"On Purpose" Pediatric Conference

Dr. Akins is a developmental and behavioral pediatrician specializing in the care of children with neurodevelopmental disorders. He has special clinical interest and expertise in Autism Spectrum Disorders, Intellectual Disability and Trisomy 21.

Tiffany A. Mullen, MSN, RN, ACCNS-P, CCRN, serves a three-year term as a director on the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN) board of directors from July 1, 2022, through June 30, 2025. As a clinical nurse specialist (CNS) at Children’s Mercy, Kansas City, Missouri, Mullen focuses on improving outcomes for patients, nurses and the organization. She has been a trailblazer as a CNS at Children’s Mercy and a fierce advocate for the pediatric CNS program at her alma mater. Much of her daily work centers on improving clinical outcomes and fostering a culture of safety. She has created and led multiple committees, including a collaborative with ICU nurses and members of the Heart Center, led many unit-based and hospital-wide CLABSI initiatives, created a PICU/CICU Safety Council, implemented a Family Satisfaction Survey, and currently leads the work to restructure the ICU Shared Governance Committees. She also led a small group to develop and implement a trauma ICU course, allowing the hospital’s nurses to learn from a curriculum specific to their patient population. Supporting bedside nurses is her passion! Her volunteer work with AACN includes serving on the AACN – AACN Certification Corporation Nominating Committee (2020), Moral Distress Work Group (2019), Scope and Standards Task Force (2018), CCNS Exam Review Committee (2017) and CCRN Item Writing Committee (2017). She has also been a member of the Kansas City Chapter since 2015, serving in leadership positions as secretary and president. Besides her work with AACN, she created a network of CNS peers who exchange emails weekly and meet virtually on a monthly basis. She is also a member of the Society of Critical Care Medicine, National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists and the Society of Pediatric Nurses. Among her many awards, Mullen received the Society of Pediatric Nurses’ Advanced Practice Nurse of the Year and Children’s Mercy Clinical Excellence Nurse of the Year, both in 2019. She and her husband are high-school sweethearts and love to play soccer with their three daughters. She has even gone scuba diving with sharks – and plans to never scuba dive again! Mullen earned a Master of Science in Nursing at University of Missouri, Columbia, and a Bachelor of General Studies in Psychology and a Bachelor of Science in Nursing at The University of Kansas, Lawrence.

A board certified pediatric emergency physician, Dr. Henry Pollack has a particular interest in children with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). He provided respite care for children and families living with HIV and AIDS for the Hope Project in San Francisco. He also led a program initiative to routinely test for HIV in adolescents in the Pediatric Emergency Department. Dr. Pollack earned his medical degree from Boston University School of Medicine in Boston, Mass. He completed his internship and pediatric residency at Children’s Hospital Oakland in California, and a fellowship in pediatric emergency medicine at Children’s Hospital at Montefiore, Bronx, N.Y. His personal interests include downhill skiing, backpacking, mountain climbing, basketball, poetry and modern art. He has traveled extensively throughout North America, Europe, South America, Asia and Africa. He is competent in medical Spanish.

After leaving the streetlife behind, I have been impacting the citizens of our community in a positive manner for over 15yrs. During this time I have been involoved in street ministry engaging with high risk youth and gang members, a Family Teacher at Boys Town, a Varsity and JV High School basketball coach at Omaha North High, an assistant teacher as ILP (formerly Yates) Alternative School, a Youth Worker at Camp Fire USA (Norris Middle School) and Boys Town, a Site Director for the Urban League of Nebraska (Monroe Middle School), as well as Mental Health Rehabilitation Specialist for Uplift Family Services in Sacramento. I am currently employed by the UC Davis Health Trauma Department as the Violence Intervention Specialist serving the community of Oak Park. I work closely with the resources already in use to impliment prevention and intervention programs to those in need. My goal is simply to bring life, esteem, and a sense of purpose to everyone that I encounter, therefore improving themselves as well as their environment and communities around them.