Dear APSNA members, 

We are pleased to share a summary of the 34th Annual Scientific Conference, held on April 2-4, 2025, in Washington, DC, at the Washington Grand Hyatt. This year’s event was a tremendous success, with diverse, valuable presenters sharing expert knowledge and professional insights applicable to the pediatric surgical care of infants, children, and adolescents across various disciplines. Notably, speakers contributed to up-to-date clinical guidelines and pathways from pharmacological advancements to bedside care while fostering equity and inclusion within our healthcare landscape. These contributions provided our conference attendees with practical tools and fresh perspectives that could apply to their practices.  

A total of 74 registrants attended the conference.  The conference offered a comprehensive agenda, which included a Colorectal Pre-Conference on April 2, featuring expert presenters who shared their clinical expertise in Hirschsprung’s disease, Anorectal Malformation, and Bowel Management. Following the pre-conference was a Welcome Reception, which provided an opportunity for attendees and exhibitors to network and build connections within the Pediatric Surgery field. The conference, held on April 3-4, featured a comprehensive agenda that included five scientific posters and 31 general session presentations, with a total of 39 distinguished speakers.  Attendees participating in the conference were eligible for 19.25 contact hours and 19.25 CME hours, which include 2.5 pharmacy contact hours, and 2.75 Trauma Contact hours.   

Poster winners are as follows: 

Poster Winners: 

1st place- Reygan Barker, RN, CPN, Nationwide Children’s, Columbus, OH: Creating a “Skills Room” to Improve New Nurse Confidence 

2nd place- Alena Fuhrman, Pediatric Surgery Nurse Practitioner, Inova Children’s Hospital, Fairfax, VA: Reducing Emergency Department Visits After Uncomplicated Appendicitis Utilizing Nurse Practitioner Post-Operative Phone Calls 

3rd place- Joan Rand, BSN, RN, CPN, PMGT-BC - Perioperative Services, Children’s Hospital Colorado, Aurora CO: We Are All in this Together: The Implementation of a Multi-Modal Bundle for Pediatric Pain Management During Needle Related Procedures 

There were multiple standout speakers which included topics on Trauma Informed Care by Dr. Lee Cordell, an excellent presentation on meeting people where they are and how lived experiences could affect our patient care by Dr. Bowen, Pilonidal Care using laser therapy vs surgical approaches by Dr. Minneci, and an outstanding presentation on Surgical NICU emergencies with an in-depth discussion on esophageal atresia by Dr. Middlesworth’s. The sessions all contributed to a robust and engaging conference.  There was great feedback regarding the inclusion of subspecialty presenters, including Michael Lamb, who delivered an engaging and impactful presentation on Neurosurgery and NP role development. Additionally, Dr. Hagerty discussed sacral neuromodulation in pediatric urology patients. Trauma SIG Chair Kate Ballard, Chest Wall SIG Chair Kelly Bartkus, and Colorectal SIG Chair Sharon Kluger presented at the conference, representing their respective Special Interest Groups (SIGs). SIG Meetings took place on April 3 during lunch, which proved to have good attendance and provided a networking opportunity.  

The top three sessions identified relative to conference attendees' response to “by attending this session, I was able to meet the stated learning objectives and increase my knowledge related to this topic” include: 

Keep Calm and WOC – Wound & Ostomy Care
Danielle Buker, BSN, RN, CWOCN 

Pilonidal Disease – We Need to Do Better
Peter C. Minneci, MD, FACS 

Opiod Stewardship in Pediatric Orthopedics: Decreasing Opiod Prescriptions at Discharge Through Quality Improvement Methodology 
Jenny Weiner, DNP, APRN, CPNP-AC/PC, EBP-C 

This year’s fundraising event included a fun activity that allowed participants to participate in a raffle for the top prize: a free 2026 Conference Registration. The fun activity included a card for each participant to complete and a water bottle with the APSNA, Inc. logo.   

There were 15 exhibitors and sponsors who supported APSNA at the conference this year. The Sponsors included: Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Avanos Medical, Inc. Coloplast, Essity, Ferroni Medical Corp, Function Forward LLC-FeedUp Solution, GBR Medical, Gebauer Company, Gus Gear, Inc., Medically USA, NurseAmerica Health, Post University, Pull-thru Network, Inc., Specialty Surgical Products, and Eckart Klobe Vacuum Bell.  Donations include Dansko shoes and compression socks from Clove.   

This year marked the first time we formally recognized our devoted APSNA leadership and members who have passed away. Their legacy and leadership laid the foundation for the organization we are proud to be a part of today.  

APSNA would like to recognize the award recipients for 2025 for their outstanding contributions and congratulate Jennifer Berkbigler on receiving the prestigious Founders Award and Dr. William Middlesworth on receiving the Champion Award.  

Feedback from conference evaluations reflected that the 34th Annual Scientific Conference met the attendees' educational needs. Attendees requested additional topics, including preventing nurse burnout, trauma presentations, general surgery and outpatient clinic topics, radiology tips, oncology, nutrition, a hands-on skills lab, roundtable discussions and breakout sessions, more networking opportunities, and a wider variety of exhibitors. The inclusion of Urology as a subspecialty was also well-received, and attendees would like to see it continue in the future. 

Thank you to everyone for your enthusiastic engagement and participation, especially in the valuable networking opportunities that were available throughout the conference. Please look out for details of the 35th Annual Scientific Conference being held in 2026.

Best regards,

Lori Lynch DNP, APRN, PNP-BC, CBN 
Past President 2025-2026

Jennifer Berkbigler, RN MSN, CPNP-AC
DOP 2024-2026

Sharon Udy-Janczuk, EdD, MSN, RN, CNOR, NE-BC
Director of Education 2023-2025