UArizona Nurse Anesthesiology Program Receives Health Resources and Service Administration Traineeship Grant
July 18, 2023
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In June, the University of Arizona College of Nursing Nurse Anesthesiology Program was one of only 128 programs across the country to receive a multi-year Nurse Anesthetist Traineeship. The grant comes thanks to the tireless efforts of Program Administrator Kristie Hoch, DNP, CRNA.
Awarded by the Health Resources and Service Administration (HRSA), the $70K grant will be distributed to Nurse anesthesiology residents (NARs) in the program over the next three years. The funds are minimal, but Dr. Hoch’s commitment to the NARs is such that she sees it as her duty to bring in any extra funds that she can. “The Nurse Anesthesiology residents pay the highest tuition in the college of nursing,” she points out. “It’s another way for me to support them during the program. They need all the help they can get, because of the rigors of the program, they cannot work to support themselves or their families."
“The Nurse Anesthesiology residents pay the highest tuition in the college of nursing. It’s another way for me to support them during the program. They need all the help they can get, because of the rigors of the program, they cannot work to support themselves or their families," ~ Kristie Hoch , DNP, CRNA, Associate Clinical Professor, Program Administrator
The funding criteria dictates that those who receive a portion of the grant must complete a rural or medically underserved community clinical rotation, which is fitting, Dr. Hoch says, because the nurse anesthesiology specialty covers 80% of rural access to care across the country. “In addition to the various training that we will comply with for the grant, we bring them in for simulation labs to complete different modules preparing them for this type of independent practice,” Dr. Hoch says.
We have attained the HRSA grant since the inception of the program, and it requires various levels of education a training to apply and meet the standards of the grant. With the previous grant, NARs were required to complete modules on opioid free anesthesia and the various medications for multi-modal pain management in addition to peripheral nerve blocks to enhance pain management and decrease opioid usage during anesthesia. They also received substance use disorder training. The new HRSA grant will help train NARs the impact Advanced Practice Nurses have on social determinants of health. Part of the funding will also be used to provide further Diversity, Equity and Inclusion training. “We are proud of the diversity in our program,” Dr. Hoch says. “Currently, among our three cohorts we are at 50%. As Vice President Kamala Harris stated, “Our unity is our strength, and our diversity is our power.” You must have a workforce that represents your community.”
Obtaining the HRSA funding is an arduous process, but Dr. Hoch points out that Nurse Anesthesiology residents truly deserve it because they’re ineligible for other graduate medical education funding because they are not physicians. It’s an unfair paradigm, she says, “Because we are their anesthesia providers in 80% of rural America. We provide access to care that many would not receive without us. That’s why I do it: to support them. I love my profession and I hope that I instill that passion in them during my limited time with them in their program.”