About PCNA

PCNA is the leading nursing organization dedicated to preventing cardiovascular disease through assessing risk, facilitating lifestyle changes, and guiding individuals to achieve treatment goals. PCNA's current membership approximates over 2200 professionals throughout the US, Canada, Europe, Asia, Australia, and South America. Our membership continues to grow and represent the ever-increasing numbers of nurses in primary and secondary prevention.

A Letter from the President - Lynne Braun

It is truly an honor to serve as PCNA President during 2008-2009, and to work with our members who represent the leaders in cardiovascular disease prevention. The CDC recently reported that coronary heart disease and stroke age-adjusted death rates were down by 25.8% and 24.4%, respectively, since 1999. This dramatic decrease is due in part to prevention efforts, however the prevalence of risk factors remains high. Together, we must continue to develop effective programs and individual strategies to help our patients reduce their cardiovascular disease risk. We must also educate our health care colleagues about the importance of early prevention and speak to legislators about funding prevention services and programs.

Survey data shows that our membership represents a diverse group of nurses and other health care professionals with a variety of role responsibilities. With this in mind, along with the need to expand our vision of cardiovascular disease prevention in order to have a greater impact, our 14th Annual Symposium consisted of presentations and workshops addressing primary and secondary prevention in various subgroups, e.g., older adults, underserved populations, ACS patients, heart failure, stroke and renal disease patients. I hope you enjoyed the breadth of this annual symposium.

2008 is an exciting election year! Nurses are 2.7 million strong, which means that if every nurse votes in the national election, he/she has the potential to influence health policy. The Advocacy Committee of PCNA is actively discussing ways to have a stronger presence in Washington D.C. to insure that issues pertaining to cardiovascular disease prevention are brought to the forefront of American politics. We will keep you informed about the work of the Advocacy Committee. However, PCNA members can have a voice in cardiovascular disease prevention by joining the advocacy network of our partner, the American Heart Association, at www.yourethecure.org. Currently, you can ask your legislators to support the HEART for Women Act, which will improve the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of heart disease and stroke by: raising awareness among women and their health care providers; providing gender and race-specific information for clinicians and researchers; and improving screening for low-income women at risk for heart disease and stroke.

As a member of You're the Cure, you will periodically receive emails alerting you to statewide and national issues pertaining to heart health. It's a matter of a couple clicks, and a letter is electronically sent to your legislators. Shortly, you will receive a thank you letter from them for expressing your views. As PCNA members, we must help our legislators understand the importance of funding for cardiovascular disease prevention programs.

I look forward to working closely with PCNA members during the next year. And I look forward to seeing each of you at our 15th Annual Symposium on April 16-18th, 2009, .
in Dallas, Texas.

Yours sincerely,

Lynne T. Braun, PhD, CNP, FAHA

History and Accomplishments

Established in 1992 as the Lipid Nurse Task Force, PCNA has accomplished several important milestones over the last decade. Selecting The Journal of Cardiovascular Nursing as our official journal in 2004 is one such milestone.

Please choose one of the links to the left to learn more about PCNA.