President's Message

Message from the CACNS Immediate Past President

Thank you all for the opportunity to serve this past year. As I complete my term as President of CACNS, my deepest gratitude goes to each of you for your dedication, energy, and unwavering support. It has truly been an honor to serve alongside such talented and committed professionals who continuously advance our organization’s mission. 

Under the leadership of Elissa Brown and our new Legislative/Regulatory co-chair, Angela Yencer, we held two excellent presentations on how to connect with and meet your legislators. Together, they also helped draft language for a CNS statement sheet and bill statement to share with our legislative partners.

Our Advocacy team, led by Pam Nye and now joined by co-chair Nimian Bauder, continues to be a strong voice for our role. They remain available to speak with leaders in your facilities about the vital contributions of CNSs.

As Program Liaison, Amber Glukhenkiy developed a Pharmacology presentation and played a key role in delivering a highly successful Annual Conference. We also continue to grow our Student and Novice Forums, which are flourishing as spaces for connection, learning, and professional development.

Our website and newsletter, under the guidance of Jason Leung, have been revitalized, including the relaunch of our Newsletter. Looking ahead, we are excited about creating opportunities for you to submit your CNS accomplishments to be highlighted across our state.

A special thank you goes to our President-Elect, Sheree Scott, for her thoughtful work on refining how we manage and maintain our records. Deep appreciation also to our dedicated and hardworking Regional Directors, whose efforts keep us closely connected to the needs of CNSs throughout California.

Although I am concluding my term as President, I am not leaving the board. I will continue to serve you at the national level as one of your elected NACNS board members. In San Diego, please take a moment to meet Olena, your incoming President. She will be a powerful and inspiring leader for CACNS.

Thank you all—it has truly been fun.

Mary Lawanson-Nichols, MSN, CNS, NP, CCRN, FCNS

Message from the CACNS Incoming President

As we begin the new year, I’m really honored and looking forward to serving you as a President starting in 2026. It means a lot to me to lead this group as many of you have been my mentors and preceptors, and you all do such an important work every day for patients across California, and I am still learning from you. This is a true privilege and an honor, and I am thankful for your trust!!

I want to start by thanking our outgoing President, Mary Lawanson-Nichols, from the bottom of my heart. Mary has been the driving force behind getting us started on the path toward full practice authority. She also made sure we had strong legal representation to support and protect us along the way. Mary, thank you for your hard work, dedication, and for laying such a solid foundation for us to build on.

This year, I plan to keep pushing forward with these efforts. We’ll continue working toward full practice authority so Clinical Nurse Specialists can practice to the full extent of our training and better serve our patients. I’ll keep our close partnership with the California APRN Coalition group as we are going to help raise awareness of the CNS role in hospitals and other institutions around the state. We’ll also reach out and build relationships with leaders across California to gain more support and recognition for what we do.

One of our main goals for 2026 will be helping members obtain a National Provider Identifier (NPI). This is an important step for being recognized as providers by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and will open doors for billing and reimbursement, and so much more!!

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday season filled with rest and time with family and friends. I’m truly excited about what we can accomplish together in this new year.

Olena Svetlov, DNP, BA, RN, AGNP/CNS, CCRN, PHN, NE, FCNS