22 October 2002

As the Chair of the Nurse Practitioner National Marketing Campaign, I am writing to inform you that the current financial situation of the campaign is critical. The support that we have received in the last several months is, unfortunately, inadequate. We need your support. We ask that each of you who receive this e-mail donate to the campaign today.

As Nurse Practitioners it is our responsibility to keep the campaign going because no one has our best interests at heart more than we do.Without funding the campaign cannot continue.

To date we have reproduced donation envelopes and we have given them to individual NPs, state and regional NP organizations and the national NP organizations. If you or your organization need more envelopes notify us. We have also sold all our Q & A brochures and Media Tip cards in an attempt to offset expenses. We are in the midst of reprinting these items, so let us know if you wish to place an order.

To bring you up to date on current projects, we recently responded to Redbook magazine's inaccurate statements about Nurse Practitioners in their article entitled "Advise Docs Give Their Own families". We will follow up with them to see that a correction is published and that a positive article is published about NPs.

We are also going forward with our NP "Heroes and Stars" concept. The idea is to focus on NP "Heroes and Stars" in their local communities. The goal is to acknowledge these individuals, thereby providing material for the media at the local and national level. If you know any "heroes or stars" we welcome your recommendations.

The Nurse Practitioner National Marketing Campaign mission statement reads:

"To improve the visibility of Nurse Practitioners among public policy decision makers, health insurance executives, and selected consumer and community groups."

Without your support we cannot continue our mission.

Send donations today to: NPNMC, PO Box 1375, Water Mill, New York, 11976

MJ Henderson, Chair NPNMC

26 July 2002

It has been two years now since the original "think tank" group met to create a marketing campaign to promote Nurse Practitioners. It has been a year and a half since we hired a marketing firm to help us design a marketing campaign. Our goal was to reach out to HMO executives, insurance industry people, legislators and regulators, to tell them about NPs. Phase I of the campaign was to disseminate our message to the print media. We were successful in getting articles and letters to the editor published. We have not only created a vast network of reporters who know about us, but we have also developed a Speakers Bureau of NPs who are ready and willing to be interviewed. Several of us have been interviewed this past year, but as I have said before, good news does not sell newspapers so our stories have not always been published

In May we had a booth at the National Managed Care Conference in Baltimore and in July we had a booth at the National Conference of State legislators in Denver. Both of these conferences were excellent venues to showcase Nurse Practitioners. The booths attracted many visitors and generated a lot of interest in NPs and the varied roles that NPs fill.

In August we will be distributing a media tip card to individual contributors and a media guide booklet to organizational donors for distribution to their members. Both of these items will be helpful for NPs and NP students to use for interfacing with the media. The goal is to get local stories published. Your friendly neighborhood legislators, insurance agents, HMO representatives and state regulators need to read stories about NPs in their local community. We want you all to bring the message home to your local area that Nurse Practitioners are the prescription for America's Health.

The conclusion of Phase I is at hand and we look forward to Phase II. This past year we have been slowly "beating to windward" against a very strong wind and as the Phase II buoy is in sight, we are preparing to change course to a broader reach for the next phase of the campaign. To this end we have three mainstays.

1. We have joined the Nurses for a Healthier Tomorrow campaign as a voice for the advanced practice NP. We have not changed our mantra; it remains, "if there are no RNs, there will not be any NPs".

   We will continue to influence the NHT campaign to advertise the nurse practitioner role as a viable career path for RNs. We do wish to help recruit more men and women to enter the profession and to choose the NP role as an option within the profession.

2. We have also made overtures to Johnson & Johnson to include the NPNMC as the resource when they feature advanced practice NPs in their advertising campaign.

3. We are reaching out to you. Although we have many ideas in the works the Board of Directors wants to hear from NPs. We want to know what you would like to see the campaign do next. We also need to know if you are willing to help finance these plans for another year? We encourage you to write to us at the address below. And as always you can send your donations to the same address.

   M.J. Henderson, Chair NPNMC
   NURSE PRACTITIONERS: Rx for AMERICA'S HEALTH
   NPNMC
   PO Box 1375
   Water Mill, NY 11976

28 June 2002:

We are pleased to announce that we have joined the Nurses for a Healthier Tomorrow campaign. We have done so in an effort to heighten public awareness about the shortage of Registered Nurses and the impact this is having on patient care. As Nurse Practitioners our number one priority is patient care. If there are no RNs there are no Nurse Practitioners. We celebrate the diversity of nursing care. We encourage all to choose nursing as a career that is full of challenges and rich in opportunities for growth and life long learning.

