Rosemont, Ill. (AANA)–The American Association of Nurse Anesthesiology (AANA) Foundation presented Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA) Brad Shelby, MSN, CRNA, ARNP, with the Janice Drake CRNA Humanitarian Award during the AANA 2022 Annual Congress, August 12-16, in Chicago.
The Janice Drake CRNA Humanitarian Award is presented to a CRNA who volunteers and provides anesthesia, education, and training in needy areas of the United States and overseas.
Shelby was nominated for the award for his work with the non-profit Surgery on Sunday (SOS), which provides elective surgeries to patients who are not financially able to pay for healthcare costs. Surgery on Sunday’s mission is to provide “medically necessary out-patient surgeries at no cost to income-eligible, uninsured or underinsured individuals who do not qualify for federal or state assistance.”
Amanda Ferguson, MA, executive director of SOS, said in Shelby’s nomination form, “During the time that Brad has served as a volunteer CRNA for Surgery on Sunday, we have provided free surgery to several hundred patients who did not have insurance or could not afford the high deductibles associated with surgery. Without volunteers like Brad, we would not have been able to help those several hundred patients. His volunteer service is simply invaluable.”
“This incredible, non-profit organization is made possible by dozens of volunteers who give one Sunday a month to share their clinical and administrative skills to change the lives of many people,” Shelby said. “It has been my honor to provide anesthesia care alongside so many gracious volunteers over the years.”
Shelby, who is the chief anesthetist at Frankfort Regional Medical Center in Frankfort, Ky., has served as a volunteer with SOS for the past five years providing anesthesia services, and donating more than 500 hours of his time. He has also mentored and recruited other CRNA volunteers.
Shelby earned a Master of Science in Nursing from Murray State University’s Trover Foundation School of Anesthesia, and a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from the University of Kentucky. He is a member of the American Association of Nurse Anesthesiology, the International Research Society of Anesthesia, and the Kentucky Association of Nurse Anesthetists.