[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 128 (Friday, July 28, 2017)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1095]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    HONORING DR. WANDA WILSON, CRNA, MSN, PhD, CEO OF THE AMERICAN 
                   ASSOCIATION OF NURSE ANESTHETISTS

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. JANICE D. SCHAKOWSKY

                              of illinois

                    in the house of representatives

                         Friday, July 28, 2017

  Ms. SCHAKOWSKY. Mr. Speaker, today I pay tribute to Dr. Wanda Wilson, 
CRNA, MSN, PhD, of Cincinnati, Ohio. Dr. Wilson will soon complete her 
tenure as the CEO of the American Association of Nurse Anesthetists 
(AANA) whose headquarters are located in my district. I am proud that 
Dr. Wilson has led the AANA as their CEO and Executive Director since 
2009, a job she began after serving as President of the AANA in 2007. 
She has been an extremely effective leader on behalf of her CRNA 
colleagues.
  Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNAs) are advanced practice 
registered nurses who administer approximately 43 million anesthetics 
to patients each 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 Services, and Department of Veterans 
Affairs healthcare facilities.
  Prior to her time at the AANA, Dr. Wilson enjoyed a career as the 
nurse anesthesia educational program director and professor of clinical 
nursing for the University of Cincinnati's College of Nursing, Nurse 
Anesthesia Major. The highly regarded Cincinnati program includes a 
primary clinical site at the University Hospital in Cincinnati, where 
she maintained her clinical skills while directing the education of 28-
32 nurse anesthesia students per year. Dr. Wilson received her 
doctorate degree in nursing science and physiology and a master's 
degree in nursing from the University of Cincinnati. She also earned a 
bachelor's degree in nursing and a bachelor's degree in science from 
the University of Cincinnati; her nurse anesthesia diploma from 
Cincinnati General Hospital; and her nursing diploma from Holzer 
Medical Center in Gallipolis, Ohio.
  During her time as CEO of the AANA, Dr. Wilson has been a prominent 
advocate for patients, practitioners and students of nurse anesthesia 
before federal agencies and members of Congress. She has worked 
tirelessly to promote anesthesia patient safety and the value of CRNAs 
to our healthcare system, recognition of CRNAs as Full Practice 
Providers in the Veterans Health Administration (VHA), proper 
implementation of the provider non-discrimination, and appropriate 
recognition of the full scope of CRNA practice including pain 
management and related services in Medicare.
  I extend my sincere congratulations to Dr. Wilson today on a job well 
done. Her service to the AANA, her patients, and her students and her 
commitment to advancing the nurse anesthetist profession as a leader, 
educator and advocate are unrivaled.

                          ____________________