Food for thought: Perhaps the crises in America's health care would not be as serious a problem if America were healthier. If NPs continue doing the great job we do educating our patients about wellness and prevention of illness, by 2020 when all the boomers are in their 70's they won't need to be in those tertiary care centers. It all starts with good prenatal care and flows from there.

The NPNMC continues to roll along. Several of our Board members have been talking to reporters, and crafting letters to the editor. The Speaker's Bureau members have been writing letters to the editors as well as to legislators.

Our next big project is our booth at the National Conference of State Legislatures Annual Meeting and Exhibition July 23-27,2002. Encourage your state legislators to visit our booth. Some of our local Speaker's Bureau people will be there with our Board member Eric Scharf. This is a wonderful opportunity to showcase the campaign and educate legislators about the good work NPs do across the country.

Later this summer we will be producing another tip card and media package so stay tuned for that.

Your volunteer board has worked hard this year and we appreciate your support. As always we need money in order to move the campaign along. If we had a million dollars we too could do TV and radio advertising. So don't forget to send your contributions to:

      The NPNMC , PO BOX 1375 , Water Mill, New York 11976

21 May 2002:

Good news does not sell newspapers! Nurse Practitioners are "good news" therefore as a result we have found the task of getting NP stories published is indeed monumental. We have been working very hard with our PR firm, Citigate, to reach various editors and writers across the country. When we pitch the stories they are always well received but editors always seem to want to have a "hot topic" or political issue to link to the story. And even when there is one it may not be quite the right fit for the needs of the particular editor. But ever onward we push with the theory that "the squeaky wheel gets the grease" eventually.

We have been working on an article about the many Nurse Managed Centers around the country and the population that is served by these outstanding clinics. Pending legislation related to health care spending and Medicare will directly affect these clinics as will the Patient's Bill of Rights and the proposed Medicare prescription plans. The squeaky wheel rolls onwards.

We are in the process of creating some new stories about various NPs around the country to pitch to local newspapers as a way to help the readers and legislators see where these NPs are and what they are doing to help the citizens of that particular geographic area. We are also working on some other projects and these will be highlighted in the next update.

We continue to monitor articles that do not present NPs in a favorable light and we respond to the editors on behalf of all NPs. The Speaker's Bureau continues to be called upon for their expertise as situations arise. This network of NPs has been invaluable as a resource for the campaign and we thank these NPs for their continued efforts.

Thanks also go to the Rochester chapter of NYSCONP, NONPF, NAPNAP, NCGNP, NPWH and ACNP for their recent contributions to the campaign. Our special thanks go to the individual donors to the campaign without whom we would not be in operation. As always your contributions are most welcome.

Will the wheel get the grease? Stay tuned for the next update.

14 April 2002:

This week we will be exhibiting at the National Managed Care Conference in Baltimore, Maryland. This is a very large meeting of people involved in health care from a variety of perspectives hence this is indeed a wonderful opportunity to market Nurse Practitioners. Our presence at this meeting also fits in with our goals of reaching HMO execs, regulators, legislators, finance and insurance people about the utilization of NPs on primary care panels, in acute care settings, and in psychiatric and long term care settings.

One of our Board members, Eric Scharf, from ACNP and staff from NPWH are helping to set up the booth and they will be there with members of the NPNMC Speakers Bureau to answer questions. Citigate Communications, our marketing firm, has developed our poster boards and has issued a press release to local media about our presence at this meeting and will be available to set up local interviews.

We are also working on a story about the many Nurse Managed Centers that are scattered around the country. We hope to generate a story about these centers of excellence staffed mostly by NP faculty and students. There are also some independent NPs working together in NP managed clinics and we hope to feature them as well. To dovetail with this project we are in the process of alerting media in the Chicago area about the American Association of Colleges of Nursing Conference that will take place April 18-20 in Chicago. We hope to generate some interviews with the NP program Deans and Directors and faculty who represent the many university Schools of Nursing that have generated the grants to run these nurse managed centers.

