The International Society of Psychiatric-Mental Health Nurses (ISPN) is thrilled to announce that we have received a record-breaking number of abstract submissions for the upcoming 2026 ISPN Annual Conference, to be held March 18–21, 2026, at the Grand Hyatt Seattle in Seattle, Washington.

This year’s conference theme, Innovate, Integrate, INSPIRE: Charting the Future of Psychiatric Nursing, has inspired a remarkable response from our global community. Each abstract will undergo a double-blinded review process, ensuring fairness, quality, and diversity in the development of our program. Submitters will be notified of acceptance on November 6th 2025.

We are also excited to announce our featured speakers for the 2026 conference. This year’s keynote and endnote speakers are recognized leaders and experts in their fields, carefully selected in response to feedback from past conference evaluations highlighting the topics our members most valued. In addition, we are proud to present our two award plenary speakers, whose contributions to psychiatric-mental health nursing exemplify excellence and innovation. Together, these speakers will provide thought-provoking insights and inspiration as we explore the future of our profession.

We are excited to welcome you to Seattle in 2026 for what promises to be an inspiring and dynamic conference experience.  Join us as we count down to the conference on social media, please like, comment, and repost. Stay connected with ISPN on social media for updates, announcements, and opportunities to engage: Facebook, Twitter/X, LinkedIn, and Instagram.

Gabrielle P Abelard, DNP, APRN-BC, FAAN, FNAP, FAANP

Conference Chair

Member Spotlight

September's featured member is Dr. Rie Chiba.

ISPN President Dr. Dan Wesemann and Dr. Rie Chiba recognize September 10th as World Suicide Prevention Day and September as National Suicide Prevention Month.

The summer has been a busy one with numerous legislative changes impacting health care and

nurses in the United States. As of early September, serious cuts in services offered through

Medicaid and CHIP and the likely loss of $49 million dollars in Title VIII funding for the nursing

workforce development and nursing scholarship are anticipated. As active members in the

Nursing Community Coalition, the Mental Health Liaison Group and the Coalition for Whole

Health, ISPN has signed on to multiple letters in support of Medicaid/CHIP services,

reappropriation of Title VIII, 988 services specific to the needs of LGBTQ+ individuals, telehealth

care access, NINR and SAMSHA. Specifics for many are available at

https://www.mhlg.org/issue-statements/ and https://www.thenursingcommunity.org/

September 30, the close of the fiscal year, marked the end of legislative session. Of particular

concern are losses of safety net services provided by Medicaid. One example is provided by the

Commonwealth Foundation report on the impact of work requirements on states

https://www.commonwealthfund.org/publications/issue-briefs/2025/may/medicaid-work-

requirements-job-losses-harm-states. Since Medicaid is partially funded by states, ISPN

members who are concerned about coverage for services may consider advocacy at the state

level. For information about Medicaid in your own state, a user-friendly source like the Modern

Medicaid Alliance website provides information https://data.modernmedicaid.org/MMA/ .

To expand member engagement in policy, the new 4-session series Policy, not Politics:

Advocating for Positive Change began August 28 with a collaborative discussion session. The

second session on September 18, focused on building knowledge of legislation procedures and

their impact on nursing practice and considering actions to influence change in areas of import

to attending members. All sessions are on Thursdays at 4 pm ET.

To sign up, keep a lookout for ISPN registration notices announcing the last two sessions:

• October 23 - Health Policy and the Nurses’ Advocacy Role
• November 13 - a “Hear our Voices” discussion

Work continues on several new policy statements, a means of sharing regular reports on policy

and development of a policy tool-kit. Updates will be in the next newsletter.

We are currently seeking volunteers to contribute to ISPN's growth by joining the following committees/positions:

• Membership
• Communications & Marketing
• Social Media Poster



If you are interested in helping ISPN advance in any of these areas, please complete this brief form.

Digital Interventions for Suicide Assessment and Safety Planning  

Presenter: Jamie Zelazny, PhD, MPH, RN

September 24, 2025, 12:00-1:00 pm ET

Learn More and Register

Keep an eye out for November's Webinar:

Adolescent Substance Use: Details Psychiatric Nurses Need to Know

Presenter: Angela Nash, PhD, APRN, CPNP-PC, CARN-AP, FIAAN

November 12, 2025, 12:00-1:00 pm ET

To register for any upcoming or on demand webinars, visit

ispn-psych.org/ispn-webinars.

