Relax and dream a little dream with us is the mantra of the Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNAs) at Jackson County Memorial Hospital. Currently the eight CRNAs working at JCMH are Holly Register, Mark Vadney, Jessica Poe, Johnny Sacco, Mark Waterman, Nicole Nelson, Brian Knight, and Winnette Warren-Musa. Nurse anesthetists across the country will be celebrating the 11th annual National Nurse Anesthetists Week beginning January 24-30, 2010.
“National Nurse Anesthetist Week serves as an opportunity to promote the fact that throughout history, nurse anesthetists have furthered the art of science and nurse anesthesia to ensure patients receive high quality anesthesia care,” said Holly Register. “Dreaming a little dream is exactly what patients can do, knowing that a CRNA is by their side monitoring their vital signs and adjusting their anesthetics while they are asleep – we will handle the rest.”
This year’s catchphrase We Never Miss a Beat touts the quality of care that nurse anesthetists pride themselves on providing patients. To offer the safest anesthesia possible, nurse anesthetists remain by their patients’ side every moment of their procedure, monitoring them and making sure they have a comfortable and safe anesthesia experience. It is important for CRNAs to be aware of every heartbeat, every breath, and be ready to quickly respond if necessary.
Established by the American Association of Nurse Anesthetists (AANA) in 2000, National Nurse Anesthetists Week was created to highlight the nurse anesthesia profession and allow CRNAs to educate the public about anesthesia safety, questions to ask prior to undergoing surgery, and the benefits of receiving anesthesia care from nurse anesthetists.
Nurse anesthetists are advanced practice nurses who administer approximately 30 million anesthetics in the United States each year. Practicing in every setting where anesthesia is available, CRNAs are the sole anesthesia providers in nearly 100 percent of all rural hospitals, and have been the main provider of anesthesia care to U.S. service men and women on the front lines since World War I.
“I take pride in belonging to a profession that has been at the forefront of anesthesia patient safety for nearly 150 years. Nurse anesthetists have played a key role in developing trends related to monitoring technology, anesthetic drugs, provider education, and patient safety. In fact, anesthesia today is nearly 50 times safer than it was in the early 1980s,” said Register.
Founded in 1931 and located in Park Ridge, Ill., the AANA is the professional organization for more than 90 percent of the nation’s CRNAs. To learn more learn more about National Nurse Anesthetists Week or the AANA, visit www.aana.com/nnawpublic.aspx