All of these efforts take time and money and without your contributions this campaign would not be possible. We would like to take this opportunity to thank the faculty and students at The University of Michigan and Georgetown University for their recent contributions to the campaign. We challenge other NP students and faculty to do the same.

8 March 2002:

Were you aware that during the recent Olympics in Salt Lake there were nurse practitioners staffing the Media Center Health Clinic? Penny Jenson and Kismet Rassmussen were two of the NPs working there. The physician in charge chose NPs specifically to run the clinic. Citigate, our PR firm, was able to contact the NPs and set up interviews with the press. Unfortunately we were unable to get any coverage but the exposure of the NP role was good and several media relationships were developed for future use.

Our next project is to feature some of the academic nurse managed centers where NPs are providing primary care. We expect to generate some media attention that will peak the interest of legislators, HMO execs, and insurance industry people. If Federal and/or state funding cuts are implemented these programs will be seriously affected, therefore we want to highlight these clinics and the wonderful health care that NPs are providing.

Another opportunity to meet our target audience is to have a booth at the National Managed Health Care Congress that will be coming up in April. We are now in the process of organizing this effort.

We will continue to monitor President Bush's $3 billion health care budget and seek out media opportunities to feature NPs.

If there are professional issues or media opportunities of which we should be aware please let us know. Contact Pete Selfridge at Citigate 312.944.7398.

Thank you all for your continued support.

11 February 2002:

The good news is that we reached our goal to raise $120,000 for the marketing campaign! Thank you to Susan Yox of Medscape Nurses for putting us over the top.

Due to our success in developing a Speaker's Bureau and an expanded network of media contacts, the Nurse Practitioner National Marketing Campaign Board of Directors has decided to continue the campaign for another 10 months. Because we have worked very hard this year to get articles published, our network of media contacts has grown exponentially.

In early January 2002 we arranged with MSNBC news network television to interview Lt. Col. Ricciardi, (PNP and NAPNAP Treasurer). MSNBC was focusing on medical issues facing soldiers and Ricciardi put in a plug about NPs as providers of this care. He has also had two other media interviews this month related to Anthrax and Bioterrorism. US News and World Report has also interviewed two of our Speaker's Bureau NPs for an upcoming article on graduate level medical education. In addition, several members of the Speaker's Bureau have had media interviews or letters to the editor accepted in local newspapers. In December, Dr Jeff Bauer had another letter to the editor published in the American Journal of Managed Care, once again extolling the value of Nurse Practitioners. We encourage NPs to respond to this letter by contacting the magazine directly.

In December 2001, our PR firm Citigate Communications, published a stress and coping "tip card" that was sent to HealthNewsDigest.com. It was posted on their web site where it remained through the Christmas holidays. The tip card is 3" x 8 " and is laminated so it can be carried in one's pocket. It tells the reader how to identify the signs and symptoms of stress and lists strategies on how to cope with them. We have sent this card to all the legislators in Washington DC. Speaker's Bureau members have sent them to local newspapers and employers in their areas to help teach the general public about stress. The objective is to have people seek out NPs for help with stress. To assist people in finding NPs, we have included the website, www.nurse.net, on the card. If you would like to order these tip cards please contact Citigate Communications at 312.944.7398.

We would like to encourage you all to participate in this campaign by submitting your own nursing research articles straight to magazines and newspapers so that we can market ourselves aggressively. Or, if you prefer, e-mail your article to our PR firm: pete.selfridge@citigate-chi.com.

While we continue our quest for greater recognition over the next ten months we encourage and appreciate your support of this endeavor. Please feel free to send what monetary contributions you can to the NPNMC, PO Box 1375, Water Mill, NY 11976. No gift is too small.

5 December 2001:

To date we have raised $119,397 towards our goal of $120,000. Understandably after September 11,2001 donations to the campaign have been much less but we remain optimistic there will be more forthcoming.

Given the state of affairs recently we remain open to creative marketing opportunities. To this end we have been working to get more articles published and networking with reporters across the country through our marketing firm Citigate. With all the attention on public health we are trying to make sure that the legislators and the public at large are aware that Nurse Practitioners are on the front line of health care. Indeed we are seeing patients affected by the War, the terrorists attack, and the anthrax fears every day. We are now taking care of children and adults with PTSD, depressive disorders and anxiety in addition to the usual flu season illnesses and ongoing health care issues. So the next time you see something in print or hear something on TV or radio that states "ask your doctor"…let the author know who you are what you do everyday.

