I heard about ASPAN’s Perianesthesia Development Institute (PDI) for the very first time was last year when two of my colleagues, who were officers, went to Oklahoma as representatives of our region (TAPAN Hill Country and South Texas). When asked, they stated that they had a great time and had a good learning experience as leaders in the organization.
True enough, attending the 2025 PDI was a wonderful learning experience. It was a good venue meeting our ASPAN leaders, getting to talk to them personally and as they say, “putting a face to the name”.
One of the topics that was presented was “The Power of One, The Impact of Many:
Perianesthesia Nurses as Change Agents” which identifies that a simple “change” from a perianesthesia nurse can eventually lead to a lasting legacy in nursing practice. The combined efforts of time, treasure and talent to change something can result to leadership paving the way to responsible stewardship. It is also understanding the “How’s” and the “Why’s" of leadership. It also means that whatever is contributed even how little it may be, can result to a profound impact to the nursing community. The example provided was the lasting influence that Florence Nightingale made in nursing from how it started to what it is now.
A mock session of the Representative Assembly (RA) was presented which gave the audience an idea at what goes on during a real one. Each step and procedure of an RA was demonstrated with the resolution of proposing "Bourbon as the ASPAN Beverage of the Year".
Concluding the activity was about enhancing organizational capacity with ASPAN’s
move towards the future of Perianesthesia nurses which mainly discussed the
restructuring and reorganization of the different components into consolidated regions. Moreover, the discussion after the presentation brought about several concerns with the proposed reorganization.
Through it all, the best thing that happened was networking with fellow perianesthesia nurses and gaining new-found friendships who are seasoned leaders always willing to guide and support the new leaders just learning their way into the organization.