State-of-the art medical care has progressed substantially, leading to increased survival of high risk infants. The care paradigm has shifted from keeping babies alive to ensuring that babies and their families physically, socio-emotionally and developmentally thrive.

Infant development is a multi-dimensional experience. Current research shows that ill, premature, and high risk neonates are especially vulnerable to their environment because their physiologic, sensory and neurological systems are not yet mature. It is incumbent on clinicians and decision makers to understand the effects of the physical and developmental environment on the neonate and their families, as variations in these environments may lead to profound effects on a variety of physical and neuro developmental outcomes.

The Gravens Conference is an integral part of a much larger movement whose ultimate goal is to optimize infant physical, psychological and developmental outcomes.   As part of the process, the conference seeks to bring the latest research on physical science, design science and behavioral science to attendees.  Invited faculty will translate research for evidence based change in the physical environment or care practices.  Alterations in physical design and care practices in hundreds of NICUs worldwide have been the result of this continued attention to the environmental impact on infants, families and staff.   The conference also plays a significant role in the development of Design Standards & Guidelines for NICU as published by American Institute of Architects and American Academy of Pediatrics.

The conference co-chairs continue to raise the professional education bar by bringing to you renowned experts and the most current evidence-based knowledge in neurodevelopmental science, which is the foundation for developmental care practices, physical environment design changes, and family support practices.

Dr. Francis Champagne from the Psychology Department at Columbia University will speak on her research concerning how genetic and environmental factors interact to regulate maternal behavior, and how natural variation in this behavior can shape the behavioral development of offspring through epigenetic changes in gene expression.

James W. Collins, Jr., MD, MPH, is a Professor of Pediatrics at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine and Medical Director of the NICU and the Associate Director of the Pediatric Residency Program at Children’s Memorial Hospital in Chicago. In 2008, Dr. Collins was featured in the PBS documentary “When the Bough Breaks,” part of the four-hour series entitled “Unnatural Causes – Is Inequality Making Us Sick?” Dr. Collins will discuss his research and experience examining racial and ethnic group disparities in perinatal outcomes. He also will bring to bear his experience as a member of Partnership to Eliminate Disparities in Infant Mortality and as the former chairman of the Secretary’s Advisory Committee on Infant Mortality.

Dr. Benoist Schaal is the Director of the European Center for Taste Science in Dijon, France. Dr. Schaal’s current interests embrace the way humans, especially infants and children, use odors to organize and fine-tune their affects, knowledge, and behavior at both individual and social levels.

Richard J. Shaw, MD, a Professor of Psychiatry and Pediatrics at Stanford University School of Medicine, will speak about his studies regarding post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among parents whose newborns spent time in the NICU, including his latest paper on the subject, which appeared in the March-April 2009 issue of the journal Psychosomatics. His work with NICU parents exhibiting signs of PTSD was also the subject of a New York Times article in August 2009. Shaw will present and discuss his research and suggest NICU staff responses that support parents suffering PTSD as part of a family-centered approach to care.

Dr. Regina Sullivan, a Research Professor at the NYU Child Study Center and a Developmental Behavioral Neurobiologist in the Emotional Brain Institute at the Nathan Kline Institute for Psychiatric Research, will speak on her research regarding understanding the neurobiology of infant attachment to the caregiver and the impact of attachment quality on cognitive and emotional development.

Dr. Julie Mennella is the Director of Education Outreach at Monell Chemical Senses Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Her research program focuses on the development of food and flavor preferences in humans and the effects of alcohol consumption on women’s health and infant development.

The Physical Environment Design Track will provide presentations on a Swedish NICU, an American hospital that incorporates a specialty unit within the NICU, biophilic healthcare design, and the always well-attended sessions on New Unit Design.

New This Year: Track C - Family Support in the NICU
A new special focus will be placed on Family Support in the NICU following the successful Family Support Summit component by the March of Dimes in 2008. 
In addition to Track A (Developmental Care) and Track B (NICU Design), this year’s Track C will cover a full range of topics regarding supporting families and fostering family-centered care. 
Thursday’s session will be led by Scott Berns, MD, MPH, FAAP. Speakers in this track will address trends in family centered care, how racism affects NICU families before and during their baby’s hospitalization the importance of ‘early and often’ kangaroo care, and post traumatic stress syndrome among NICU parents. Each of the presentations in Thursday’s Track C will be followed by more in-depth workshops on Friday.

Saturday will continue to provide the attendee with thought (and emotion) provoking presentations on spirituality, challenges, and family centered care.

As always, participants will have the opportunity to see new products from exhibitors and to join us at the banquet to honor this year’s Gravens Award winner.

Attendees should claim only those credits that they actually spent in the educational activity.

Certificates of Attendance will be issued on-site to all pre-registered participants. CME and CEU certificates will be mailed following the conference.

Physicians: USF Health is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education to provide continuing medical education for physicians.

USF Health designates this educational activity for a maximum of 20.5 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™.  Physicians should only claim credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

Nurses: The University of South Florida College of Nursing is accredited as a provider of continuing nursing education by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation. This activity is for 20.5 contact hours.