For those of you who read MSNBC on line or Newsweek magazine there was an article in the Nov 7th Edition titled " Above And Beyond Just Doctoring" featuring one of our Speaker's Bureau members Mona Counts. Mona also had an article written about her clinic in rural Pennsylvania in the Pittsburgh Post -Gazette (Tuesday March 13,2001) so she is becoming famous! The Board of Directors of the NPNMC has sent responses to the editor of Newsweek magazine and Citigate has connected with the reporter about future articles.

In September we coordinated an interview on Fox TV with two NPs at the Women's Health NP conference in Orlando, Florida. The two NPs interviewed were Ivy Alexander of ACNP and Susan Wysocki of NPWH. They both did an excellent job representing all of us.

Another article will be published in December in the Journal of Managed Care featuring Jeff Bauer and his thoughts on the utilization of NPs. We also have an article pending in the Dallas Business Journal to be published in February featuring the NPs at Parkland Hospital.

We are collecting stories about NPs caring for children, veterans and the elderly with regards to PTSD in the wake of the recent terrorist activities. The Scripps Howard news service is going to publish a story on this so stay tuned!

If you have stories to tell, let us know. E-mail stories to: pete.selfridge@citigate-chi.com.

28 September 2001:

To date we have raised $118,932 towards our goal of $120,000. We have mobilized the Speakers Panel and given them media training for future interviews with the media. Many campaign volunteers have sent "letters to the editor" commenting on political issues as they occur.

The NPNMC advertisement was featured in "Roll Call the Newspaper of Capital Hill" on September 6, 2001. This publication has wide circulation on "the hill" and beyond. We also have an article pending in the Dallas Business Journal to be published in February. We are coordinating a media blitz in conjunction with the ACNP educational meeting in Atlanta, featuring NPs in Diabetes care. Currently we are beginning to seek ways to work with Sigma Theta Tau's campaign dealing with the Nursing shortage and career opportunities for APRNs.

We achieve all this through the assistance of our marketing firm, Citigate Communications, funded by you and the many NP organizations. We have recently received a generous contributions from the Massachusetts Coalition of Nurse Practitioners, and the Hawaii Area Gerontological Nurse Specialists. To all the NPs who have contributed we thank you for your caring and your generosity.

The NPNMC recognizes that many of you are working with the victims and the families and friends of the people killed in the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and the plane crash in Pennsylvania. Some of you have been directly affected by the devastation, yet work on to help others in their time of need. We salute you all and we thank you.

27 August 2001:

Good things take time, but we are now seeing the fruits of our campaign labors. On July 6th the San Francisco Chronicle published our op Ed piece by the famous medical economist, Jeff Bauer. In the article he extols the excellence of Nurse Practitioners (NPs) and the sound economics of using NPs to promote better health for America. He states, "Freeing America's nurse practitioners to deliver a larger share of Primary care will translate into better patient care and smarter fiscal policy. Imagine the economic benefits of being able to choose a qualified nurse practitioner at a competitive fee with out having to go through the middleman: the doctor." Subsequent to this article a letter by Jeff Bauer was featured in Modern Health Care titled "Nurse practitioners are part of solution". Currently our PR firm is working on more op Ed pieces and an advertisement in Roll Call to coincide with the legislators return to Washington DC after Labor Day. Many of us have been writing "letters to the editor" as we continue to monitor local news media for stories featuring NPs. Although our PR firm (MSI Strategic Communications) has been bought out by Citigate Communications, the original PR team and the office in Chicago have not changed. The Board of the NPNMC is working very closely with Citigate and we are all highly motivated to see NPs gain the recognition they so justly deserve.

Our NP Speakers Bureau is in operation, media training had begun, and stories and letters are being generated to send to our target newspapers and magazines. Editorial board meetings are being arranged and every opportunity is being researched to gain more publicity for NPs. The Patient's Bill of Rights debate has provided NPs a great opportunity to be heard. We encourage all NPs to write letters to their congressmen and women, to insure that NPs are included in the language of whichever Patient's Bill of Rights passes.

