[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 11 (Wednesday, January 27, 2010)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E97]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  IN COMMEMORATION OF NATIONAL NURSE ANESTHETIST WEEK: JANUARY 24-30, 
                                  2010

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. JOHN SHIMKUS

                              of illinois

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, January 27, 2010

  Mr. SHIMKUS. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize that this week 
of January 24-30, 2010, is National Nurse Anesthetist Week and want to 
acknowledge the high quality health care that Certified Registered 
Nurse Anesthetists (CRNAs) provide in my district and to patients 
around the U.S.
  Nurse anesthetists have been providing anesthesia care to patients in 
the United States for nearly 150 years and are anesthesia professionals 
who safely administer approximately 32 million anesthetics to patients 
each year in the United States. They are the primary anesthesia 
providers in rural America, enabling healthcare facilities in these 
medically underserved areas to offer obstetrical, surgical, and trauma 
stabilization services. In some states, CRNAs are the sole providers in 
nearly 100 percent of the rural hospitals. Without CRNAs, America's 
seniors would lack the care they need since CRNAs predominate where 
more Medicare patients reside.
  Furthermore, 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 Services, and Department of Veterans Affairs healthcare 
facilities.
  In fact, nurse anesthetists have been the main providers of 
anesthesia care to U.S. military men and women on the front lines since 
WWI, including current conflicts in the Middle East, and they are 
currently providing much needed care to patients in Haiti as they seek 
to recover from the recent devastating earthquakes.
  Not only do they provide high quality anesthesia care in rural and 
medically underserved areas, they do so cost-effectively. It is no 
surprise that health plans increasingly recognize CRNAs for providing 
high-quality anesthesia care to patients, and for helping to control 
healthcare costs without cutting corners. In a time of escalating 
health care costs, it is important to note that the cost-efficiency of 
CRNAs helps control escalating healthcare costs.
  In my own congressional district, Southern Illinois University at 
Edwardsville is home to one of America's 108 accredited nurse 
anesthesia educational programs. The people of my community appreciate 
the very fine work of this institution, and the care provided by SIUE's 
CRNAs across central and southern Illinois and around the country.
  For CRNAs across the U.S. and those serving our nation in the Armed 
Forces, I commend you for your work as a profession and your passion 
for patients.

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