R 026

2017 -- S 0092 Enacted 01/26/2017

S E N A T E   R E S O L U T I O N

PROCLAIMING THE WEEK OF JANUARY 22ND THROUGH JANUARY 28TH, 2017, AS "CRNA WEEK" IN THE STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

Introduced By: Senators Miller, and Algiere

Date Introduced: January 26, 2017

WHEREAS, Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNAs) are essential to Rhode

Island's and America's health care systems, providing high-quality, cost-effective anesthesia care

for more than 150 years; and

WHEREAS, CRNAs are anesthesia specialists who safely administer approximately 43

million anesthetics to patients each year in the United States; and

WHEREAS, CRNAs were the first specialists to provide anesthesia care in the United

States, tracing their roots to nurse Alice Magaw, the "mother of anesthesia" who practiced at the

Mayo Clinic at the turn of the 19th century; and

WHEREAS, CRNAs offer obstetrical, surgical, and trauma stabilization as they practice

in every setting in which anesthesia is delivered: traditional hospital surgical suites and obstetrical

delivery rooms, dentists' offices, ophthalmologists' and plastic surgery offices, ambulatory

surgery centers, the U.S. Military and public Health Services and Veteran Administration medical

facilities; and

WHEREAS, Nurses first provided anesthesia to wounded soldiers during the Civil War,

and more anesthetists have been the main provider of anesthesia care to United States Military

personnel on the front lines since WWI; and

WHEREAS, Two Rhode Island hospital based programs, Memorial Hospital of Rhode

Island School of Nurse Anesthesia and St. Joseph's Hospital School of Anesthesia for Nurses

educate nurse anesthetists at the Master's degree level and have helped educate the majority of the

more than 150 Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists who live and provide anesthesia to

patients in the State of Rhode Island; now, therefore be it

RESOLVED, That this Senate of the State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations

hereby proclaims the week of January 22nd through January 28th, 2017 as "CRNA Week" in the

State of Rhode Island. We furthermore recognize and thank all the nurse anesthetists for their

dedication and contributions to building a brighter future for all the citizens of the Ocean State;

and be it further

RESOLVED, That the Secretary of State be and hereby is authorized and directed to

transmit duly certified copies of this resolution to the Rhode Island Association of Nurse

Anesthetists, Memorial Hospital of Rhode Island School of Nurse Anesthesia, and St. Joseph's

Hospital School of Anesthesia for Nurses.

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LC001042

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