Message From Our President
Calling all VANA members… Be present!
The Virginia Association of Nurse Anesthetists is just that, an Association. Synonyms for association include; alliance, partnership and cooperative. All of these entities describe a group of individuals who come together to achieve shared goals. Specifically VANA is our professional association, and unlike a corporation it exists not to turn a profit or amass wealth for stockholders, but to represent our profession on the state level and serve as a vehicle to move the membership toward their collective goals. Furthermore, unlike a corporation, VANA is completely dependent on voluntary participation. Your association is solely the product of its member’s presence.
So what does it mean to be present? Some members answer the call to be present literally, they show up. They attend VANA conferences, contact their legislators on healthcare issues, answer surveys, come to board meetings, serve as officers, join committees, they vote. Participation is vital to the mission of representing our profession, yet the majority of members remain disconnected. Nurse Anesthetists in Virginia have done well both professionally and financially with only a fraction of their numbers active in leadership, so it’s all good right? Don’t count on it!
Healthcare in the U.S. is entering an era with ever increasing pressure to reform. Unsustainable expenditures and widespread inequity of access to care mandate an evolution of the playing field. APRNs of all types could be well positioned to benefit from the inevitable change, but only if we actively embrace a leadership role in reform and develop relationships that will assure decision makers hear our voice and recognize our
potential.
So what can the individual CRNA do? Participate, take an active role in your association. Certainly our lives are busy, full of responsibilities and time commitments. However even the busiest among us can take the time to make a contribution. Consider supporting our students, well trained SRNAs will help fill the rising demand for anesthesia providers in Virginia and therefore diminish the argument that introducing a new type of anesthesia provider is necessary to meet needs of our patients. VANA is implementing avenues to make direct support of our SRNAs easier. Finally, you can join the many Virginia CRNAs who support our Political Action Committee. Our PAC can help your voice be heard and your support makes that possible.
We all have the capacity to step up and be present through one or more of these actions and truly be part of our association and protectors of our profession. The links below offer easy ways to be an active participant in VANA efforts. They offer a mechanism to take a step down our common path and we are all stronger together. I look forward to seeing you at the next VANA event.
Support the VANA PAC:
http://localhost:8888/virginiacrna/individual-pac-contribution/
Give to the AANA Foundation:
http://www.aana.com/aanaaffiliates/aanafoundation/Pages/AANAFoundationStudentPage.aspx
Donate to the District 5/VANA DNAP Scholarship:
https://www.support.vcu.edu/give/nrsa
Peter D. DeForest, DNAP, CRNA