Clinical Practice and Pediatric Specialty Care

Trauma and Critical Care

  • Pediatric trauma care updates
  • Trauma-informed nursing care
  • Surgical trauma nursing
  • NAT (Non-Accidental Trauma) dilemmas
  • Burn care and burn management
  • Resuscitation updates, medications, and dosing
  • ECMO and advanced critical care cases
  • Advanced ventilatory concepts and modes of ventilation
  • Critical care transport and stabilization

Chronic and Complex Care

  • Tracheostomy and ventilator care
  • Transitioning medically complex children from hospital to home
  • Home care nursing and care coordination
  • Pediatric discharge planning and safe transitions of care
  • Care of technology-dependent children
  • Pediatric cardiology updates
  • Chemotherapy advances and pediatric oncology care
  • Gene therapy and emerging treatments
  • Immunization updates and vaccine-related care

Behavioral and Mental Health

  • Pediatric behavioral health
  • Mental health nursing interventions
  • De-escalation techniques for aggression and crisis situations
  • Moral distress and compassion fatigue
  • Autism and sensory integration
  • Suicide prevention, bullying, and social media-related mental health concerns
  • Trauma-informed behavioral health care

Pediatric Population Health and Emerging Issues

  • Childhood obesity and health promotion
  • Drug epidemic and substance-related pediatric concerns
  • Global pediatric health issues
  • Foster care, guardianship, and child development
  • Social determinants of health in pediatrics
  • Health equity, diversity, and inclusion
  • Advocacy and public policy impacting pediatric healthcare

Nursing Education and Professional Development

Nursing Education and Academic Partnerships

  • Innovative nursing education strategies
  • Academic-practice partnerships
  • Undergraduate nursing education initiatives
  • Simulation as a teaching strategy
  • Gamification and escape-room learning strategies
  • Kinetic and hands-on learning approaches
  • Team-building in nursing education
  • Practical application strategies for nurse educators

Precepting, Mentorship, and Workforce Development

  • Preceptor development and support
  • Mentoring programs and strategies
  • Supporting new graduate nurses
  • Orienting and onboarding new nurses
  • Supporting Generation Z learners
  • Retention strategies for bedside nurses
  • Recognition practices for experienced nurses and night-shift staff
  • Workforce sustainability and retirement planning
  • Leadership and management styles in nursing
  • Professional development and career advancement

Research, Evidence-Based Practice, and Quality Improvement

  • Nursing research initiatives
  • Evidence-based practice implementation
  • Quality improvement and patient safety projects
  • Hospital staff safety initiatives
  • Interprofessional collaboration and team-based care projects
  • Capacity management and operational innovation
  • Communication and safety improvement strategies

Innovation and Technology in Healthcare

Artificial Intelligence and Digital Innovation

  • Artificial intelligence in pediatric nursing
  • Future applications of AI in healthcare
  • Ethical considerations related to AI in nursing practice
  • Virtual nursing and remote care delivery
  • Technology-enhanced patient education
  • Digital communication and telehealth innovation

Innovative Care Delivery and Patient Experience

  • Patient and family education tools
  • Engaging with difficult caregivers and family-centered communication
  • Parent and caregiver perspectives in pediatric care
  • Child life integration and patient-centered environments
  • Reducing fear and anxiety during procedures
  • Designing child-friendly healthcare experiences
  • Telephone triage and ambulatory nursing innovation
  • Ambulatory care nursing topics

Ethics, Advocacy, and Leadership

Ethics and Professional Practice

  • Ethical issues in pediatric nursing
  • Advocacy and nurse involvement in policy
  • Legal and governmental changes affecting pediatric healthcare
  • Shared decision-making and family-centered ethics
  • Moral resilience and ethical leadership

Leadership and Systems-Level Practice

  • Nursing leadership and management
  • Communication across teams and systems
  • Operational and systems-level innovations
  • Building resilient nursing teams
  • Interprofessional leadership models

Priority Areas of Interest for 2026

Priority submission topics:

  • Trauma and critical care nursing
  • Behavioral and mental health
  • Artificial intelligence and innovation in healthcare
  • Workforce development, mentorship, and retention
  • Pediatric transitions of care and home care
  • Interprofessional collaboration
  • Practical clinical education strategies
  • Emerging therapies and pediatric treatment advances
  • Family-centered and trauma-informed care
  • Staff wellbeing, resilience, and moral distress

This topic list was developed using attendee feedback and evaluation comments from previous NCN conferences.