the interdisciplinary team to ensure holistic, patient-centered care. Sessions on leadership development and resilience will inspire me to take a more active role in shared governance, mentoring newer nurses, and promoting a culture of continuous improvement within my unit. By attending the Exposition at this conference, I will gain knowledge in nursing technology and innovation. Gaining knowledge around new tools and apps for bedside monitoring and communication presented during the exposition, will allow me the opportunity to potentially pilot the utilization of them in my facility with the support of my unit educator. By applying these strategies, I aim to elevate the standard of care we provide and contribute to a more knowledgeable, compassionate, and adaptive critical care team.

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Essay 3: The AACN Critical Care Conference offers a multitude of opportunities that support my professional goals. Included are sessions and workshops that provide up-to-date evidence-based practices and clinical guidelines that enhance my clinical competence and improve patient care outcomes, hands-on workshops and demonstrations that allow me to practice new techniques and apply innovative approaches, sessions focused on nursing leadership and professional development that will equip me with strategies to contribute to unit improvements and foster a culture of excellence, and the conference environment enables me to build relationships with peers and mentors.

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