Illinois State University Mennonite College of Nursing is pleased to announce the Marion McDowell Stafford Lectureship Series in Child and Family Health that will focus on diabetes.

The committee is working with three outstanding speakers to bring two lectures to campus Thursday, November 9, at the Alumni Center. Sarah Dominique, APN, P-CNS, CDE, is a certified pediatric clinical nurse specialist. She is also a certified diabetes educator. Linda Avery, RN, MS, CDE, is a registered nurse and a certified diabetes educator currently working at Advocate BroMenn Medical Center as the coordinator and team member of its American Diabetes Association Recognized Program. Paige Beal, RD, LDN, CDE, is a registered and licensed dietitian and certified diabetes educator working at Advocate BroMenn’s outpatient diabetes and nutrition services office.

The first lecture, “Navigating Diabetes: Traveling Through Time,” will be an educational lecture from 1-4:30 p.m. RNs who are school nurses, pediatric nurses, med surg nurses, emergency rooms nurses, and college of nursing faculty and students are encouraged to attend. An application will be submitted to the Ohio Nurses Association for approval to award contact hours. The Ohio Nurses Association (OBN-001-91) is an accredited approver by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation. Call Amy Irving at (309) 438-7418 for more information about contact hours.

The second lecture, “Join Us as We Explore the Journey of Diabetes,” will be a community lecture from 7-8 p.m. This event is open to the public, and health care professionals, people with diabetes, and people who have a family member with diabetes are encouraged to attend. There will be a reception with light refreshments following the community lecture.

Headshot of Sarah Dominique

Sarah Dominique, APN, P-CNS, CDE

Dominique has worked with children and adolescents with type 1 and type 2 diabetes since 2006. She received her B.S.N. from St. Francis Medical Center College of Nursing in 2005 and her M.S.N. from St. Francis Medical Center College of Nursing in 2012. After graduating, Dominique became the first advanced practice nurse at the Pediatric Diabetes Resource Center at the Children’s Hospital of Illinois, where she previously worked as a diabetes educator and department manager. She continues to work with patients and families to educate them on diabetes-related topics including insulin pump therapy, continuous glucose monitoring, and transition to adulthood. She also enjoys serving as a co-coordinator for research that is being done through Trial Net, a study focused on risk screening for relatives of people with type 1 diabetes.

Head shot of Linda Avery

Linda Avery, RN, MS, CDE

Avery started her nursing career many years ago with an associate’s degree in nursing. She received her B.S.N. at Sangamon State (now known as University of Illinois at Springfield) and her graduate degree from University of Illinois at Chicago. She received her certification in diabetes education in 2000. Avery has been at BroMenn for over 14 years and before that she worked at Proctor Hospital in Peoria. While at Proctor she wore many hats: diabetes educator, patient education coordinator, nursing manager, night shift supervisor, and other duties as assigned.

Headshot of Paige Beal

Paige Beal, RD, LDN, CDE

Beal has been at Advocate BroMenn for 22 years helping people with diabetes and other health issues. She has multiple responsibilities at Advocate BroMenn. She works one on one or in group classes teaching people with diabetes meal planning, exercise, medication management, and blood sugar monitoring. Insulin pump therapy is also a large part of the business at Advocate BroMenn. Clients are also seen who do not have diabetes and Beal educates people on weight management, cholesterol management, eating disorders, celiac disease, and many other medical conditions.

These lectures are free to attend; however, you must register as space is limited. The deadline to register for these events is November 3.

These events are sponsored by the Marion McDowell Stafford Lectureship Series Fund, the Harold K. Sage Foundation, and the Illinois State University Foundation Fund.