Florida Licensed Physical Therapists: The University of South Florida College of Medicine is an approved provider of Continuing Education for Physical Therapists pursuant to the Board of Physical Therapy chapter 64b17-9. The University of South Florida College of Medicine designates this educational activity for up to 24.75 contact hours

Florida Licensed Clinical Social Workers, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapists, Licensed Mental Health Counselors: USF Health is an approved provider (BAP#433 – Exp. 3/31/11) of continuing education credits for clinical social work, marriage and family therapy, and mental health counseling. This program has been reviewed and approved for up to 24.75 contact hours. 

Florida Licensed Occupational Therapists: USF Health is an approved provider (#107, exp. 2/28/11) of continuing education for Occupational Therapy Licensees. This program has been reviewed and approved for up to 24.75, 50-minute contact hours. Licensee numbers are required prior to the issuance of certificates.

Architects: Architects claiming credit will need to utilize the AIA / CES Self-Report Form.

As a result of participation in this activity, participants should be able to: 

• Identify current research that contributes to the understanding of socioemotional development of infants;
• Relate the impact of early NICU experiences on child psychological, socioemotional health outcomes;
• Analyze the impact of the mother’s mental health on the fetus and newborn;
• Interpret the impact of NICU-related stress on parents, infants and staff;
• Compare and contrast several “best practices” for improving family support policies;
• Relate the impact of the NICU environment on psychological and emotional health in infants, families and staff;
• Develop strategies for applying current information to clinical practice in the NICU;
• Integrate strategies for cultural change in the NICU, including intrapersonal, interpersonal, clinical, environmental, and system change; and
• List three new professional and/or parent contacts that have the potential to collaborate on current or future projects, or to assist with problem-solving.

Scott D. Berns, MD, MPH, FAAP
Family Support Chair
Senior Vice President, Chapter Programs
March of Dimes
White Plains, NY
Clinical Professor of Pediatrics
Warren Alpert Medical School
Brown University
Providence, RI

Joy Browne, PhD, RN, CNS-BC
Developmental Care Chair
Associate Professor of Pediatrics and Psychology
Director, Interdisciplinary Training
JFK Partners
Director, Colorado NIDCAP
and FIRST Centers
Director, Center for Family
and Infant Interaction
University of Colorado
School of Medicine
The Children’s Hospital
Denver, CO

Robert Cicco, MD
Associate Director, NICU
Western Pennsylvania Hospital
Pittsburgh, PA

Liza Cooper, MSW
Director, NICU Family Support
March of Dimes
White Plains, NY

William Edwards, MD
Neonatologist
Associate Professor of Pediatrics
Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center
Lebanon, NH

George A. Little, MD
Spiritual Support Chair
Professor of Pediatrics and OB/GYN
Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center
Lebanon, NH

Elizabeth MacMillan-York, RN
NICU Design Team Leader
Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre
New Women’s College Hospital
Toronto, Ontario

M. Kathleen Philbin, PhD, RN
Associate Professor
College of New Jersey
Ewing, NJ

Bobbi Rose, MA, MPH
Conference Coordinator
The Chiles Center
University of South Florida
Tampa, FL

Mardelle Shepley, MA, March, DArch
Associate Dean
Center for Health System and Design
Texas A&M University
College Station, TX

Judith Gooding
National Director
NICU Initiatives & Chapter Program Strategy
March of Dimes
White Plains, NY

Stanley N. Graven, MD
Founder & Coordinating Chair
Professor
College of Public Health
University of South Florida
Tampa, FL

James Harrell, FAIA, FACHA
President
The Harrell Group, Inc.
Cincinnati, OH

John Hartline, MD, FAAP
Scientific Session Chair
Consultant
Department of Education
American Academy of Pediatrics
Itasca, IL

Beverly Johnson
President & CEO
Institute of Family-Centered Care
Bethesda, MD

Kathleen Kolberg, PhD
Assistant Dean of Undergraduate Studies
College of Science
Center for Health Sciences Advising
University of Notre Dame
Notre Dame, IN

Judy Smith, MHA
Principal
Smith Hager Bajo
Ashburn, VA

Judy Sommers, MBA
Research Administration
College of Public Health, USF
Tampa, FL

Jane K. Sweeney, PT, PhD, PCS
Professor and Graduate Program Director
Doctor of Science in Pediatrics Program
Rocky Mountain University of Health
Professions
Provo, UT
Practitioner / Owner
Pediatric Rehab Northwest, LLC
Gig Harbor, WA

Robert White, MD
Design Chair
Regional Newborn Program
Memorial Hospital of South Bend
South Bend, IN

Francis Champagne, PhD
Professor
Columbia University
Psychology Department
New York, NY

James W. Collins, Jr, MD, MPH
Professor of Pediatrics
Feinberg School of Medicine
Northwestern University
Chicago, IL

Sharon Cox
Cox & Associates
Brentwood, TN

Karen Hendricks-Munoz, MD, MPH, FAAP
Associate Professor of Pediatrics
Chief, Division of Neonatology
Associate Chair, Department of Pediatrics
Bellevue Hospital Center
NYU Langone Medical Center
New York University School of Medicine
New York, NY

