Beyond The Mask: Innovation & Opportunities For CRNAs

Ep 172: Remembering the True Leadership of Patrick Downey

In November of 2021, the AANA lost a great man in Patrick Downey. This former president and patriarch of the Diamond Club served as a CRNA for more than 50 years and impacted many lives along the way. It’s fitting that this St. Patrick’s Day episode is a look back at his incredible life and the work he did for nurse anesthesia. 
 
Read more: http://beyondthemaskpodcast.com 
 
Get the CE certificate here: https://beyondthemaskpodcast.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Beyond-the-Mask-CE-Cert-FILLABLE.pdf
 
What we discuss in this episode: 
3:47 – The loss of Patrick Downey in 2021
4:45 – The AANA Diamond Club
8:01 – Role Patrick played in the club 
9:45 – Patrick’s early life
11:50 – Education and marriage
13:56 – Anesthesia highlights 
16:35 – Time as AANA president 
22:23 – Goals and challenges
29:50 – Outreach away from operating room
32:29 – Viable public relations program
34:15 – The money in anesthesia
42:50 – His message to anesthesia
47:27 – His passing in 2021
52:08 – Patrick Downey Montage

Ep 171: Health and Wellness for the CRNA

Long hours and high stress is typically a recipe for poor health, which is why it’s always good to get a reminder to put ourselves and our bodies first. That can be difficult for CRNAs, who are trained to prioritize the needs of others. That’s why we wanted to bring on master nutritionist Donnell Carter, MBA, MS, CRNA to give us the information and motivation we need to take steps towards a healthier lifestyle.
 
Read more: http://beyondthemaskpodcast.com 
 
Get the CE certificate here: https://beyondthemaskpodcast.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Beyond-the-Mask-CE-Cert-FILLABLE.pdf
 
What we discuss in this episode: 
3:20 – Welcome in Donnell
5:18 – Time in the Navy 
7:11 – Event that changed his life
12:18 – Going to anesthesia school
14:25 – How CRNAs can integrate health and wellness 
19:04 – Master nutritionist 
21:33 – His services 
22:40 – Coaching 
29:53 – Fighting depression
36:59 – Obesity’s role in the pandemic 
43:33 – Final thoughts
45:20 – Lightning round

Ep 170: The History of TEFRA and How It Changed Anesthesia

Forty years have passed since the Tax, Equity and Fiscal Responsibility Act (TEFRA) became law and this piece of federal legislation changed the way payment and reimbursement was tracked. Today we’ll look back on the history of TEFRA with Nancy Bruton-Maree, CRNA, and Sandy Ouellette, CRNA, to learn more about the reasons behind it, how the AANA responded, and what revisions have been made through the years.
 
Read more: http://beyondthemaskpodcast.com 
 
Get the CE certificate here: https://beyondthemaskpodcast.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Beyond-the-Mask-CE-Cert-FILLABLE.pdf
 
What we discuss in this episode: 
3:00 – What we’re talking about today
5:05 – Why was TEFRA implemented?
8:04 – Quality of care standard
9:33 – What the practice used to look like?
14:27 – Preparing practitioners
15:36 – What the original rules said
20:32 – Medical supervision and direction
26:56 – 7 conditions of payment
28:49 – AANA’s reaction to TEFRA
31:23 – Concerns between 1993 to 1998
34:32 – Proposed revisions
37:45 – What is immediately available
40:44 – Current TEFRA rules
44:20 – Any updated revisions?
47:15 – Physicians starting schools
51:15 – A book recommendation
52:02 – Final thoughts

Ep 169: CRNA Advocacy in Pennsylvania and the Lessons Learned

Today we want to shine the advocacy spotlight on the work being done by CRNAs in Pennsylvania, who have helped drive some significant changes in their state. Laura Wiggins, DNP, CRNA and Jessica Poole, DNAP, CRNA are two of the nurses involved in shaping the legislation and they join us to share the details on what’s happening in the Keystone State and what it means for all of us in the profession.
 
Read more: http://beyondthemaskpodcast.com 
 
Get the CE certificate here: https://beyondthemaskpodcast.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Beyond-the-Mask-CE-Cert-FILLABLE.pdf
 
What we discuss in this episode: 
3:05 – Welcome Jessica and Laura  
4:32 – Background on Jessica
6:29 – Background on Laura
7:59 – Legislation they’ve been working on
11:11 – The opposition to it
13:03 – Board of Nursing’s position 
14:52 – Who makes these designations? 
18:38 – Other changes they’ve gotten enacted
22:15 – The physician requirement of Act 60
23:38 – Getting students involved in legislative issues
25:29 – Relationship with lobbyists  
27:03 – Developing relationships with legislators
30:07 – Compensating CRNAs to advocate
32:41 – Networking support from other groups
39:06 – CRNA practice during COVID in PA
41:12 – Getting involved in advocacy

Ep 168: A Free App Created to Improve Anesthesia

Time is of the essence in the operating room, and it’s important that you’re able to track down the information you need as quickly as possible. Thanks to technology, this process is becoming much more efficient. Today we’ll introduce you to Matthew Willis, DNP, CRNA, the person who developed, coded and maintains the educational app Master Anesthesia. Find out how this app is changing the way nurse anesthetists are able to track down information and make instant calculations right from their phones.  
 
