What We Do
- Advancement of Care Standards: We strive to elevate the standards of care in child neurology nursing by setting best practices and promoting continuous improvement.
- Educational Opportunities: ACNN is devoted to offering comprehensive educational programs that enrich the knowledge and skills of our members, ensuring they remain at the forefront of child neurology healthcare.
- Research and Innovation: We support and encourage innovative research initiatives that contribute to the body of knowledge in child neurology nursing.
- Multidisciplinary Collaboration: Our commitment extends to fostering collaboration among professionals at regional and international levels, uniting diverse disciplines to enhance patient care outcomes.
ACNN Committees
Awards Committee
- Review applications for ACNN awards
- Consider additional ways of acknowledging member excellence
Communications Committee
- Help improve between-conference member interaction through:
- Quarterly newsletter
- Publication updates from our members
- Social media posts
- Website content
Conference Planning Committee
- Assist with the planning of the annual ACNN conference during bi-weekly meetings (every other week during planning season)
- Create conference agenda and planning timelines
- Identify and coordinate speakers
- Assist with event outreach efforts
Education Committee
- Help identify speakers and topics for webinars
- Coordinate between-conference learning events
Membership Committee
- Re-examine membership categories
- Consider group memberships
- Set a more equitable fee structure
Quality, Research, and Scholarship Committee
- Promote scholarship within the organization by curating a collection of members scholarly work
- Review applications for and manage the Elizabeth F. Hobdell Research Grant program
Special Interest Groups (SIGs)
- Collaborate with colleagues who share your professional interests in epilepsy, headache, movement, neuromuscular, development, acute care, critical care, and ambulatory nursing.
- SIGs may choose to network with each other to share clinical perils and pearls, collaborate on research or produce scholarly work such as practice guidelines, position statements, book chapters or journal articles.
Transition to Practice (TTP) Task Force for NPs/PAs
- Collaborate with advanced practice colleagues to create a road map and develop educational content for onboarding new APPs
Transition to Practice (TTP) Task Force for RNs and Clinical Assistants
- Collaborate with colleagues to develop an orientation guide for ambulatory or acute care nurses and clinical assistants
Board of Directors
Every member of our board of directors is a thought leader who has made significant contributions to our society.
Each one brings a unique set of skills and expertise to our organization.
Current Board Members
Rasha Srouji
President
Rasha Srouji DNP, CPNP, CNRN, is a Nurse Practitioner in the Department of Neurology at Boston Children's Hospital, where she has been caring for patients and families for over 12 years. She leads the Neurology Urgent Access Clinic, helping ensure timely care for children with acute neurologic concerns, and is deeply involved in onboarding and education for advanced practice providers.
Rasha has been an active member of ACNN for more than 10 years. During that time, she has contributed to several committees and is passionate about supporting education, collaboration, and professional growth within the pediatric neurology nursing community.
She is dedicated to advancing care for children with neurologic conditions and values the strong connections and shared learning that ACNN brings to its members.
Susanna Fenstermacher
Treasurer
Susanna Fenstermacher, MSN, RN, CPNP-PC, is a pediatric nurse practitioner in the Division of Pediatric Neurology at Seattle Children’s Hospital. She specializes in the care of children and young adults with epilepsy, including dietary therapy and neuromodulation. She joined ACNN in 2022 and has also participated in the conference planning committee.
Deanna Duggan
Secretary
Deanna has 18 years’ experience as a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner at Texas Children’s Hospital. She is a Headache Specialist and active member in the American Headache Society. Deanna previously served as President of the Houston Area Chapter of NAPNAP and participates in the ACNN Transition to Practice Committee.
Toni Kavanagh
Director At-Large
Toni Kavanagh RN, BSN, MSHA, MBA, CNRN is currently the program coordinator for pediatric neurology at Mount Sinai Kravis Children's Hospital in New York. She has ten years of experience in pediatric neurology. She has been the recipient of the Claire Chee award for Excellence from ACNN and recipient of the Emma Rose award from The Epilepsy Foundation of Metropolitan New York.
Samantha Weaver
Director At-Large
Samantha is a PNP-AC, RN, MSN, CNRN in Birmingham, AL. She has served the last two years on the Alabama chapter National Assoc of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners, performing dual roles in communication and membership chair.
Susan Caffery
Director At-Large
Susan graduated with BSN from California State University Sacramento. Graduated from University of Nebraska Medical center in 2000 with my FNP. She has worked in primary care, urgent care, military and flight medicine until starting in pediatric neurology in 2010. She has been co- investigator on several medication studies in pediatric neurology. She is currently the co-lead APC for Sutter Medical Group in Sacramento and nurse practitioner in pediatric neurology.
Mona Jacobson
Past President
Mona is a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner with 15 years experience in pediatric neurology and previous 23 years in primary care pediatrics. She is a general neurology provider at Children's Hospital Colorado. Mona has expertise in perinatal stroke, new onset seizure and neurofibromatosis. Along with her clinical role she serves as the advanced practice lead for education.
Association Staff
ACNN is managed in partnership by Capture Management Solutions
Michele
Denkinger
Executive Director
Emily
Koss
Account Manager
Heidi
Heinz
Event Coordinator
Ken
Lingen
Finance Manager
