WAMC Medical Library and Learning Resource Center: CRNA

Mission: The US Army Graduate Program in Anesthesia Nursing (USAGPAN)  mission is to produce leaders in medicine who are grounded in evidence based practice, competence, professionalism, communication, lifelong learning, and the social context of medicine

Vision: Our graduates are independent leaders in anesthesia nursing prepared at the doctoral level whose focus is to improve and sustain the highest standards of practice and foster a healthcare environment that improves the lives of all entrusted to their care.  

The philosophy of the U.S. Army Graduate Program in Anesthesia Nursing, as a social agency dedicated to the education and development of health care professionals in the field of anesthesia nursing, recognizes and accepts the responsibilities entrusted to it for program development, implementation and evaluation, and for the provision of learning experiences for its students.  We believe that as educators we must present to the student a realistic microcosm of a larger endeavor to which he or she, as a skilled professional, ultimately will be dedicated.

Our philosophical orientation in the educational process subscribes to the belief that learning is a developmental process through which cognitive, affective, and psychomotor behaviors are developed and/or modified.  This process includes the acquisition of information, the transferal of knowledge, the evaluation of new skills, and the reinforcement of a professional attitude.
 
We further subscribe to the belief that learning is both positive and rewarding for the student, that it is a transactional experience between the student and teacher through formal and informal processes; the objective being to produce a knowledgeable and skillful nurse anesthetist. Finally, the student as an adult learner is expected to take responsibility for his/her education to the extent of acquiring the requisite knowledge, skills, behavior, and attitudes to function as a professional practitioner of nurse anesthesia.

USAGPAN students who choose Womack Army Medical Center for their 2 year clinical residency attend several additional specialty clinical rotations to enhance their anesthetic knowledge. At Womack, USAGPAN students conduct a month long specialty rotation in obstetric anesthesia and a one month rotation as a member of the acute pain team to gain expertise in the performance of peripheral nerve blocks. On out-rotations from Womack, USAGPAN students spend 4 weeks at Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. Louis, MO where they acquire anesthesia experience in one of the most notable Neurosurgical centers in the world. Experience in cardiothoracic anesthesia is obtained during a rotation at the James A. Haley Veterans Affairs Hospital in Tampa, FL. Finally, to hone their clinical expertise, students spend up to 8 weeks in the fast paced environment of New Hanover Regional Medical Center, Wilmington NC, pursuing higher acuity and emergent cases.

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