ALLIANCE, Ohio – The Inter-Science Research Club at the University of Mount Union will host a conference on Friday, April 6 tailored to nurses seeking continuing education. 

The conference, titled “Internal Conflict: Our Current Understanding of Autoimmune Disease,” will feature discussions from five professionals with backgrounds in science, emergency medicine, nutrition and nursing law.

Keith Miller, Ph.D., assistant professor of chemistry and biochemistry at Mount Union, will discuss molecular mechanisms of the immune system. Joe Rettig, M.D., an emergency physician out of Salem, Ohio, will discuss emergency management of autoimmune disease. 

Michael Henderson, Ph.D., will focus on T cell function in a mouse model of multiple sclerosis, and Lonnie Lowery, Ph.D., R.D., L.D., associate professor of exercise science at Mount Union, will take on nutritional deficiencies in autoimmune disease.

The conference will conclude with a session on the requirements of the Nurse Practice Act, O.A.C. 4723 with regard to documentation by Cathy Rainieri, director of risk management at Aultman Hospital.  

Attendees to the conference will be able to: Understand the basic pathophysiology of the development of autoimmune disorders, recognize nutritional measures and recommendations to support the immune function of individuals, identify general management measures and recommendations to manage health of patients with autoimmune disorders, recognize actions to minimize risk factors for patients with autoimmune disorders, identify patient self-management and education points to reduce risks and complications of autoimmune disorders recurrence, and understand the requirements of the Nurse Practice Act, O.A.C. 4723 with regard to documentation.

The event will run from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. featuring five hour-long presentations and lunch at the Kresge Dining Commons of Mount Union, which is included in the $35 to attend the conference. Reservations can be submitted to Andrea Williams at (330) 823-3672 or williaal@mountunion.edu.

Payment will be collected onsite during registration from 8 - 9 a.m. in Cope Music Hall (Presser Recital Hall).  For more information or questions, contact Miller at millerkr@mountunion.edu.   

To RSVP, visit http://www.mountunion.edu/umu-nursing-conference. 

This activity has been approved by the Ohio Nurses Association (OBN--001-91) to award five contact hours. The Ohio Nurses Association is accredited as an approver of continuing nursing education by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation.