NC Emergency Nurses Symposium

Cyril “Cy” Amoin, DSc, RN, CEN, is Atrium Health’s emergency/trauma nurse. He serves in professional governance roles, including the Quality, Trauma, and Optimization teams. He is also the chair of the Advocate Health Southeast Nursing Research and EBP Council. Cy has a strong passion for nursing science and is convinced that direct-care nurses can contribute to advancing the practice and value of the profession. He is certified in trauma, critical care, cardiac, and flight nursing.

Kathy Barnard, MSN, RN, CEN, has been a nurse for 26 years, 22 of which have been dedicated to Emergency Medicine. She currently serves as the Nurse Manager of the Adult Emergency Department at a Level 1 Trauma Center in Charlotte, NC, where she has the privilege of leading an incredible team. In 2023, her ED was awarded the prestigious Lantern Award—a testament to their commitment to excellence in emergency care—and they look forward to reapplying in 2026. Kathy is passionate about advancing emergency nursing and supporting the next generation of nurse leaders. She is married and has two amazing boys.

Ron Bolen, MSN, RN, CEN, CCRN, is a Clinical Assistant Professor at East Carolina University College of Nursing. He brings decades of experience in emergency, critical care, and transport nursing that is complemented by a strong academic and military background. Bolen received his BSN from James Madison University and holds a Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) from The University of Alabama. He is currently pursuing a PhD in Nursing.

Deena Brecher, MSN, RN, ACNS-BC, CEN, CPEN, FAEN, is a dynamic emergency nursing leader with a passion for helping nurses be the best they can be. She has been an emergency nurse for over 25 years, practicing in various roles including the Clinical Director for Emergency Services at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital. She firmly believes being involved in your professional association will open doors you never dreamed even existed and is grateful to have served as President of the Emergency Nurses Association in 2014. In her current role as the Chief Nursing Officer at Mednition, she ensures nurses are at the table when designing, testing, validating, and deploying AI being used by nurses.

Andi Foley, DNP, RN, APRN-CNS, CEN, TCRN, EMT, FCNS, FAEN, is an emergency clinical nurse specialist for St Luke’s Health System in western Idaho. With her 25+ year career spanning six states in emergency departments ranging from 7 to 84 beds, Andi is an avid advocate for emergency nurses to practice within their specialty providing safe, high-quality care. As with many CNSs of any specialty, Andi is a #Nerd for EBP with particular interest in emergency triage and trauma care. When not relaxing with a good editing project, Andi spends some of her “free time” volunteering as an EMT with her local rural EMS agency.

Bethany Fox, MBA-HCM, BSN, RN, CCM, CEN, is a Clinical Nurse IV at WakeMed Cary Hospital with over 25 years of nursing experience who loves the Emergency Department. Bethany is Certified Case Manager and a Certified Emergency Nurse who is always seeking ways to improve patient care and satisfaction as well as co-worker satisfaction, safety, and engagement. In her spare time, she is a dance mom to her eldest daughter, Rachel; is a proud Taekwondo mom to Celeste and Ben; alters dance costumes; volunteers at church; runs; and tries to keep up with her daughter’s high school reading syllabus. Bethany is a First Degree Black Belt in Taekwondo and especially loves sparring after a tough shift at work. Bethany, her husband, Steve, and the children live in Apex.

Sarah Miles, MBA, BSN, RN, CEN, TCRN, SANE-A, is a masters-prepared nurse that serves as the Nurse Manager of Greenville Memorial Hospital, Emergency Trauma Center. Sarah has over ten years of experience as a nurse in both critical care and emergency medicine, and five years of nursing leadership experience. She has multiple certifications in her specialty and served as the 2022 Foothills ENA Secretary. Sarah maintains operations in the GMH Level 1 Trauma Center and focuses on quality initiatives along with recruitment and retention. She also continues to provide direct patient care in her role as SANE.

Cassie Mueller, DNP, RN, PCCN, CNML, SANE-A, TCRN, CENP, is masters-prepared nurse and is currently serving as the Director of Nursing for Emergency Services at Greenville Memorial Hospital and North Greenville Hospital. These emergency departments range from a level-one trauma center to a rural community-based ED. She has the privilege of supporting leaders and clinical nurses to improve patient experience, quality outcomes, and team member engagement. Cassie maintains multiple certifications in her specialty and recently completed a DNP program. In addition to her leadership role, she continues to provide care to patients as a SANE.

Stephanie O’Bryon, DNP, RN, NEA-BC, is a Doctor of Nursing Practice Nursing Executive in Charlotte, NC, with a track record of proven results with teams and patient outcomes for over ten years. A nurse since 1995, she was privileged to glean clinical and leadership experience from NICU, Women’s Health, Emergency Department, Oncology, and Complex Behavioral Health nursing. For the past decade, Stephanie has remained in the emergency department where she works to infuse information learned in other areas to help guide and direct practice decisions. Her Main ED achieved ENA Lantern status in 2023 and the team recently won the 2024 Heart of Shared Governance Award for their facility which recognizes the top Unit Based Council for engagement and outcomes. Passionate about teams, innovation, relationship building, complex environments, safety, and improving workplace cultures, Stephanie’s emergency department teams work relentlessly to try and improve all. Now recognizing the increase in violent events in the emergency departments, she is working closely with others (from front-line to government relations) to mitigate and reduce incidence however possible. She has also engaged key stakeholders in this work to create the safest environments possible while steadfastly supporting teammates who experience violent events due to her core belief that violence is not part of the job.

