AANA President Appointed to VA Committee on Rural Veterans’ Health

Rosemont, Ill. (AANA) — Angela R. Mund, DNP, CRNA, president of the American Association of Nurse Anesthesiology (AANA), has been appointed to the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Veterans Rural Health Advisory Committee by the Secretary of the VA, Denis McDonough.

“I’m excited and honored to be chosen to serve on this committee,” said Mund. “I look forward to bringing my perspective both as a veteran and a former rural resident to the committee’s work to find solutions for improved access to veterans’ health care in rural areas. I will also emphasize the role that advanced practice registered nurses, including Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists, play in finding those solutions.”

Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNAs) are the primary providers of anesthesia in the U.S. military and serve in VA facilities across the country. They play a critical role in the VA healthcare system, ensuring veterans receive safe, cost-effective, and high-quality anesthesia care. Additionally, CRNAs are the primary provider of anesthesia in rural America.

The Veterans Rural Health Advisory Committee advises the VA secretary on healthcare issues affecting veterans residing in rural settings. The committee examines programs and policies that impact the delivery of VA healthcare to rural veterans and discusses ways to improve and enhance rural VA healthcare access and identifies barriers to care. Committee members are appointed by the Secretary of the VA and include veterans, rural health experts in academia and in the community, state and government professionals who focus on rural health, VA officials at the state level, and leaders from veterans’ service organizations.

Mund’s term on the Veterans Rural Health Advisory Committee begins October 1, 2022, and lasts until September 2025.

Mund was honorably discharged as captain from the U.S. Army Reserve Nurse Corps. She has served as the executive director of the Association of Veterans Affairs Nurse Anesthetists as well as its president. In addition to her current role as president of the 59,000-member AANA, she is the chair of the Department of Clinical Sciences at the Medical University of South Carolina.