The Miami Chapter of the National Association of Hispanic Nurses (NAHN) hosted its First Scholarship Fundraising and Awards Gala on Friday, October 13, 2023, at the Pullman Miami Hotel. The theme for the Gala was Hispanic Nursing Leadership in Action: From Classroom to Clinical to reflect the member’s contributions to the community. Last year, the chapter won the “Viajero Award” at the NAHN National Conference, as the chapter with the largest membership increase, and the chapter is continuing to flourish. NAHN Miami’s first Gala was a great success, with over 180 community partners, clinical leaders, and nurses in attendance. Armando Riera, MSN, ARNP-BC, NAHN Miami Chapter’s President, had a vision for the chapter’s first Gala: to celebrate the work of the chapter, to raise funds for struggling nursing students, and to honor its outstanding members. “Nurses work so hard, always giving to others. We needed a night to celebrate our accomplishments, and our Hispanic culture”, said Riera.
The Award Ceremony honored several outstanding members for their contributions: The NAHN Miami Executive Nurse Leader Award, Danay Arritola Rodriguez, DNP, MBA, APRN, The NAHN Miami Clinical Nurse Leader Award, Juan M. Gonzalez, DNP, APRN-BC, FAAN, The NAHN Miami Nurse Educator Award, Jorge A Valdés, DNP, CRNA, APRN, FAANA, The NAHN Miami Community Champion Award, Johis Ortega, PhD, APRN-BC, FAAN, FAANP, The NAHN Miami Nurse of the Year Award, Maria Martin, BSN, RN, The NAHN Miami Student Nurse of the Year Award Ysatis P. Rodriguez, and the President’s Award, Carmen Presti, DNP, APRN-BC.
Keynote speaker Isis Zambrana, Vice President of Quality and Patient Safety and Chief Quality Officer for the Jackson Health System, one of the largest public health systems in the country, spoke about the importance of health promotion and disease prevention in the Hispanic community, and culturally compassionate care to reduce health disparities.
To help decrease health disparities,the chapter has participated in numerous health fairs across Miami-Dade County and educated the Hispanic community on the risks of cardiovascular disease through blood pressure screenings and nutritional counseling. To nurture Hispanic nurse’s education and promote nurse leaders, they have provided educational offerings for members and scholarships for pre-licensure student nurses who are contending with rising tuition rates and licensure fees.
But though NAHN Miami Chapter works hard, they also know how to play! The evening included a lively band and dancing, and the evening was capped with an interactive latin salsa dance show. Celebrating NAHN’s mission to advance the health in Hispanic communities and to lead, promote and advocate for the educational, professional, and leadership opportunities for Hispanic nurses was done with pride. The NAHN Miami Chapter’s first Gala is a testimony to the hard work and drive toward meeting these goals.