Savannah Perschke, MS, RN, CPEN, SANE-A, SANE-P, is currently a pediatric emergency room nurse at Greenville Memorial Hospital, and a SANE for the Prisma system. She graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh with a BSN in 2018 and started her nursing career in a rural 6-bed emergency department, followed by an in inner city Milwaukee hospital. Savannah and her family moved to Greenville, SC, in 2019 where she started in the pediatric emergency room. She later completed a Masters Degree in Nursing Education from Clemson University in 2022. Savannah has a passion for teaching pathophysiology with a pediatric specific lens. She is currently an adjunct nursing instructor at Greenville Technical College. Savannah earned her CPEN shortly after starting in the pediatric emergency room. She also holds a duel certification for adult, adolescent, and pediatric sexual assault nurse examiner. Savannah is a long time member of ENA as well as the president-elect of the Foothills Chapter of SCENA. She also is an ENPC instructor.

Kate Phillips, MSN, RN, CEN, SANE-A, NPD-BC, is a Nursing Professional Development Specialist at WakeMed Health and Hospitals in Raleigh, North Carolina. She has been a registered nurse for 19 years with a background in emergency nursing. She has held positions in staffing and leadership, and she is also a SANE-A. She obtained her master’s in nursing education from Western Carolina University. She has been published in the Advanced Emergency Nursing Journal for her article entitled Emergency Nursing Burnout and Resilience. She has also presented at several national nursing conferences such as the Society of Trauma Nurses and the International Association for Forensic Nurses. Within her current role at WakeMed, she is the Residency program co-coordinator, the ED resident facilitator, and the AHA BLS coordinator. In her free time, Kate enjoys running and spending time at the beach with her family.

Amy Short, MSN, RN, NEA-BC, is the Nursing Director for the ED, Clinical Evaluation Area, and Invasive Cath Lab at WakeMed Cary Hospital. She holds a Master’s in Nursing from University of Texas in Arlington and is currently enrolled in the DNP program at East Carolina University. Amy is Nurse Executive Advanced Board Certified. Most of her 33 years of nursing experience has been in the Emergency Department. She is an active member of the Cardinal Chapter of the ENA. In her spare time (not that she has much), Amy enjoys traveling, shopping, and spending time with family. She lives in Fuquay-Varina with her husband David. They have one son, Nathan.

Andie Slivinski, DNP, APRN, ACNS-BC, CEN, CPEN, TCRN, is the Clinical Nurse Specialist for the trauma program at Mission Hospital in Asheville, NC. She has spent over 20 years in Emergency Nursing serving in a variety of roles, including stretcher side nurse, educator, and Clinical Nurse Specialist since 2008. She is also adjunct faculty for Western Carolina University, serving students for both the accelerated BSN program and DNP program. Dr. Slivinski received both her bachelors degree in nursing and masters degree as Clinical Nurse Specialist from Wright State University, and her Doctor of Nursing Practice from Ohio State university in 2016. She holds multiple specialty certifications in emergency and trauma nursing. She has also been an active ENA member on multiple national ENA committees, most recently the Clinical Practice Guidelines Committee since 2017 and currently serving as chair to this committee.

Audrey Snyder, PhD, RN, ACNP-BC, GNP-BC, CEN, CCRN, FAEN, FAANP, FAAN, is a passionate nurse, nurse practitioner, educator, and researcher. She is Dean of the School of Nursing at Widener University and is certified as an acute care and family nurse practitioner. Audrey has a passion for building working teams to address community and educational needs. Her significant contributions have focused on disaster resilience, promoting access to care for rural and under-resourced populations, and decreasing barriers to accessing advanced education for rural and underrepresented nurses. Audrey is a founding member of the Global Rural Nurse Exchange Network and is the recipient of the 2023 Lillian Wald Humanitarian Award by the National League for Nursing. She has been honored as a Fellow in the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners, the Academy of Emergency Nurses, and the American Academy of Nursing.

Mary Alice Vanhoy, MSN, RN, CEN, CPEN, NRP, FAEN, is the nurse manager at the University of MD Shore Emergency Center. As an ENA member for over 40 years and a fellow in the Academy of Emergency Nursing, she speaks at many local, state, and national conferences and educational programs. She also serves in various leadership positions in Maryland ENA and on national committees. Currently, she serves on the Academy of Emergency Nursing Board of Directors and as a member of the ENA Clinical Practice Guideline Committee. In addition to emergency nursing, she has volunteered as a paramedic and fire department officer for over 45 years.

Ram Upadhyaya, DNP, MSN, MBA, APRN, CRRN, CCHP, FNP-BC, affectionately known as “Dr. Ram,” is a seasoned healthcare professional with over 35 years of diverse experience across multiple domains of healthcare. His career began as a combat medic in the U.S. Army, where he developed a lifelong dedication to service and healthcare excellence. Throughout his journey, he has worked in hospice, home health, long-term care, emergency and critical care nursing, rehabilitation, and correctional healthcare.