Beyond The Mask: Innovation & Opportunities For CRNAs

Scholarship can feel like one more impossible responsibility for busy nurse anesthesia educators, but it often begins with something much simpler: a question. Why are we doing it this way? Is there a better approach? What are we seeing that the literature has not explained yet?

In this episode, hosts Louisa and Nickie welcome on Jenni Ross Majumdar, PhD, CRNA to make scholarship feel more approachable by showing how curiosity can g...

What does the nurse anesthesia profession look like outside the United States? At the IFNA Congress in Australia, Sharon and guest co-host Kevin Chem sit down with Toñi Ballesteros Barrado for a firsthand look at practice in Spain. Their conversation reveals a model of care that keeps nurse anesthetists closely connected to patients throughout the surgical experience.

Here’s some of what you’ll hear in this episode:

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Beyond the Ether is the new clinical series from Beyond the Mask, bringing together four experienced CRNAs to talk about the science, judgment, technology, and real-world decision-making behind anesthesia practice.

In this first episode, Laura Ardizzone, MS, MBA, DNP, CRNA, Jeff Molter, MSN, MBA, CRNA, Tracy Castleman, DNP, CRNA, APN-A, and Daniel King, DNP, MNA, APRN, CRNA, CPPS, CNE, introduce themselves, share the mentors and ex...

Nurse anesthesia school can be demanding, isolating, and humbling, but it does not have to be experienced alone. The Nurse Anesthesiology Resident Association (NARA) is an organization run by residents for residents, and we had the opportunity to sit down with President Dazjia Green and Vice President Omar Durand at the Annual Congress in Boston.

We’ll hear how ​NARA ​serves ​the ​resident ​community and ​what ​our guests ​ha...

One ​of ​our ​traditions ​at ​Beyond ​the ​Mask ​is​ sitting ​down ​with ​the ​new ​AANA ​President ​​to ​talk ​about ​the ​year​ ahead, their ​vision ​for ​the ​association, ​and ​the ​challenges ​and​ opportunities ​facing ​our ​profession. This year we had the chance to sit down with Tracy Young, MSNA, MBA, CRNA at the Texas Association of Nurse Anesthetists Annual Convention as he steps into the role at an important time for nu...

Significant perioperative loss can affect CRNAs deeply, even when there was no error and nothing could have been done differently. Yet many clinicians are never taught what those emotions may look like or how to process them.

This episode of Airway Exchange explores the emotional impact of significant perioperative loss on CRNAs and why nurse anesthesia programs need to prepare students for those experiences before they happen. Cry...

What happens when nurse anesthesia education moves beyond the traditional classroom?

Recorded at the AANA Annual Congress in Boston, Sharon and guest co-host Tracy Castleman, DNP, CRNA, APN-A, FAANA, sit down with longtime CRNA educator Richard Wilson, DNAP, CRNA, FAANA to explore how virtual classrooms, simulation, podcasts, VR, AI, and new teaching strategies are changing the way future CRNAs learn.

Here’s some of what you&...

A career in nurse anesthesia does not have to follow one path. For Tracy Young, MSNA, MBA, CRNA, it certainly did not. His career has included clinical practice, entrepreneurship, business leadership, advocacy, state association leadership, national board service, and eventually the presidency of the American Association of Nurse Anesthesiology. But one of the most interesting parts of his story is that none of it was part of one g...

What does nurse anesthesia practice look like in Finland?

That question is at the center of this episode of Beyond the Mask, recorded at the International Federation of Nurse Anesthetists meeting in Australia. Sharon and guest co-host Kevin Chem sit down with Sari Pyhälä, a Finnish RN specialized in anesthesia and perioperative care, to learn more about how her profession differs from the model many U.S. CRNAs know.

Sari explains F...

Think great simulation training requires a massive budget and a high-fidelity mannequin? Jennifer McLeod, DNAP, APRN, CRNA, would disagree.

In this episode of Airway Exchange, recorded live at AANA Annual Congress in Boston, Greg sits down with Jennifer to talk about her approach to preparing the next generation of simulation educators. She explains how some of the most effective simulation experiences can be built with simple tool...

What does the future of the AANA and the CRNA profession look like?

Recorded live at the 2026 AANA Annual Congress in Boston, Sharon and Jeremy sit down with AANA CEO Bill Bruce to discuss an organization and profession experiencing significant growth. With more than 4,700 attendees at the Congress, Bruce outlines the AANA’s newly adopted strategic plan and the three pillars designed to guide its next chapter: develop and own...

What is the AANA Annual Congress actually like for student and resident attendees? The Grade 1 View team takes listeners inside the 2026 meeting in Boston to discuss the sessions, speakers, networking, student events, and unexpected moments that stood out most. Levi, Kelsey, Mackenzie, and Nicolas wrap up a weekend of recording episodes from the Broadcast Booth with this episode that reflects on their exper...

Deep sedation often leaves anesthesia providers working in the space between simple oxygen delivery and a fully advanced airway. That gap can mean poor capnography, inefficient oxygen delivery, frequent airway maneuvers, and plenty of improvised solutions.

In this episode, the show’s first anesthesiologist, Dr. Rene Gonzalez, joins Sharon and Jeremy to discuss the Aeris Airway, the study behind it, and how purpose-built airwa...

What separates a strong nurse anesthesia applicant from someone who simply looks impressive on paper?

In this episode of Airway Exchange, Erin and Louisa sit down with Leah Gordon, DNP, APRN, CRNA, program director and assistant professor in the Nurse Anesthesiology Program at St. Mary’s University of Minnesota and author of The Provider Mindset: A Complete Guide to Becoming a Competitive Nurse Anesthesiology Applicant. Toget...

Recorded live from the IFNA World Congress in Australia, Sharon and special co-host Kevin Chem sat down with Associate Professor Susannah Sherlock to offer a rare look inside hospital-based hyperbaric medicine and its connection to anesthesia, critical care, surgery, wound healing, and long-term cancer recovery.

Here’s some of what you’ll hear in this episode:

🫁 Oxygen Under Pressure: Hyperbaric therapy uses gas laws a...

Sharon Pearce, DNP, CRNA, FAANA, FAAN has spent decades practicing, advocating, leading, mentoring, and telling the stories of nurse anesthesia. But behind the titles is a career shaped by formative mentors, difficult clinical days, unexpected opportunities, and a strong sense of responsibility to the profession.

Nicolas and Kelsey have a great conversation with Sharon, not just a former AANA president and longtime voice in nurse a...

Mike O’Dell, CRNA never planned on becoming a quilting entrepreneur, but a love of art, a willingness to experiment, and a push from the right mentor changed everything. What started as a handmade quilt pattern eventually became Legit Kits, a growing business that brought him all the way to Shark Tank.

In this episode, Mike shares the twists, risks, failures, and lessons behind that journey while explaining why CRNA training ...

Many nurse anesthesia students enter their programs with an interest in teaching, but that interest can fade without formal guidance or hands-on opportunities. The Minneapolis School of Anesthesia is addressing that gap through a student faculty mentorship track designed to prepare future educators before graduation.

In this episode, Nickie and Louisa are joined by faculty members Travis Laffoon, DNP, CRNA, APRN, Megan Kakela, DNP,...

Adam Flowe, MSN, CRNA returns to Beyond the Mask for a follow-up conversation on onco-anesthesia, cancer research, and the rapidly changing tools that may shape the future of care. After stepping away from a longtime leadership role at Duke and moving into a smaller practice setting, Adam reflects on career change, identity, and the importance of staying open to growth.

The conversation then turns to one of the biggest unresolved q...