The Forum on Diversity and Inclusion is an integral part of the AANA Annual Meeting and brings the topic of diversity in the Association, the workplace, and patients to the forefront.
“The Forum gives an opportunity for those present to get involved in the discussion of diversity in the field of nurse anesthesia,” said Kara Chlebek, MPA, education specialist for the AANA.
Jose M. Acosta, CRNA, DNP, assistant professor of Anesthesiology and Allied Health Sciences at Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, will lead this forum with his speech on cultural perceptions from 7 p.m. to 7:45 p.m. After the lecture, the session will break into an open forum during which attendees can offer feedback and discuss the topics of cultural perceptions and promoting diversity in the field.
The Forum is designed to educate the nurse anesthesia community on the differences in healthcare based on race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status. Attendees will leave the session with ideas on how to define culture, ethnicity, and perception; describe perceptions in the Hispanic, African-American, and Pacific Islander cultures; discuss participation in the profession; and examine ethnicity trends in nursing, nurse anesthesia, and medicine.
By recognizing differences among these groups, anesthesia professionals can understand differences among their patients, treat on an individual basis, and as a result, provide better care.