Carol Jaeger, RNC, MS, NNP-BC
Vice President
Clinical Operations, Neonatal Services
Nationwide Children’s Hospital
Columbus, OH

Carole Kenner, DNS, RNC, FAAN
Dean
University of Oklahoma
College of Nursing
Oklahoma City, OK

Dennis Stevens, MD, MS
Attending Neonatologist
Boekelheide NICU
Sanford Children’s Hospital
Professor of Pediatrics
Department of Pediatrics
Sanford School of Medicine
University of South Dakota
Sioux Falls, SD

Regina Sullivan, PhD
Research Professor
NYU Child Study Center
Developmental Behavioral Neurobiologist
Emotional Brain Institute
Nathan Kline Institute
for Psychiatric Research
New York, NY

Siri Lilliesköld, RN, BSN
Department of Neonatology
Astrid Lindgren Children’s Hospital—Danderyd
Karolinska University Hospital
Stockholm, Sweden

Ronald L. Green, MD
Director, Education and Training
Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center
Lebanon, NH

Julie Mennella, PhD
Director, Education Outreach
Monell Chemical Senses Center
Philadelphia, PA

Blair Sadler, JD
Senior Fellow
Institute for Healthcare Improvement
Past President & CEO
Rady Children’s Hospital
San Diego, CA

Benoist Schaal, PhD
Director
European Center for Taste Science
Dijon, France

Richard J. Shaw, MD
Professor of Psychiatry and Pediatrics
Stanford University School of Medicine
Stanford, CA

Victor Smith, MD, MPH
Neonatologist
Harvard University
Jamaica Plain, MA

Michele Walsh, MD, MS
Medical Director, NICU
Rainbow Babies & Childrens Hospital
Professor, Department of Pediatrics
Co-Director, Division of Neonatology
Case Western Reserve University
Cleveland, OH

Bjorn Westrup, MD, PhD
Medical Director of Neonatology
Director, Karolinska NIDCAP Training Center
Astrid Lindgren Children’s Hospital—Danderyd
Karolinska University Hospital
Stockholm, Sweden

The evaluation process is a critical component in our strategy to offer excellence in our future conferences and to ensure we are addressing the educational needs of our audience. Your comments and feedback make a difference! Please complete the evaluation forms, which will be distributed on-site, and return them to either the session facilitator or the registration desk.

In addition, we measure the outcome of the education using a post-event survey sent via e-mail. The results of this survey are equally important as we need to know if the education made a difference, be it in awareness, practice change, health outcomes, or all the above. Please complete the survey when it comes to your in-box approximately 6 weeks after the conclusion of the conference.

Dr. John Hartline's Reception: Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Participants are invited to attend the Wine & Cheese Reception on the night before the conference starts.

Exhibit Hall Grand Reception
The much anticipated Exhibit Hall Grand Reception will occur on Wednesday, February 3, 2010 from 6:00 – 8:30 pm. Take this opportunity to get acquainted, view exhibits, and meet with poster session authors. You will be able to network with colleagues and industry representatives while enjoying dinner.

Poster Session: Wednesday evening, February 3, 6:00-8:30 pm.
In conjunction with the Exhibit Hall Grand Reception is one of the most popular features of our conference – the poster session. Authors will present poster sessions on Wednesday evening from 6:00 pm – 8:30 pm. The posters will be available for viewing through Thursday mid-afternoon. Don’t miss this opportunity to share ideas and experiences, as introduction to poster session authors can lead to continued communication and networking long after this conference.

Exhibits: Participants will be able to view the latest products, equipment, and services designed especially for NICU. If you would like to meet with a company or organization representative, be sure to tell them about this opportunity. An Exhibitor Prospectus may be obtained by contacting: Bobbi Rose, University of South Florida, (813) 974-6158, brose@health.usf.edu.

Breakfast Table Networking: On Thursday morning, each discipline will have the opportunity to meet together to discuss issues related to their work in the NICU. Scheduled early in the conference, therapists, nurses, physicians, architects, parents and developmental specialists will have the opportunity to meet others with similar interests and encourage continued discussion throughout the week.
Breakfast Table Networking will occur again on Saturday morning, but the tables will be designated by topic, not discipline.

Awards Dinner: The Gravens Award for Leadership was initiated in 2005 in honor of Stan and Mavis Graven and will be presented at the Awards Dinner. Our evening celebration will acknowledge the contribution of an individual who has shown outstanding leadership, innovation and creativity in changing how we provide physical and developmental environments for high risk infants and their families. Please join us in reflecting on and celebrating exceptional contributions to our work. Dinner is included in the registration fee.
This event occurs on Friday, February 5, 2010 from 6:00 – 8:30 pm.

Fun Activities: The Clearwater / St. Petersburg area offers much in the way of recreation. For an overview of activities and options for transportation, go to the Sheraton Sand Key website, www.sheratonsandkey.com, and click on the tab labeled “attractions.” You will find the tabs across the top of the page.