The Bolton School of Nursing's Jack R. Kless receives 2005 Program Director of the Year Award from the AANA
 Jack R. Kless, MSN, MA, CRNA, was honored with Program Director of the Year by the American Association of Nurse Anesthetists (AANA) in August 2005. Mr. Kless is a Lecturer of Nursing and Director of the Nurse Anesthesia Program at the Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing. Established by the AANA in 1991, the Program Director of the Year award honors Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNAs) who have made significant contributions as program directors of educational programs for student nurse anesthetists.
During Mr. Kless' 31 years as program director, he led two nurse anesthesia programs. His efforts to advance the Mt. Sinai Medical Center School of Anesthesia at Summa Health System to a graduate school program culminated with the program officially becoming affiliated with the Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing in 1987.
Mr. Kless was also instrumental in reopening a clinical site for nurse anesthesia at University Hospitals of Cleveland, which had been one of the first such programs in the country. The program had closed in 1954 due to a change from a priority of nurse education to physician education in anesthesia. “I felt it was important to reopen this clinical site and reestablish its link with nurse anesthesia education,” Mr. Kless says. “I had experience with balancing the needs of both an anesthesia residency and a nurse anesthesia program at the Cleveland Clinic, so I felt confident that we could achieve this balance at University Hospitals.”
The first class of four students was admitted to the University Hospitals program three years ago, in August 2002. The graduation of this class in December 2004, as Mr. Kless proudly states, “ended a silence in nurse anesthesia education of 50 years.”
The Bolton School congratulates Mr. Kless on this prestigious award. |