To date we have collected $112,000 towards our goal of $120,000 and we have added the state of Hawaii to our individual contributor's list. The NPs of New York City and the Ohio Association of Advanced Practice Nurses have been added to the group contributor's list and we thank them all for their generous donations. If you too would like to donate there is still time! Make checks out to NPNMC and mail them to NPNMC PO Box 1375, Water Mill, and N.Y. 11976.

1 July 2001:

With much of the foundation now laid, MSI has begun the media-building process in earnest. By mid-June, both the News Release and the op-ed article were widely distributed to key contacts in the Campaign's major target markets. Media outlets receiving the News Release have been invited to learn more about the Campaign's purpose and progress through Media Kits designed by MSI. In addition to print media, web-based MEDSCAPE was made aware of the initiative, and elected, through the good offices of nursing colleague Dr. Susan Yox, to post the News Release on several of its web pages. The response from this publicity has been very encouraging, especially because much of it has come from quarters not heard from until now. Thank you, Medscape.

MSI is beginning to field media responses to the op-ed article, working to gain maximum exposure among the Campaign's target audiences and negotiate publication rights. Through the firm's efforts, two more NP interviews have been conducted, one with an ad agency representing a major pharmaceutical wanting to improve their "pitch" to NPs, and the other with a writer for the American College of Physicians/Internal Medicine, doing a piece on collaboration. As with last month's Managed Healthcare News interview to be published in August, we will certainly let everyone know more as the ACP/IM contact develops.

In the meantime, MSI has begun its work with the NPs who have volunteered to serve as spokespersons for the Campaign and the NP profession generally. Initial focus is on ensuring that all have the necessary information and knowledge to be media-ready. Beyond that, the heart of the Speakers' Bureau will lie in the rich NP stories that MSI is compiling through surveys and interviews to generate media interest. Among the invaluable lessons being learned: local media want local stories, and reporters' deadlines are tight. Campaign speakers are being asked to tailor their comments specifically to a particular publication's readership and to respond on a moment's notice. NPs everywhere will reap the benefits as these leaders' stories and messages are disseminated.

In contributions, the Campaign has moved slightly beyond $105,000. Thirty state/regional/local groups are represented, several of them many generous times over, for which we are so grateful. Individuals (again, some many times) from every state in the union save 5 - Hawaii, Idaho, North Dakota, Oklahoma, and Vermont - have sent checks. On a number of occasions, the checks have been accompanied by wonderful accounts of self-initiated strategies to encourage others to contribute, proving again that NPs are as creative as they are accomplished. Thank you, one and all, for your votes of confidence. We are working literally every day to make your voices heard.

1 June 2001:

The NPNMC has reached and just peeked over the $100,000 mark toward the goal of $120,000. In individual contributions, which represent the heart of the Campaign, only 7 states are still missing. Please check out the Contributor Page at NP Central's website for the Campaign (www.nurse.net/mc/contrib.list.shtml) to see this impressive and growing list.

NPNMC's volunteer NP board has noted that clusters of contributions seem to follow the appearance of Campaign news in NP publications. We are deeply grateful to these corporate backers of our efforts to spread the word. In particular, the editors and writers at ADVANCE for NPs, NP COMMUNICATIONS publications, SPRINGHOUSE Co., and web-based NP SUPPORT SERVICES, led by one of our founders and major NP web guru Bob Smithing, have done more than they can possibly know to raise NP awareness of the Campaign and broaden support for it. We acknowledge them as Corporate Sponsors on the website Contributor Page, realizing that doing so doesn't begin to tell the story of their value to all NPs in keeping us up to date, well informed and peer connected.

The NPNMC is very pleased to report progress on several fronts this month. Flushed with success in persuading Salary.com to correctly represent the NP profession at its website, Campaign board members turned to New York City Planned Parenthood, which was recruiting in the New York Times for women's health NPs and CNMs. To our request that the NYCPP not describe NPs and CNMs as "mid-level" clinicians, the organization responded immediately, not only extolling NPs and CNMs as "the lifeblood of its services" but also pledging to expunge the inaccurate term from all of its communications, oral as well as written.

Progress with MSI, our dedicated media relations firm, has been equally positive. MSI principals participated this month in a series of "Day in the Life..." experiences with NPs from a variety of practice specialties, getting an in-the-trenches feel for how the firm can best use its skills to help us advance the NP profession. That eye-opener, added to work already in progress, has led to creation of a NEWS RELEASE and OVERVIEW that MSI is distributing to major news media throughout the country. Included with the distribution is an invitation to the editors and targeted writers at these publications to request the full MEDIA KIT that MSI has put together to promote NP practice and to follow with placement of articles, editorials and opinion columns on NP-delivered health care.

