Welcome to the Board of Directors Spotlight series. Get to know Yalanda Comeaux, MSN, M.J., RN, CMSRN, a clinical nurse with 29 years of experience in medical-surgical nursing. Read on to learn more about her passion for volunteering, her journey to the AMSN Board of Directors, and her dedication to the medical-surgical nursing specialty.
What is the value of volunteer leadership?
If I could sum up volunteering in a few words, it would be phrased as “a rewarding experience.” Volunteerism is a selfless duty of your time offered for good to benefit others, in this case AMSN. Personally, it is a genuine pleasure to perform volunteer work with AMSN. I would say to anyone to get involved and volunteer your time. You will find the experience rewarding; you will grow, learn to build leadership skills, and meet and work with wonderful people. Working as a volunteer with AMSN is of great importance. You may not realize it, but we all have something to contribute. You matter to the organization. More importantly, because of volunteers, AMSN is what it is today.
What’s on your mind this month?
I wish it was something exuberant, but the state of the nursing workforce shortage is on the verge of becoming even more of a shortage, and the thought of that concept gives me anxiety given the current situation of the nursing workforce funding being potentially eliminated.
The nursing workforce shortage has been a concern for years. In fact, it could go back more than 50 years, when it was recognized by the administration of Lyndon B. Johnson, the 36th President of the United States, who signed the Title VIII Nursing Workforce Reauthorization Act, a bill advocating for increasing the nursing workforce by providing funding for nursing education and research. Right now, this is in jeopardy (View the ANA response to the recently leaked 2026 HHS budget). The Johnson administration recognized then that the nursing workforce would have to expand to care for the nation’s population and that annual funds should be appropriated to support nursing studies. Today, the concern is that such funding will no longer be made available for candidates interested in nursing careers.
How did you get started with AMSN?
I became aware of AMSN after being invited to a local chapter meeting. I enjoyed the content presented at that meeting. Afterward, there was time for networking, where I met many nurses who expressed great ideas and goals in the medical-surgical specialty. I told myself that I would attend future meetings. As I made my exit, I was approached by the chapter’s president, who asked me to consider joining, at which time I did! Soon thereafter, I joined AMSN’s national organization.
In the past, I taught nursing schools as an adjunct clinical instructor teaching medical-surgical care. I thought by becoming a member of AMSN I could stay in the loop with medical-surgical hot topics. Also, I believed being a member would assist me with building a knowledge base to provide my students with tools to enhance their skills in the practice while at clinical sites caring for patients.
In 2016, after joining AMSN, I was informed about one of the many scholarship opportunities that AMSN previously offered to its members: the Nurse in Washington Internship grant. In addition to having an MSN, I hold a Master of Jurisprudence in Health Law & Policy from Loyola University of Chicago’s School of Law. With this degree and my interest in legislative work, I thought to myself, “Hey, I think I’ll apply for this grant. It sounds exciting!” To have an opportunity to travel to Washington to visit with my elective representatives in Congress and experience everything involved with this opportunity, I just couldn’t pass it up. That year I was named the recipient of the grant and spent two days learning how to legislate and be a nurse advocate, specifically for the medical-surgical specialty.
Upon my immediate return from Washington, I joined AMSN’s Legislative Committee, where I became a team member, and two years in was appointed as the committee chairperson. I served for a seven-year period on the committee. I absorbed as much information as I could about the legislation process. I also developed management skills, planning and navigating the meetings, working closely with other team members, and — though I didn’t know it at the time — becoming a leader. Additionally, the Legislative Committee was responsible for writing and submitting articles on legislative hot topics in relation to how it affects nursing. Our articles appeared in a column for “MedSurg Matters!”, AMSN’s publication at the time.
I had found my footing in volunteering with AMSN, and when my committee time ended, I was looking where I could serve next. Honestly, I just wanted to continue giving more time somewhere and in some capacity to the organization. It didn’t take long before I was asked to do some work on a nine-month task force project. I said yes to the offer, and when that ended, I was happy to have been part of the work we accomplished as a group.
What was your journey to the AMSN Board of Directors, and why did you decide to join the board?
At some point in between my being a committee chair and doing work on a task force, I recognized that while in those roles, I was performing leadership responsibilities. It was an eye-opener that I was being a leader, so why not join the board? When I joined AMSN, my goal was to attend the annual conventions. I wanted to take advantage of the learning opportunities as much as I could. I found the conventions were focused on developing, strengthening, and broadening nursing leadership skills and providing a forum for members to communicate with each other regarding what was happening within the medical-surgical nursing space. I was being prepared for the next step, which led to the AMSN Board of Directors.
What are your goals as a member of the AMSN Board of Directors?
As a board member, my goal is to uphold the mission and vision of AMSN by providing support to its members in accordance with the bylaws and, of course, under the leadership and guidance of AMSN President Dr. Kristi Reguin-Hartman, who has phenomenal goals and ideas for AMSN and its members.
I believe our goal is to meet members where they are and continue to listen to their concerns and requests regarding what they would like to see coming from the organization, and as board members, we’re focused on meeting their needs.
What are you most excited about at AMSN and in the field of medical-surgical nursing?
I’m excited for all AMSN represents and offers to its members: medical-surgical nurses. It should be noted that 80% of the nursing workforce is made up of medical-surgical nurses; that’s an impressive number. I’m excited for AMSN and the medical-surgical nursing community.
Today, a more diverse nursing workforce exists. There are a great number of male nurses working and enrolled in programs as well as a variety of ethnicities in the workforce. Legislative-wise, the workforce has seen policies like safe patient/staffing ratios meeting the needs of nurses, and I see this as a win. AMSN has been part of such policy changes because it is a consistent voice for the medical-surgical specialty.
What is one contribution you’ve made to medical-surgical nursing, big or small, that you are most proud of?
Today, certification is of growing importance for the practice of medical-surgical nursing in facilities where medical-surgical nurses are employed, and I am the biggest cheerleader for certification. I am proud of accomplishing my goal of becoming certified in medical-surgical nursing, and I wear my CMSRN pin proudly on my work ID (I’m smiling ear-to-ear). Last year, I reached my 10th year of being certified! It’s such an honor — a rewarding accomplishment of achievement.
Certification recognizes you as an expert and leader in the specialty of medical-surgical nursing, and your patients trust your confidence to deliver exceptional care. This year, my goal for my department is to bring as many nurses as possible on board the certification journey. Part of what I’m doing is disseminating information to them and answering their questions about the process. It is my hope that every nurse makes a conscious decision to work toward becoming certified.
What is something you’d like members to know about you that they might not already know?
I have great admiration for the profession of nursing. I advocate on behalf of nurses in every capacity when there’s an opportunity. A little-known fact about me is that I am a self-published author. I published a book titled “RN Bound: A Guide to Becoming a Successful Nurse” and currently am working on the second edition. The initial printing of my first edition has sold out! Wow! I don’t know what to say.
I do want to end by saying you are your own success. Set goals for yourself and work toward reaching them. As nurses, you are the strength to the profession — to medical-surgical nursing.
For more information about the AMSN Board of Directors, visit the AMSN website.