Nursing anesthesia program represents at symposium

The Augusta University College of Nursing’s Nursing Anesthesia Program faculty and students attended the Georgia Anesthesia Symposium last month in Savannah, during which students and faculty accounted for over one-third of the poster presentations.

The symposium is hosted by the Georgia Association of Nurse Anesthetists, which aims to advance patient safety and certified registered nurse anesthetists practice through advocacy, education and member engagement. GANA has nearly 1,500 members and is one of the oldest and largest CRNA state organizations in the United States.

Shannon Broxton, DNP, NAP program director, received the Rosalie McDonald Award. McDonald spearheaded the establishment of GANA in 1938 along with 16 other CRNAs. She became GANA’s first president and later went on to serve as the president of the American Association of Nurse Anesthetists.

Each year, GANA honors McDonald’s legacy by presenting the award to an outstanding Georgia CRNA for their contributions to the profession. Broxton is recognized for her sustained excellence to anesthesia and commitment to CRNAs and SRNAs.

Notably, NAP faculty and alumni now hold six of the 10 GANA board positions: Broxton (2009), president-elect; Reed Halterman, DNP (2014), immediate past president; Maegan Brass (2010), president; Matt Oxford (2021), secretary; William Howell (2020), treasurer; and Jake Kessen (2017), treasurer-elect.

CRNAs administer the majority of the country’s anesthesia services. There are more than 59,000 CRNAs and SRNAs in the United States. In Georgia, CRNAs are the primary anesthesia provider to those living in rural areas. Georgia CRNAs practice in traditional hospital settings, delivery rooms, surgical centers, dentists’ offices and more. They serve in the U.S. military, public health sector and the Department of Veteran Affairs.

List of presentations

• Education on Improving Interdisciplinary Communication to Prevent Surgical Cancelations; A Program Evaluation (Brittany Baxter, BSN, SRNA and Tagel Wilson, BSN, SRNA; faculty: Kimberly Rodriguez, DNP, CRNA)
• Evaluation and Creation of a Post–Operative Handoff Process (Austin Brannen, BSN, SRNA and Travis Shoop, BSN, SRNA; faculty: Reed Halterman, DNP, CRNA)
• AUMC Nurse Handoff Report ER to ICU Evaluation (Dillon Collier, SRNA and Kyle Kelly, SRNA; faculty: Reed Halterman, DNP, CRNA)
• Nurse Perception of Intrahospital Handoff Tool (Beth Cagle, RN, BSN, SRNA and Anna Gill, RN, BSN, SRNA; faculty: Kimberly Rodriguez, DNP, CRNA)
• The Flipped Classroom Pedagogy Improves Nursing Anesthesia Education (Reed Halterman, DNP, CRNA, Shannon Broxton, DNP, CRNA and Thomas V. Joshua, PhD)
• Implementation and Evaluation of a Perioperative Temperature Management Protocol in Pediatric Surgical Patients (Laurie Yates DNP, CRNA and Chuan Hicks DNP, CRNA)
• Barriers to Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) Compliance (Corey Kocisk, BSN, SRNA and Chase England, BSN, SRNA; faculty: Kimberly Rodriguez, DNP, CRNA)
• Evaluation of Preoperative Renal Risk-Stratification Assessment for Development of Acute Kidney Injury (AKI) Augusta University Medical Center (Lauren Ruth, BSN, SRNA and Christine Sosebee, BSN, SRNA; faculty: Reed Halterman, DNP, CRNA)
• Workplace Incivility Among Operating Room Nurses During COVID-19 (Louisa D. Martin, PhD)
• Strategies for Promoting Civility in Nursing Learning Environments (Louisa D. Martin, PhD, Jane K. Dickinson, PhD and Kupiri W. Ackerman-Barger, PhD)