Additionally, MSI has successfully negotiated NP interviews with a major managed care journal which will be published in August. We'll have more on that in next month's update.

Last for now, MSI has secured the generous contribution of an op-ed column on NPs by a well-known health economist and futurist who is highly regarded across the spectrum of the health professions. MSI currently is working to place this piece for publication in targeted market areas.

Next up: putting some of the outstanding NP stories received from around the country into a coherent whole for articles that can be placed both in the general media and in market-specific publications...distribution to Speakers Bureau members of a media HOW-TO KIT...and design of a media coaching session for them.

1 May 2001:

The NPNMC is extremely pleased to announce that the National Association of Nurse Practitioners in Women's Health (NPWH) has accepted a seat on the Board of Directors as an organizational member. This influential group will be represented on the board by its president, Susan Wysocki, NP. Susan already has aided the Campaign admirably by spearheading a joint organizational letter to salary.com in support of the Campaign's drive to change the website's NP description, as detailed in our latest Press Release. Welcome to the NPWH and its members.

A tremendous amount of nitty-gritty, behind-the-scenes work has been going on as we orient our marketing firm, MSI, to the Campaign objectives and begin the tasks designed to meet them. To support the tangible products that shortly will be in evidence, NPs and NP-Believers from all but 9 states have contributed to the Campaign. If you don't see your state listed on the Contributors' Page under "Individuals" - which in almost every instance represents multiple donors and several single donors multiple times - you are urged to add it by your donation and to spread the word among colleagues, family and friends of NPs.

In addition to individual contributions from 41 states, the NPNMC now counts 25 state or regional groups contributing as well as 7 national organizations, 5 conferences and 2 corporations. We are humbled by this evidence of trust and by our consequent responsibility to represent you well. The success of the salary.com negotiations illustrates the strength of NPs in united action. With continued support, we can do much more.

4 Apr 2001:

The Campaign has received more than $90,000 toward its first-year goal of $120,000. Individual NPs and groups large and small are urged to put the Campaign "over the top" by 1 June so that initial objectives can be fully met.

In the meantime, work on strategies with MSI media relations firm has gotten underway. NPs all over the country have volunteered their services to the Speakers Bureau, which will be a tremendous advantage in getting the NP message out quickly and uniformly. Thanks to everyone who has offered time and availability for this crucial aspect of the Campaign. See last month's update if you haven't volunteered yet and would be willing to do so.

In addition to the NP database, MSI is also putting together media and legislative databases. If you know of reporters or elected officials representing you at the state or federal level who are particularly interested in health care issues, please pass that knowledge along. The more NP-receptive "ears" to hear what NPs have to say, the greater the impact the Campaign will have. Work on materials for the Media Kit is taking shape now, so we want to have these databases complete as soon as possible.

Everyone is needed. Please offer your dollars to the NP National Marketing Campaign at POBox 1375, Water Mill, NY 11976. Offer your expertise and ideas through NP Central, ACNP, NAPNAP, NONPF, NCGNP or the NPNMC Editors' Listserv. Envelopes for collecting contributions at meetings and conferences are available through the ACNP (see last month's update) and contact with any of the volunteer board members is always welcome.

We are on the move!

2 Mar 2001:

The NP National Marketing Campaign BOD is pleased to announce the hiring of MSI Strategic Communications of Chicago, Ilinois, as the PR firm that will coordinate and carry out the Campaign's objectives on behalf of all NPs. MSI has extensive national experience in media relations and superior recommendations from the national CRNAs (AANA) and the Ilinois NP Association, both groups having employed MSI for their own successful campaigns.

MSI has proved to be well versed in the unique qualities, contributions and challenges of NP practice. It is ready and eager to begin work on increasing the visibility and improving the representation of the NP profession throughout the United States. In connection to the measurable outcomes that the NPNMC BOD has specified in its contract with MSI, there is a timeline to allow NPs to see evidence of the Campaign's progress.

NPs with media experience and access availability are urged to volunteer for the Speakers Bureau. Contact Nancy Sharp at nursesharp@aol.com. Media training will be a part of the PR firm's responsibilities. NP success stories or human interest stories with an NP angle are needed and may also be coordinated through Ms Sharp to give to the PR firm.

