Newswise — Park Ridge, Ill.–Maria Van Pelt, PhD, CRNA, a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA) from Westborough, Mass., has been selected for induction as a fellow of the American Academy of Nursing (AAN), joining more than 2,600 nursing leaders who make up the academy. She will be honored with the other 230 inductees at a ceremony to be held during the AAN’s annual policy conference, Tranforming Health, Driving Policy, October 24-26, 2019, in Washington, D.C. Van Pelt is one of three CRNAs being inducted into the AAN Class of 2019 Fellows.

Van Pelt’s professional passions for patient safety, education, and anesthesia care professional wellness, as well as her leadership on national and international committees, and national consultancy with more than 30 organizations to review their safety programs, make her a perfect addition to the 2019 Class of AAN Fellows.

“Maria Van Pelt’s noted contributions in helping providers deal with the effects of a perioperative catastrophe are groundbreaking,” attests former AANA President Jackie Rowles, DNP, MBA, MA, CRNA, ANP-BC, DPNAP, DAIPM, FAAN. “I have personally witnessed the positive effects of her research and dissemination. She has taken a subject once taboo, made it transparent, and a must-address issue. Her focus on healing the provider is lifechanging. Implementation of policies directly related to her decades of work has helped keep competent, caring and skilled clinicians in the workforce and allowed them to move toward wellness and healing.”

“I am so honored to have been selected into the American Academy of Nursing,” said Van Pelt. “I am profoundly grateful to my mentors and I would like to thank Jackie Rowles, and Rosemary Polomano, PhD, RN, FAAN, for inspiring me to advocate to better the health and lives of those who have personally experienced a catastrophic event during their provision of care. I am dedicated to influencing cultures of safety in hospitals and ambulatory care and promoting policies and practices to improve the health and well-being of clinicians who are involved in catastrophic encounters.”

The American Association of Nurse Anesthetists congratulates Maria Van Pelt on her upcoming induction as a fellow of the American Academy of Nursing.

About the American Academy of Nursing (AAN)
The AAN is an organization of distinguished nursing leaders who are recognized for their outstanding contributions to the profession through publications, research, awards and honors, professional activities, and community service. The academy’s Fellows represent all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and 24 countries. The induction will take place during the academy’s 2019 Annual Policy Conference in Washington, D.C., Oct. 24-26.

About the American Association of Nurse Anesthetists
Founded in 1931 and located in Park Ridge, Ill., and Washington, D.C., the American Association of Nurse Anesthetists (AANA) is the professional organization representing nearly 53,000 Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNAs) and student registered nurse anesthetists across the United States. As advanced practice registered nurses and anesthesia specialists, CRNAs administer more than 45 million anesthetics to patients in the United States each year and are the primary providers of anesthesia care in rural America. In some states, CRNAs are the sole anesthesia professionals in nearly 100 percent of rural hospitals. For more information, visit www.aana.com and http://www.future-of-anesthesia-care-today.com/ and follow @aanawebupdates on Twitter.