The International Home Care Nurses Organization (IHCNO) goes global.
The International Home Care Nurses Organization (IHCNO) began in November 2009, when home healthcare nurses answered a series of Home Healthcare Nurse editorials written by Tina Marrelli [The Interdisciplinary Team, A Free Resource, and a Survey to Complete about the International Home Healthcare Nurses Organization (IHCNO), 27(3), 138–139; Update about the International Home Healthcare Nurses Organization—A Functional Home Healthcare Nurse-Focused “Meeting Place,” 27(9), 513; National Home Care and Hospice Month, Holiday Readings, and an IHCNO Update, 28(10), 581–582]. Since then, the IHCNO has been led by a small group of committed volunteers, who welcome input and assistance with the growth of the organization. This commentary will serve as a short update of some of the progress the IHCNO has recently achieved worldwide. The IHCNO achieved several milestones this past spring, increasing the organization’s international exposure and deepening its Internet resources. First, two IHCNO representatives, Tina Marrelli and the author, presented a poster entitled “Excellence in the Patient’s Home through Global Connections: An International Organization for Home Care Nurses (IHCNO)” at the International Council of Nurses (ICN) biennial meeting held in Valleta, Malta, May 2–8, 2011. The ICN attracts nurses from all over the world and nurses from over 65 countries participated at the Malta ICN meeting. Through this meeting, nurses from diverse countries, interested in promoting excellence in home healthcare nursing, joined IHCNO’s network. The poster was also presented in Perth, Australia, at the International Conference on Innovations in Nursing May 2011. This conference attracted many nurses from “down under.” At this meeting as well, nurses wanting to be part of an international community of nurses, who spur one another on to innovation and excellence in providing the highest-quality care for patients in their homes, were excited to join the IHCNO community. Finally, the IHCNO revised and deepened its Web site at http://www.ihcno.org, with tabs to more information and resources for home healthcare nurses. Web site tabs now open several pages, including web pages describing IHCNO’s