Currently we have $82,500 with all bills paid to date and are actively calling on every NP, RN, nursing organization and student to join this important effort. Campaign solicitation envelopes to use at meetings and conferences have been printed. They are available to all requesting groups by contacting BOD member Eric Scharf at eric@acnp.nurse.org.

9 Feb 2001:

The Nurse Practitioner National Marketing Campaign (NPNMC) — comprising supporters from more than 35 states, 20 state and specialty advanced practice organizations, and 4 major national organizations representing every NP specialty — is pleased to recognize the efforts of another national organization to support the goals of the NPNMC. The American Academy of Nurse Practitioners (AANP) has announced plans for TV and internet projects designed to "complement and augment those of the National Marketing Campaign," as reported by the group's Executive Director.

The AANP's formal announcement concludes by stating that "this public relations and marketing effort will complement and add to proposed activities of the NP National Marketing Campaign."

The American College of Nurse Practitioners, the National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners, the National Conference of Gerontological Nurse Practitioners and the National Organization of Nurse Practitioner Faculties, together with all of the Campaign's generous contributors, welcome the support of the AANP in furthering the mission of the NPNMC "to increase the visibility and improve the representation of nurse practitioners" before select groups and the public at large. This expanded alliance will no doubt play a major role in the effectiveness of our united efforts to broaden access and enhance primary health care for all.

31 Jan 2001:

Contributions from national, state, local and specialty organizations, together with individual donations, now total close to $70,000. The volunteer Board of Directors has been expanded to include the welcome expertise and perspective of the National Conference of Gerontological Nurse Practitioners (NCGNP). This active organization joins the American College of Nurse Practitioners (ACNP), the National Organization of Nurse Practitioner Faculties (NONPF), the National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners (NAPNAP) and two at-large NPs to help carry out the Campaign's PR objectives.

The Campaign is now in the process of contracting with a major media relations firm to conduct a year-long, high-profile marketing effort targeted at legislators, regulators and insurance and HMO executives. With a reported 35 states looking at advanced nursing practice issues in the new legislative sessions, the Campaign could not be more timely.

It's up to every individual NP and every NP group large and small to ensure that our united voice is heard in these and other critical venues. Checks can be made out to "National NP Marketing Campaign" and sent to same at PO Box 1375, Water Mill, NY 11976.

30 Dec 2000:

Approximately $55,000 has come into the Campaign from all over the country. More than $11,000 in pledged contributions is expected early in 2001, which will put the Campaign over the halfway mark in meeting its goal of $120,000. Responses to the Campaign's RFP by nationally recognized public relations firms have been received, and a decision on these will be made by the end of January.

The National Conference of Gerontological Nurse Practitioners has joined as an organizational board member of the NPNMC.

30 Nov 2000:

Highlights on major contributors (money in hand):

NAPNAP, the leader among national organizations, with $10,000 and more than $400 from sales of NP bumper stickers to members; the NY NP Coalition (NYSCONP), whose members are still adding to the impressive sum of close to $8,000; the equally impressive Louisiana Assn. of Nurse Practitioners (LANP), which has sent $4,000 and whose members have separately contributed $1,700; and the Michigan Nurses Assn. (MNA) and the NP Assn. of Maryland (NPAM), each of which has contributed $4,000. In addition, Michigan's NAPNAP Chapter contributed $1,000.

The VA Council of NPs sent $2,000, as did the SC APRN Council and the SC Nurses Assn. in a combined effort, and even the tiny Savannah-area NP Council of Coastal Georgia sent over $1,000.

All told, to date, there have been at least 15 organizational contributors and more than 250 individual contributors.

Other state and national groups have pledged from $1,000 to $4,000; the ACNP has committed $10,000 from its Y2001 funds after the first of the year.

Carolyn Buppert, JD, NP, has spearheaded successful efforts to protect the fund legally and direct its use in marketing NP practice nationwide. The necessary articles of association have been filed with the IRS and the bylaws have been duly approved. A Board of Directors, consisting of representatives of ACNP, NAPNAP, NONPF, along with 2 NP members-at-large, meets regularly by teleconference. These steps were taken solely to protect and properly direct the funds contributed, not to create another organization.