Welcome to the March 2008 edition of the International Journal of Nursing in Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities.

By Ann Smith MSN, RN, CDDN

This is an exciting time in the history of the journal. The Developmental Disabilities Nurses Association (DDNA) has always been supportive of the journal and had a link to the journal on their website. Now DDNA has decided to add another new "leaf" to the organization. The DDNA Board voted to have the International Journal of Nursing in Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IJNIDD) become part of DDNA. As founder and Editor of IJNIDD, I am delighted that the journal, which once started out as a dream and became a reality, will have a permanent long-lasting home with DDNA. I strongly feel that IJNIDD will be greatly enhanced by this transition. Although the journal was always accessible and free of charge to readers worldwide, the link to the journal on DDNA's website home page had been accessible to DDNA members only. Now, in keeping with the mission of the journal, non-members will be able to access the journal from the link on the home page of DDNA's website or by going directly to http://journal.ddna.org

The journal will continue to provide information on a wide range of topics and will address clinical, non-clinical and research issues.

The importance of further nursing research can be shown in the articles presented in this publication:

John Boisseau and Roseann Barrett discuss issues related to the fact that people with developmental disabilities often miss critical health screenings. The authors point out the importance of health promotion in disease prevention and health maintenance, and describe specific gaps based on many healthcare providers' misinformation, inadequate knowledge or harmful attitudes related to the special health promotion needs of people with developmental disabilities.

Shelley Moriston's article describes the widespread lack of formal nursing preparation among healthcare providers related to their ability to meet the special needs of women with developmental disabilities, particularly in the area of cancer screening.

Both articles indicate the importance of nursing advocacy in health promotion and maintenance. The article by Jennifer Drake, Leslie Couse, Pamela DiNapoli and Mary Banach mentions health promotion from a different perspective, including the importance of self-advocacy within the family, and offers a case study of the nurse's role in helping a family with a young child with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

In reading these articles you can clearly see the great need for further research if we are to provide high quality supports to people with intellectual and developmental disabilities throughout their lifespan in diverse practice settings. Therefore, we invite you to share your expertise with other readers from around the world to enhance their knowledge and skills.

The next publication will be dedicated to Evidence-Based Practice in Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Nursing. We are pleased to report that Joan Earle Hahn, PhD, APRN, BC, CDDN will be guest editor for the upcoming edition.

We continue to seek articles for publications that not only are dedicated to a specific theme but also for publications that contain diverse topics. For those who are just beginning to write and wonder how to turn your ideas into manuscripts, a great place to get information will be at DDNA’s June 2008 annual conference in Connecticut. One of the breakout sessions is entitled, You Can Do It: A Starter Kit for Writing about What You Do.

Please see the submission guidelines and send a letter of interest with a brief description of your manuscript to: Ann Smith, Editor, at: asmith4@comcast.net.

In the meantime, please peruse the articles, book reviews and other information in this publication and past issues as well. We welcome your feedback on any information provided and look forward to hearing from you.

Ann Smith, MSN, RN, CDDN has over thirty years experience in the field of intellectual and developmental disabilities nursing and was among the first group of nurses to receive certification as a Certified Developmental Disabilities Nurse (CDDN). Her experience covers the life span of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) in a variety of settings, including work with families of children and adults with (I/DD). Since 1982 she worked at the Evergreen Center in Milford, Massachusetts, where she served as Director of Health Services and now works part time as Health Services Advisor. She has been involved in various educational and advocacy roles and professional organizations. In the past she served as Secretary on the Board of Directors of Personal Advocacy and Lifetime Support (PALS) and Second Vice President of the Developmental Disabilities Nurses Association (DDNA). As a charter member and Treasurer of the Bay State Developmental Disabilities Nurse Network (BSDDNN), the regional network of DDNA, she also held positions as Vice President and President of BSDDNN. Ann completed a fellowship in the Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and Related Disabilities (LEND) Program at the Shriver Center in Waltham, Massachusetts, where she participated with other LEND Fellows as co-editor of the community membership issue and later was guest editor of the genetics issue of the on-line journal, Leadership Perspectives in Developmental Disability. When she was a LEND Fellow, her vision regarding the need to educate all nurses in the area of intellectual and developmental disabilities led to the initiation of the development of the International Journal of Nursing in Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities.