Thinking globally: Developing an international nurse anesthesia partnership

In 2019, the program achieved accreditation by the International Federation of Nurse Anesthetists which, among other benefits, enabled connections with like-minded international institutions.

Through the relationship developed with the Institut de Formation Interhospitalier Theodore Simon (IFITS), Beth Ann Clayton, DNP, CRNA, FAAN, FAAN, director of the UC Nurse Anesthesia program and Rachel Smith-Steinert, DNP, CRNA, FAANA, the program’s assistant director, traveled to Paris in early 2020. There, they attended the Parisian’s Nurse Anesthesia Program Global Health Day and partnered with IFITS faculty and students to create an experience that would enable UC students to expand their learning in environments that foster adaptability, cross-cultural competency and intellectual flexibility.

The U.S. and France’s link through nurse anesthesia dates to World War I, when American nurse anesthetists cared for troops in France. Three years prior to the U.S. entering the war, Dr. George Crile and nurse anesthetists Agatha Hodgins and Mabel Littleton served in the Lakeside Unit at the American Ambulance in France and helped educate the French and British nurses and physicians in anesthesia care.

In addition to observing clinical practice in two of the largest hospitals in Paris and meeting the editor-in-chief for the European Journal of Anaesthesiology, UC students attended nurse anesthesia courses and participated in bilingual interdisciplinary simulation experiences. Working in small groups, UC and IFITS students discussed and presented on topics including nurse anesthesia scope of practice, education processes, workforce development and the impact of politics on health care delivery in both countries.