Nurse Anesthetists Week celebrates passion for patient care

In recognition of their commitment to exceptional patient care, certified registered nurse anesthetists at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center and across the country will celebrate National Nurse Anesthetists Week Sunday to Jan. 25 with the theme, “Our Priority. Our Passion. Our Patients.”

Established by the American Association of Nurse Anesthetists, National Nurse Anesthetists Week was created to encourage CRNAs to take the opportunity to educate the public about anesthesia safety, questions to ask prior to undergoing surgery, and the benefits of receiving anesthesia care from nurse anesthetists.

The theme of this year’s campaign emphasizes the high standards to which CRNAs adhere when administering anesthesia and the quality of care they provide for their patients.

“National Nurse Anesthetists Week serves as an opportunity to inform the public exactly what CRNAs do and who we are,” said Capt. Andrea Hudson, a CRNA at LRMC.

Nurse anesthetists have been providing anesthesia care to patients in the U.S. for 150 years.

Nurse anesthetists have been the main providers of anesthesia care to U.S. military personnel on the front lines since World War I, including the recent wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Nurses first provided anesthesia to wounded service members during the Civil War.

The credential CRNA came into existence in 1956. CRNAs are anesthesia professionals who safely administer more than 34 million anesthetics to patients each year in the U.S. As advanced practice registered nurses, CRNAs practice with a high degree of autonomy and professional respect.

CRNAs provide anesthesia in collaboration with surgeons, anesthesiologists, dentists, podiatrists and other qualified health care professionals. When anesthesia is administered by a nurse anesthetist, it is recognized as the practice of nursing. When administered by an anesthesiologist, it is recognized as the practice of medicine. Whether their educational background is in nursing or medicine, all anesthesia professionals administer anesthesia the same way.

CRNAs practice in every setting in which anesthesia is delivered: traditional hospital surgical suites and obstetrical delivery rooms; critical access hospitals; ambulatory surgical centers; the offices of dentists, podiatrists, ophthalmologists, plastic surgeons and pain management specialists; and U.S. military, public health services and Department of Veterans Affairs health care facilities.

For more information, visit www.aana.com.