Get the app: https://masteranesthesia.com
 
Read more: http://beyondthemaskpodcast.com 
 
Get the CE certificate here: https://beyondthemaskpodcast.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Beyond-the-Mask-CE-Cert-FILLABLE.pdf
 
What we discuss in this episode: 
2:35 – What we’re talking about
3:53 – Matthew’s background  
5:26 – What the app does  
9:25 – Developing the app
12:50 – Why provide all this for free?
19:38 – How long did the coding take
23:45 – Capabilities of the app
25:49 – The calculator  
29:22 – The future of the app
31:49 – His costs
33:42 – How can CRNAs get involved

Ep 167: In Search of the First Anesthetists

The history of the nurse anesthesia profession is a bit murky as records weren’t kept well through the years as medicine and healthcare progressed, but there are opinions on who the first anesthetist was. Today we’ll examine the most likely candidates with our historians Nancy Bruton-Maree, CRNA, and Sandy Ouellette, CRNA, and try to determine who can claim the title of the real first anesthetist.
 
Read more: http://beyondthemaskpodcast.com 
 
Get the CE certificate here: https://beyondthemaskpodcast.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Beyond-the-Mask-CE-Cert-FILLABLE.pdf
 
What we discuss in this episode: 
3:00 – Background on this topic
6:36 – History books on anesthesia
10:21 – Historical information
15:08 – Humphry Davy
16:16 – Crawford Long  
17:51 – Horace Wells  
19:27 – William Morton
22:35 – James Simpson
23:06 – John Snow
28:39 – The real first anesthetist according to AANA
33:56 – Who was in the earliest American hospitals?  
38:08 – Disputes  
40:44 – The role nuns played
42:58 – The evolution of names for anesthetists
46:32 – Sandy’s opinion on first anesthetists
48:21 – Final thoughts
 
Resources mentioned on the show: 
The Wondrous Story of Anesthesia
The Etherist Podcast
The Global Voice for Nurse Anesthesia - IFNA (1989-2021)
 

Ep 166: How Elevated Ambient Noise in the OR Impacts Health & Safety

It’s something outside people might never think about but ambient noise can have a direct impact on the health of CRNAs and the safety of the patients. Many people working in operating rooms don’t realize the effect that elevated noise levels can have and there might be different reasons for that. But we wanted to bring Marianne Cosgrove, CRNA, DNAP, APRN, PhD, onto the show to tell us more about the research she’s done in this area and what she’s found.
 
Read more: http://beyondthemaskpodcast.com 
 
About our guest: https://medicine.yale.edu/profile/marianne_cosgrove/ 
 
Get the CE certificate here: https://beyondthemaskpodcast.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Beyond-the-Mask-CE-Cert-FILLABLE.pdf
 
What we discuss in this episode:
2:06 – Welcome in our guest today
4:15 – Where did this interest come from? 
6:45 – Sharon’s background in this subject 
7:56 – Her study
13:27– Sound levels in the OR
15:43 – Return on the surveys
18:35 – Other survey findings
20:00 – Other contributors to the noise 
22:42 – CRNAs reaction to this
26:41 – Patient safety
29:54 – How to mitigate the noise 
34:44 – Lightning Round
 

Ep 165: Incivility and Bullying by Healthcare Providers in the Clinical Setting

Incivility and bullying can be found in all types of environments in our society and that’s unfortunately true with the academic and clinical settings for SRNAs. This can create an environment that interferes with a student’s ability to learn, ability to cope, relationships, health and well-being. Holly Chandler EdD, CRNA, conducted a study with students to learn more about the issues they're facing and joins us to share her findings and look at the larger problem within the healthcare industry.  
 
Read more: https://beyondthemaskpodcast.com/
 
About our guest: https://www.bryanhealthcollege.edu/bcohs/faculty-staff-directory/nurse-anesthesia-faculty/meet-holly/ 
 
Get the CE certificate here: https://beyondthemaskpodcast.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Beyond-the-Mask-CE-Cert-FILLABLE.pdf
 
What we discuss in this episode:
3:39 – Why the topic is important
5:19 – Background on Holly
6:56 – Incivility vs Bullying
8:48 – Has Sharon ever felt bullied?
11:13 – SRNAs put in tough position
13:41 – Student risk
17:28 – Reporting
19:47 – Resources that are available
22:40 – What to do if you have a colleague behaving this way?
25:10 – Encouraging people to speak up
27:23 – Self-policing
29:59 – Is this more of a societal trend?
32:35 – Jeopardizing accreditation
34:21 – Lightning Round