More than 125 nurses and stakeholders from around Oregon came together on October 23rd at the Oregon Center for Nursing’s (OCN) annual fundraiser breakfast at the Oregon Zoo. 

The theme of this year’s event was “Innovating for Oregon.” “When people think of innovations in healthcare they might think about a huge laboratory making hundreds of prototypes and conducting clinical trials,” said OCN Executive Director Jana R. Bitton. “But nurses innovate on behalf of their patients every day.”

In addition to learning about OCN’s current and future work, breakfast attendees heard from Anna Young, CEO and co-founder of MakerNurse, an organization dedicated to providing tools and resources to enhance resourcefulness and innovation among nurses.

More than $49,000 was raised through individual gifts and corporate donations. Legacy Health Systems, Providence Health & Services, and the University of Portland all provided premier sponsorship of “Innovating for Oregon” event.  Other sponsors included Mercy Medical Center, Adventist Health, Kaiser Permanente, Marquis Companies, Oregon Association of Hospitals and Health Systems, and Oregon Health and Sciences University.

OCN is a nonprofit organization created by nursing leaders in 2002. OCN facilitates research and collaboration for Oregon’s nursing workforce to support informed, well-prepared, diverse and exceptional nursing professionals. Recognized by the Oregon state legislature as a state advisory for nursing workforce issues, OCN fulfills its mission through nurse workforce research, building partnerships, and promoting nursing and healthcare.  For more information about OCN, please visit www.oregoncenterfornursing.org.