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Department News – 2007
Donna Nyght Appointed Chair of KU Nurse Anesthesia Education; Dec. 2007
It is my distinct pleasure to announce that Ms. Donna Nyght, MS, CRNA, has been appointed to the position of Chair of the Department of Nurse Anesthesia effective immediately. Ms. Nyght has served as interim chair since July 1, 2007, when Dr. Carol Elliott, Chair of the Department, stepped down to begin phased retirement.
Ms. Nyght received her B.S. degree in nursing and her M.S. in nurse anesthesia from the University of Kansas. She has over 25 years of experience as a nurse and 14 years as a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA). Prior to coming to the University of Kansas Medical Center in 2004 she was with Northland Anesthesiology, Inc., and prior to that was Chief CRNA at Menorah Medical Center.
Donna has served the department very well leading to the full support of the faculty and staff for her new appointment. I am confident that Donna will lead the department of nurse anesthesia to new heights in teaching, research and service. She is a dedicated alumna and a true Jayhawk!
Please join me in congratulating Donna and wishing her well in her new role as chair of the Department of Nurse Anesthesia.
Karen L. Miller, PhD
Dean, School of Allied Health
Human patient simulation allows student nurse anesthetists to train in a dimension of virtual reality
Interactive training simulation offers small groups of learners the opportunity to develop and enhance clinical decision-making abilities, psychomotor skills, health assessment, monitoring, and communication. This builds self-confidence and promotes patient safety for the practice of nurse anesthesia.
Simulation allows for active learning in a non-threatening “operating room” environment where an adult mannequin supported by computers and specialized software create a patient that will breath, blink, perfuse, and respond to virtual pharmacologic agents. Inhalation agents can be utilized as well to provide a comprehensive anesthesia-based simulation experience. Students learn to interact with life-like human physiology to focus on basic and/or advanced anesthesia concepts “without harming the patient.”
The University of Kansas Nurse Anesthesia department started its current simulation program utilizing the METI HPS (Medical Educational Technologies, Inc./Human Patient Simulator) last fall. Overall, the scenario topics range from the typical anesthesia challenge to the rare crisis. Simulation scenarios have included basic induction techniques for general anesthesia, treatment of airway obstruction, dealing with intra-operative blood pressure changes, anaphylaxis, and malignant hyperthermia.
The simulation program is pleased to be expanding within the three year curriculum as an adjunct to our vast clinical experience. The program continues to look forward to integrating didactic knowledge with innovative teaching technologies to advance student skills, confidence, and promote patient safety.
Donna Nyght Accepts Interim Chair Position in KU Nurse Anesthesia
It is my pleasure to announce that Donna Nyght, CRNA, MS, has accepted the position of Interim Chair of the Department of Nurse Anesthesia. Dr. Carol Elliott, Chair of the Department since 1973 has stepped down from the chair position to begin phased retirement, effective July 1, 2007. There is an ongoing search process for the position of permanent Chair.
Ms. Nyght has been an active member of the Nurse Anesthesia Department since March, 2004. She teaches didactic content in the CRNA program and provides clinical supervision to nurse anesthetist students. She has been serving as Assistant Director and Director of Clinical Education. Donna has more than 25 years experience as a professional nurse and 14 years as a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA).
Please join me in welcoming Ms. Donna Nyght, CRNA, MS, to the Interim Chair role in the Department of Nurse Anesthesia Education.
Thank you,
Dean Miller
Caryl Goodyear-Bruch is new president-elect of the AACN Board of Directors
We have a new call room! We now have two call rooms for our students. The department has been in the process for some time trying to get another call room for our students. We have refurnished, put in new carpet, and painted the walls in both the old and new room. The students now have very livable conditions when on call!
Faculty News 04/23/07:
Carol is anxiously awaiting July 1st when she retires as Chair. She is even talking about taking the whole month of June off and just working from home. Even though she is retiring in July as Chair, she will continue teaching her online theory courses.
Donna Nyght is traveling around in Europe for two weeks with her son, who is studying abroad for a semester. I am sure she is having a good time and will have all kinds of stories when she returns.
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