ISPN uses the information you provide in your profile in many ways. Please take a few moments and update your information. Please login to the ISPN website and go to “Member Home” in the quick links. Once on that page, you will see a “My Profile” link. Then you will be able to click edit and change or update your responses to different questions. Thanks in advance for taking the time to do this!

Think of a student - or two - whose membership you might sponsor by paying the student's first year of ISPN membership dues. A special way to reach out to graduates as well is to support their entry into ISPN by sponsoring their first year of ISPN membership dues.

Regionalization Corner

Stay up-to-date with your region by visiting the Regional Initiative webpage!

International

Co-Leaders: Amanda Bailterra, DNP, MPH, FNP-BC, PMHNP-BC; and Adebayo Fasheyitan, Mental Health Student Nurse

If you have an interest in what you’d like to see from this region and/or if you’d like to get involved, please email info@ispn-psych.org. We’d love to hear from you!

Amanda and Adebayo

Midwest

Co-Leaders: Beth Bonham, PhD, RN, PMHCNS-BC, FAAN; and Linda Jo Volness, MS, APRN, CHTP

The Midwest Region continues its commitment to meet quarterly to offer a forum for members to support each other and participate in conversation. Meetings were held by Zoom 1/8/25 and 5/14/25 and in person 3/21/25 at the Annual Conference in New Orleans. Each meeting new members are welcomed and introductions made. New ISPN members receive a personal email invitation to the next scheduled meeting. The next quarterly meeting is 9/17/25.

Northeast

Co-Leaders: Jennifer Graber, EdD, APRN, PMHCNS-BC; and Susan Glodstein, DNP

On June 11th, the Northeast Region had three speakers present to the group. Bennet Doughty and Brianna Goldenstein, both pharmacists from Boehringer-Ingelheim, presented a talk on "Digital Health Technologies and their potential role in the mental health treatment landscape." Author and blogger Sophia Laurenzi discussed her perspective as a suicide loss survivor, you can read her piece in Time Magazine Here.

ISPN Northeast Region Upcoming Meeting:

• January 14, 2026 12:00-1:00 pm ET

Southeast

Co-Leaders: Ann Marie Jones, DNP, PMHNP-BC; and Meira Yasin, DNP, PMHNP-BC, APHN-BC

Look for the next meeting via your email! If you have suggestions or want to get involved please email info@ispn-psych.org

Southwest

Co-Leaders: Janelle Jones, DNP, APRN, PMHNP, Brenda McKenna, APRN, PMHNP-BC, Ellen Schimmels, PhD, DNP, PMHNP-BC

During our first meeting we look forward to hearing your ideas for collaboration this season. We have plans for guest speakers, lectures, student development, publishing research, networking, and much more! Your input is invaluable!

ISPN Southwest Region Upcoming Meeting:

• Sept 18, 2025: 5 PM MST (Arizona) | 6 PM MDT (New Mexico) | 7 PM CDT (OK, TX)
• Nov 20, 2025:5 PM MST (Arizona) | 6 PM MDT (New Mexico) | 7 PM CDT (OK, TX)
• Feb 19, 2026: 5 PM MST (Arizona) | 6 PM MDT (New Mexico) | 7 PM CDT (OK, TX)
• May 21, 2026: 5 PM MST (Arizona) | 6 PM MDT (New Mexico) | 7 PM CDT (OK, TX)

For further details, please feel free to email info@ispn-psych.org.

West

Co-Leaders: Pamela Minarik, PhD, RN, CNS, FAAN; and Jeffery Ramirez, PhD, PMHNP, FNAP, FAANP, FAAN

Look for the next meeting via your email! If you have suggestions or want to get involved please email info@ispn-psych.org

Your ISPN membership includes access to our exclusive e-list (AKA, listserv). This member tool allows you to distribute messages to all members subscribing to the list, with a simple email to the list address. Think of the possibilities!

• Communicate with the membership through a single email. 
• Search the online archive for valuable information and resources. 
• Ask your peers the questions that are most important you. 
• Manage your subscription and preferences through your member profile. 

To get started: 

1. Log in to your membership profile. 
2. In the "My Features" tab, click "E-Lists". 
3. Make sure you are subscribed to the list. 
4. Make note of the list address. 
5. Click "Edit" to control your preferences. 
6. Click the list name to see and search previous posts. 
7. To start participating, click "Post a New Message" or send an email to the list address.  

Read these Frequently Asked Questions about the E-List.