“When you see it every day, it gets hard,” said Melinda Huber, a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist at Mercy Hospital’s two campuses in Fridley and Coon Rapids. “A lot of us have never experienced something like this before, and a lot of us–we try to support each other. We listen to each other, there’s a lot of venting that happens in our breakrooms.”
Huber and others also tend to embrace any opportunity to celebrate their professions and recognize their contributions to both their patients and their hospitals as a whole. That includes CRNA Week (January 23-29).
“It’s very good for our profession,” said Huber. “We can show people what we are capable of doing, but in a way it’s challenging as well. We can like to be appreciated for what we do.”
CRNAs are registered nurses that attend additional schooling for anesthesia training. They start by working in intensive care units and work primarily in surgery with anesthesiologists.
“Not a lot of people know what we do,” she said. “We’re kind of like the hidden gem.”
As part of Minnesota Association of Nurse Anesthetists, Huber and others at Mercy are participating in a MANA-sponsored collection drive for Hats & Mittens.
While most visitors aren’t allowed in hospitals right now due to COVID-19 restrictions, the nurses are bringing in collections, and Huber hopes others will want to start their own collections for Hats & Mittens.
