resiliency – Anesthesia Guidebook

I originally released this podcast on April 4, 2020 to offer advice & encouragement to SRNAs who had been furloughed from clinical due to the COVID-19 pandemic. While elements of this show speak specifically to that context, the themes ring true for overcoming any set back during anesthesia school.

At the time, our level 1 trauma center, along with hospitals across the nation, clamped down on all non-essential staff, removing medical students, nursing students, SRNAs and others from the clinical environment in order to reduce their risk of exposure to COVID-19 and reduce transmission rates in general. This was an unprecedented moment for SRNAs across the nation. Adrienne Chavez and Kelly Gallant and I talked about that on the last episode of Anesthesia Guidebook. They were SRNA representatives to the AANA Health & Wellness Committee at the time and shared their stories of what they were facing and how they were keeping their focus on moving forward as the pandemic spread worldwide.

With anesthesia school, you gotta believe that the juice is worth the squeeze and keep your eyes on the finish line while finding ways to cope and be successful along the way. So again, while this show was originally focused on how SRNAs can deal with the set back of being furloughed from clinical because of the pandemic, the themes and advice I share is applicable to almost any set back you may be facing. So with that in mind, let’s get right to the show!

References:

Edmond Eger NYTimes Tribute:

Grady, D. (20 September 2017). Dr. Edmond Eger II, 86, Dies: Found Way to Make Anesthesia Safer. The New York Times. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/20/obituaries/dr-edmond-eger-ii-86-dies-found-way-to-make-anesthesia-safer.html.Audio Player

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This podcast was originally posted on April 13, 2020, in the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic. At the time of this podcast both Kelly Gallant and Adrienne Chavez were SRNAs completing their anesthesia training. They have both completed their training and passed boards as CRNAs. This show continues to have value for SRNAs & anesthesia residents as the themes we discuss around wellness & resiliency remain as relevant as ever.

At the time of this recording, Kelly and Adrienne were the immediate past and current SRNA Representatives to the American Association of Nurse Anesthestists’s Health and Wellness Committee, with Kelly serving in 2019 and Adrienne in 2020. I caught up with them to discuss how SRNAs were facing the challenges and concerns of the COVID-19 pandemic as well as resources that Kelly and Adrienne created, along with the rest of the Health & Wellness Committee, that are available on aana.com.

Kelly Gallant, PhD, SRNA is wrapping up her training this spring at Northeastern University in Boston. She received her Bachelor’s degree from Northeastern in 2010 and spent 8 years working in the surgical intensive care unit as a Registered Nurse while researching pediatric pulmonary hypertension and caregiver reactions as part of her PhD, which she completed at Northeastern in 2017. Kelly then returned to school to study anesthesia and will graduate from Northeastern’s Nurse Anesthesia program with her Master of Science in May 2020. Kelly was the fiscal year 2019 SRNA Representative to the AANA Health & Wellness Committee.

Adrienne Chavez, BSN, SRNA is currently training at the University of Maryland. Adrienne received two Bachelor’s of Science degrees from the University of Maryland, one in psychology and the other in nursing. She is currently enrolled in the University of Maryland’s Doctor of Nursing Practice program with an anticipated graduation date of May 2021. Most recently she worked at the National Institutes of Health as a critical care Registered Nurse. She is the fiscal year 2020 SRNA Representative to the AANA Health & Wellness Committee.

Resources from the AANA Health & Wellness Committee:

aana.com/covid19 – AANA developed this great resource which has answers to questions SRNAs and CRNAs are asking. The website is constantly updated to include the latest news & information relevant to the current pandemic with topics including clinical practice, critical care management, COVID-19 employment issues, the SRNA experience and more.

AANA COVID19 Well-being. This site includes CRNA-produced content on wellness related to the current pandemic, including other podcasts and Aly McLean, CRNA’s “Mindfulness while wearing an N95 mask” video, which is also linked here.

aana.com/thrive
The THRIVE initiative provides resources for the general public and AANA members in regards to career transitions related to the CRNA role. RNs looking to become nurse anesthesia students, new graduate CRNAs looking for their first job, transitioning in mid- to late-career, and retirement are all covered with a multitude of resources.

AANA COVID19 Infographic: https://www.aana.com/docs/default-source/marketing-aana-com-web-documents-(all)/2020_ppr02_flyer_corona_wellbeing_v6.pdf?sfvrsn=e6e394ca_4

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