I am so excited to have been apart of this branding session for Rhode Island Association of Nurse Anesthetists (RIANA). Four of these images will be published soon in Rhode Island Monthly magazine, so look out for the ad!!! Some of the other images will be used in pamphlets, brochures and for education.

If you have ever had anesthesia; either at an outpatient clinic or in the hospital, chances are a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA) is the one who gave you "the good stuff." Baby deliveries, pain blocks, localized anesthesia or have been fully assisted off to dream land, CRNA's are the unrecognized hero's that most people give credit to Anesthesiologists.

So what's the difference?

• A CRNA has years of training and work experience firstly as a Registered Nurse and then advanced practice education and training in anesthesia. Typically, a Master's Degree is the minimum educational level to become a CRNA with about 7-8 of years of education and training. Anesthesiologist's are medical doctors (MD).


• CRNA's deliver the same high-quality anesthesia care as Anesthesiologists. But here's the rub...Medicare pays the same amount no matter if the anesthesia was provided by a CRNA or an Anesthesiologist whose salaries are 2.5x's greater. 

"CRNAs are highly valued in today’s healthcare environment because they deliver the same safe, high-quality anesthesia care as other anesthesia professionals but at a lower cost, helping to control rising healthcare costs...Managed care plans recognize CRNAs for providing high-quality anesthesia care with reduced expense to patients and insurance companies."

When I spoke to RIANA's secretary Sara Dempsey, her passion for educating other's about the high-quality of care and the great benefit CRNA's provide to our medical system was evident. She wanted me to know that these photos that we created were extremely important to show others what CRNA's do, the top-notch anesthesia care they give and the great cost saving benefit to patients and insurance companies that their service provides. Talking with her, I believe that in the next 20 years that based on the cost and quality of care CRNA's are able to provide, they will be the ones the majority of the time administering anesthesia.

The issue lies in this, before reading this post did you know what a CRNA was? Had you ever heard of this advance practice nursing profession before??? Most likely unless you know someone who is a CRNA, the answer would be no. This is where the importance of RIANA comes in to educate the community about this profession, for them to lobby for CRNA rights and to recruit the next generation of anesthetists!

If you've stayed with me for this long in the post, here's the other part as to why I was so excited to be apart of RIANA's branding session: my husband is a CRNA! I've seen his passion and love of the profession. If we ever meet to do a family or senior session and you say you're thinking about going into nursing, I will try to persuade you to choose anesthesia. I really do love the family time we are still able to have because my husband works operating room hours. Nurse Anesthesia has been so good for our family! Thank you to RIANA for all you do!