Practice, Policy & Workforce at APNA 40th Annual Conference

Lecture · Advanced Practice

GLP-1 Receptor Agonist in Psychiatric Care: Navigating Scope and Liability

Natasha Carew

Looks at the growing use of GLP-1 agonists in psychiatric settings and the scope-of-practice, regulatory, and liability questions they raise.

GLP-1 & Metabolic Psychiatry

Workshop · Workplace Violence

From Risk to Resilience: Findings and Recommendations From the APNA Restoring Workplace Safety Task Force

Kristen Kichefski · Linda Beeber

Panel from APNA's workplace safety task force presenting evidence-based recommendations for addressing violence against psychiatric nurses.

Emergency & Acute Psychiatry

Workshop · Nursing Professional Development

Help! I've Been Named in a Lawsuit…Tales From a Nurse Expert Witness to Safeguard Your Practice From Both the Plaintiff & Defense Perspectives – Part 1

Mary Moller

A veteran nurse expert witness dissects real malpractice cases against PMH nurses, with charting-error analysis and risk-management takeaways.

Forensic & Correctional

Workshop · Safety

Rebuilding Safety Culture: Transforming Injury Reduction and BPPE Practices on a Neurobehavioral Unit

Austin Corsmeier

Multi-year safety overhaul of a pediatric neurobehavioral unit that cut staff injuries and restraint use.

Child & Adolescent · Emergency & Acute Psychiatry

Workshop · Private Practice

Medical Billing and Coding for the Nurse Practitioner Entrepreneurs

Stacey Molle

Practical billing and coding course for APRNs running or launching their own practices.

Workshop · Psychopharmacology

Prescribing with Protection: Legal Awareness and Documentation Tips for PMHAPRNs in Psychopharmacology

Jared Vega

Reviews real malpractice and licensing-board cases to highlight legal pitfalls and documentation best practices in prescribing. Pharmacology-eligible.

Forensic & Correctional

Workshop · Artificial Intelligence

Human Judgment in the Age of Artificial Intelligence: Advanced Practice Nurses Shaping the Future of Mental Health Care

Queen Henry-Okafor · Matt E. Schroer · Regina G. Russell

Explores the APRN role in steering ethical AI use in mental health while protecting therapeutic relationships.

Digital Psychiatry & AI

Plenary

President's Address: Building on Strengths: A Resiliency Journey to Improve Wellness & Advance Care

Allyson Matney Neal

APNA President frames resilience as a science-grounded practice, arguing for a shift from trauma-informed toward resilience-informed care.

PTSD & Trauma

Workshop · Nursing Professional Development

Help! I've Been Named in a Lawsuit… Tales from a Nurse Expert Witness to Safeguard Your Practice from Both the Plaintiff and Defense Perspectives

Mary Moller

Part two of the malpractice workshop reviewing lawsuit trends against PMH RNs and APRNs with practical risk-management strategies.

Keynote

Keynote Presentation: From Burnout to Breakthrough: A New Definition of Resilience for Psychiatric-Mental Health Nurses

Adam Markel

Resilience author Adam Markel reframes burnout recovery for psychiatric nurses around recovery, awareness, and connection.

Lecture · Violence Prevention

Mitigating Workplace Violence: A Relationship-Focused Approach Is an Essential Practice Change

Kathleen Delaney

Presents relational de-escalation models for inpatient settings as a needed practice change in violence prevention.

Emergency & Acute Psychiatry

Lecture · Depression & Suicidality

Screening Plus MINDBODYSTRONG Yields Improvements in Nurse Burnout and Mental Health Outcomes: Findings From a RCT

Bernadette Melnyk

Randomized controlled trial of 501 nurses showing the MINDBODYSTRONG program reduced burnout, mental distress, and suicide risk.

Suicide & Self-Harm

Lecture · Depression & Suicidality

Interrupting Nurse Suicide Risk: A Lethal Pathway Framework with Implementable System Strategies

Christopher Wojnar

Theory-informed framework identifying high-risk transitions in nurse suicide risk, paired with measurable system-level interventions.

Suicide & Self-Harm

Lecture · Workplace Violence

Compassionate Leadership in Psychiatric-Mental Health Nursing: Improving Wellness, Advancing Care, and Supporting Thriving

Chizimuzo Okoli

Case-based look at compassionate leadership as a core element of PMH nursing practice and staff wellbeing.