[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 128 (Wednesday, July 30, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1615-E1616]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    HONORING WANDA WILSON, CRNA, PhD, MSN PRESIDENT OF THE AMERICAN 
                   ASSOCIATION OF NURSE ANESTHETISTS

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. JANICE D. SCHAKOWSKY

                              of illinois

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, July 30, 2008

  Ms. SCHAKOWSKY. Madam Speaker, today I pay tribute to Wanda Wilson, 
CRNA, PhD, MSN, of the University of Cincinnati and president of the 
American Association of Nurse Anesthetists, located in my congressional 
district. Ms. Wilson will soon complete her year as the 2007-2008 
national president of the AANA, the professional organization 
representing more than 39,000 Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists, 
CRNAs, and student nurse anesthetists in the United States. She has 
provided strong leadership in advocating for the practice of nurse 
anesthesia and the patients who CRNAs serve every day.
  Founded in 1931, the AANA celebrates its 77th anniversary as the 
professional association representing CRNAs, advanced practice nurses 
who administer approximately 30 million anesthetics in the U.S. every 
year. CRNAs practice in every setting in which anesthesia is delivered: 
traditional hospital surgical suites and obstetrical delivery rooms; 
critical access hospitals; ambulatory surgical centers; the offices of 
dentists, podiatrists, ophthalmologists, plastic surgeons, and pain 
management specialists; and U.S. military, Public Health Service, and 
Department of Veterans Affairs health care facilities.
  CRNAs provide anesthesia for all types of surgical cases and, in some 
states, are the sole anesthesia providers in the vast majority of rural 
hospitals, affording these medical facilities obstetrical, surgical and 
trauma stabilization services.
  A resident of Cincinnati, Ohio, Ms. Wilson earned her doctorate in 
nursing science and physiology, a master's degree in nursing, a 
bachelor's degree in nursing and a bachelor's degree in science from 
the University of Cincinnati. She also received her nurse anesthesia 
diploma from Cincinnati General Hospital and her nursing diploma from 
Holzer Medical Center in Gallipolis, Ohio. A longtime member of the 
AANA, Ms. Wilson has held numerous leadership positions and served as 
regional director, treasurer, vice-president, and president-elect 
before becoming the national president of the AANA in 2007. In 
addition, Ms. Wilson has served terms as president and president-elect 
and as a member of the board of directors for the Ohio State 
Association of Nurse Anesthetists.
  She is also the program director at the University of Cincinnati's 
College of Nursing, Nurse Anesthesia Major, which has been ranked one 
of the top nurse anesthesia educational programs nationally by U.S. 
News and World Report.

[[Page E1616]]

  Adding to her professional accomplishments, Ms. Wilson has been 
recognized for speaking on anesthesia-related topics over the years. 
She has taken her experience and knowledge from the workplace and her 
AANA leadership role to lecture on political and academic anesthesia-
related topics for different professional groups. During her AANA 
presidency, Ms. Wilson has advocated for CRNAs and patients before the 
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, the Centers for Disease 
Control and Prevention, the Food and Drug Administration, and other 
Federal agencies. In addition, Ms. Wilson worked to bring the AANA's 
perspective to the national debate on how to improve veterans health 
care, ensuring that AANA was represented in Congressional hearings to 
testify about the contributions of CRNAs in the Veterans Affairs health 
system and the dedication with which CRNAs provide safe anesthesia care 
to members of the U.S. Armed Forces at home and abroad. Finally, Ms. 
Wilson has been an invaluable advocate in advancing reform and equity 
in Medicare anesthesia reimbursement in educational settings so that 
seniors and persons with disabilities will have access to safe 
anesthesia care. Legislation recently enacted by Congress to reverse 
Medicare payment cuts also reformed Medicare anesthesia payment 
teaching rules for CRNAs and anesthesiologists, a longstanding policy 
objective of the AANA.
  Madam Speaker, I hope my colleagues will join me today in recognizing 
the outgoing president of the American Association of Nurse 
Anesthetists, Ms. Wanda Wilson, CRNA, PhD, MSN, for her notable career 
and outstanding achievements.

                          ____________________