Another Year, Another Professional Development Scholarship

In 2023 the Capitol Lakes Foundation was able to send Melanie Siltala, our Minimum Data Set (MDS) Coordinator, to an annual conference that helps MDS nurses interpret the federal government's data collection requirements that come out each October. At the end of last year's conference, Melanie was already looking forward to attending in 2024 pursuant to continued support from the Foundation.

Thanks to your generosity over the last year, the Capitol Lakes Foundation was able to once again approve a Professional Development Scholarship to send Melanie to the American Association of Post-Acute Care Nursing Conference hosted in Florida this last April. At the conference Melanie was able to confer with her colleagues on yet another new round of important data collection changes. Here is what she had to say about the experience:

I am so grateful to the Foundation for giving me the opportunity to attend the Annual MDS/AAPACAN Conference again this year. I always use this time to re-examine how I am approaching different aspects of my position and how I can improve. October is the month that all the changes to the Minimum Data Set roll out from the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). April, when the conference is held, is the time to make sure that how you interpreted the changes are how others interpreted those changes. Sometimes you may need to realign your mindset with others. Overall this was a good conference this year and I did walk away with better insight then I did last year.

Providing professional support and growth opportunities to motivated staff like Melanie is one way we keep great people working at Capitol Lakes. Your contributions to the Foundation's Staff Support fund make these scholarships available year after year to Capitol Lakes employees. Thanks for making Capitol Lakes a place where people want to work!