Crozer Health Nurse Anesthesia Program Director and Student Receive Awards from the Pennsylvania Association of Nurse Anesthetists

At the 2022 Pennsylvania Association of Nurse Anesthetists (PANA) Spring Symposium, Jodie Szlachta, PhD, CRNA, Director of the Crozer-Chester Medical Venter/Villanova University Nurse Anesthesia Program, received the PANA Advocate of the Year Award. 

PANA’s mission is to advocate for patient safety, access to quality care, and the profession of Nurse Anesthesia.  The PANA Advocate of the Year award was created to recognize a certified registered nurse anesthetist or student registered nurse anesthetist that exemplifies the use of advocacy or grassroots efforts to advance the nurse anesthesia profession. The award was presented to Szlachta who, due to her legislative and regulatory work, was recognized as an advocate for the CRNAs and patients in Pennsylvania.   

The award recognized Szlachta’s more than a decade of work on the PANA Board and her appointment to the Pennsylvania State Health Policy Board by Governor Wolf.  She served as the President of PANA in 2018, during which time she provided testimony to the PA House Professional Licensure Committee to promote the practice of nurse anesthesia in PA.   She maintains clinical practice at Crozer Health.

The Crozer-Chester Medical Center/Villanova University Nurse Anesthesia Program is a 36-month full-time Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) program and is approved by the Council on Accreditation of Nurse Anesthesia Educational Programs. Graduates receive a Doctor of Nursing Practice Degree in Nurse Anesthesia from Villanova University's M. Louise Fitzpatrick College of Nursing.

Jorge Alvarez, a Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) student in the Crozer-Chester Medical Center/Villanova University Nurse Anesthesia Program, was awarded PANA Student of the Year Award. He was nominated by Lisa Buchanan, Chief Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA) at Virtua/ Our Lady of Lourdes Medical Center. Program Director Szlachta commented, “Jorge has a keen sense of situational awareness and sophisticated interpersonal skills and is whip smart.” Alvarez’s DNP project is Video-based learning and hands-on simulation to increase knowledge and confidence in ultrasound-guided peripheral IV catheter placement for anesthesia clinicians.

For more information on the Crozer-Chester Medical Center/Villanova University Nurse Anesthesia Program visit our website at https://www.crozerhealth.org/academics/medical-education-allied-health/nurse-anesthesia-program/