Awards were given to honor outstanding contributors to the nurse anesthesia profession at the Opening Ceremonies Sunday.
Program Director of the Year
Kathleen Fagerlund, CRNA, PhD, received the Program Director of the Year Award Sunday. Established in 1991, this award is presented to a CRNA who has made a significant contribution as a program director to the educational process of student nurse anesthetists. The award recognizes the commitment of individuals to the profession of nurse anesthesia and to the advancement of educational standards that further the art and science of anesthesia and result in high-quality patient care.
Fagerlund is the program director and clinical associate professor coordinator of the nurse anesthesia area of study at the University of Minnesota, School of Nursing. A program director for nearly 20 years, Fagerlund makes it her mission to connect with each student on an individual basis and then further tailors her curriculum in every class she teaches.
Clinical Instructor of the Year
Established in 1991, the Clinical Instructor of the Year Award was given to Michael Wolf, CRNA, MHS, APNP, for his significant contribution to the teaching of student nurse anesthetists in the clinical area.
Wolf is the staff clinician, senior partner, and vice president of Central Wisconsin Anesthesia Associates, Berlin, Wis. After serving in the military as an anesthetist, Wolf established a unique nurse anesthesia rotation program at this facility that has benefitted student nurse anesthetists for more than 15 years.
Didactic Instructor of the Year Award
The Didactic Instructor of the Year Award, established in 1991, is presented to an individual who has made a significant contribution to the education of student nurse anesthetists in the classroom. This year’s Didactic Instructor of the Year Award winner is James Norton, PhD.
Norton has been teaching physiology to student nurse anesthetists at the University of New England in Portland, Maine, for more than 25 years. His teaching philosophy emphasizes providing students with critical thinking skills and other lessons they likely cannot get from textbooks alone. Norton is the chair and professor of the Department of Physiology and adjunct professor at the School of Nurse Anesthesia at the University of New England.
John F. Garde Researcher of the Year Award
The AANA Foundation honors Charles Griffis, CRNA, PhD, with the Researcher of the Year Award for his significant contribution and commitment to the practice of anesthesia through clinical research. The Researcher of the Year Award was established in 1999 by the AANA Foundation, the research and education arm of the AANA.
Griffis is an assistant administrative director, clinical instructor, and education director for the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) in the Department of Anesthesiology, as well as an assistant clinical professor in the School of Medicine. He has authored and coauthored nearly 40 research articles, book chapters, and review articles and has lectured extensively on topics relating to anesthesia, research, nursing pharmacology, and pain management.
Advocate of the Year Award
A St. Louis nurse anesthetist was honored for promoting quality anesthesia care through local legislative channels. The AANA Foundation gave the Advocate of the Year Award to Vicki Coopmans, CRNA, PhD, for her advocacy, commitment, and support for this effort.
Coopmans works as an assistant director and associate professor of the nurse anesthesia program at Barnes-Jewish College, in St. Louis, Mo., and as a CRNA at the Washington University School of Medicine, also in St. Louis. Coopmans has served as a state representative for the AANA Foundation for the past 7 years, and her activity has significantly increased monetary donations and awareness of the Foundation.
Philanthropist of the Year Award
Joyce Kelly, CRNA, EdD, and Patrick Downey, CRNA, were honored with this Year’s Rita L. LeBlanc Philanthropist of the Year Award.
For providing more than 40 years of service and countless volunteer hours in support of the nurse anesthesia profession, Patrick Downey, CRNA, is the co-recipient of this year’s Rita L. LeBlanc Philanthropist of the Year Award. The award recognizes Downey for his humane spirit through donating time, charitable actions, and direct financial support to the AANA Foundation.
Downey’s leadership roles include serving as president and vice president of the AANA, and serving two nonconsecutive presidency terms for the Wisconsin Association of Nurse Anesthetists. Since 1968, Downey has played an active role in the nurse anesthesia community on both a national and state level. Downey is a retired nurse anesthetist who remains active in local and national issues pertaining to the specialty of nurse anesthesia.
For freely giving of her time and expertise making valuable contributions to the AANA Foundation, Pioneers, and the AANA, Kelly is the co-recipient of the Philanthropist of the Year Award. She has served on many state and national committees. and shows continued support of the AANA Foundation through her Friends for Life membership, active involvement as a Foundation Pioneer and participation in the Sponsor a Student Program. Kelly also volunteers at two local museums in Pasadena, Calif., one of which she was instrumental in helping raise $175,000 in 2009.
Public Interest in Anesthesia Award
The Anesthesia Patient Safety Foundation (APSF) was honored with the Public Interest in Anesthesia Award, which was established in 1991 and is given to a person or group who has made a significant contribution regarding anesthesia safety, quality of care, or social and health issues in the field of anesthesia. APSF President Robert Stoelting, MD, accepted the award. The APSF was launched in late 1985 as an independent nonprofit corporation with the vision that “that no patient shall be harmed by anesthesia.” Members of the APSF Board of Directors represent a broad spectrum of stakeholders, including anesthesiologists, nurse anesthetists, nurses, manufacturers of equipment and drugs, regulators, risk managers, attorneys, insurers, and engineers.
Public Relations Recognition Awards
Now in its 30th year, the AANA Public Relations Recognition Award was established to recognize outstanding public relations efforts. Entries were judged by members of the AANA Public Relations Committee on the basis of their objectives, execution, and results.
2010 Winners:
Best Overall Public Relations Effort for the Past Year
Missouri Association of Nurse Anesthetists
Best Public Relations Effort by a Small State Association
Maine Association of Nurse Anesthetists
Best Promotional Effort for National Nurse Anesthetists Week
New York Association of Nurse Anesthetists