Happy September and  the beginning of the new fall season!
As you may remember, NPWH was founded in 1980 as a national organization for nurse practitioners (NPs) who were focused on family planning and reproductive health. As the years have progressed, so have we. NPWH now represents all women’s health NPs (WHNPs), as well as family NPs and adult NPs who are providing healthcare to women. In addition, NPWH represents individuals in academia who are educating these women’s health-focused NPs. We have defined ourselves as the premier organization that works tirelessly to develop and produce the absolute best in educational opportunities, as well as new programs, initiatives, and resources that provide expert, up-to-date content in all areas of women’s health.
We also recognize the ongoing need for you to feel connected to NPWH. We want you to know that we are advocating for NPs every day, and we understand and appreciate the important role you play in caring for women. We also want you to know that we are at those tables where new guidelines are being drafted, new policies are being formed, and letters to Congress and other stakeholders are being written and signed on your behalf.

For these reasons, we are rethinking how our original bylaws were created and how we were established as a national organization only. We are divided into five regions: North Atlantic, Southeast, Great Lakes, South Central, and Western. Up to this point, the only way we have utilized those regions is by recruiting prospective board members and determining representatives from each of the five regions. We are exploring the idea of formalizing these regions so that we can be more in touch with what is going on in your states—by listening to your concerns and by ascertaining how we can be even more effective in representing you.
We are now in the process of planning four regional, 1-day, continuing education (CE) programs for the last quarter of 2017 and the first quarter of 2018. The national conference that will take place in Seattle, Washington, on October 11-14, 2017, will also serve as the fifth regional program (i.e., for the Western region). We strongly encourage you to attend the national conference and the program in your particular region. With your participation, we can learn more about emerging issues affecting you in your area, as well as any ongoing concerns you may have. We will also offer a CE program during all of the regional meetings.
As we at NPWH continue to evolve as an organization, let us reflect on all that is good; we have much to be thankful for. We also want to explore how we can continue to improve for you, our members, and for the other readers of Women’s Healthcare: A Clinical Journal for NPs who, we hope, will join the only national organization that represents and serves WHNPs and women’s health-focused NPs.

– Gay Johnson
Chief Executive Officer, NPWH