I Can See Clearly Now

By Sarah Robison

I Can See Clearly Now

“…the rain is gone. I can see allllllll obstacles in my way! Gone are the daaaark clouds that had me blind. It’s gonna be a bright, BRIGHT sun shiny day…”, Wallflower and I belted out the Johnny Nash hit on our ascent of Little Haystack Mountain, the 1st of the 3 peaks along Franconia Ridge. This ridgeline mystically arches its spine above tree line for 3 miles lending to the most sought after, and undoubtedly the most iconic, 360 degree views in the White Mountains. Not being one for hiking (I know, I know…), I am most anticipatory of the smell of exhaust fumes. This means that I’m within arm’s reach of town. Of an anchovy pie. Of ginger ale. Of electricity. This said, I’ve dreamt of ambling along this winding pavé since I had learned of the existence of the Appalachian Trail and one’s ability to hike thru. I had studied the reels of YouTubers documenting their time on this very ridge as I contemplated my own attempt. The thought of me, ME, Sarah Elizabeth Robison, having resigned from my earning potential, living outdoors for upwards of 6 months, nearly walking the entire length of the Eastern Seaboard, to find myself walking this line? Huh uh. Not a chance in hell. No way. Yes way. On September 9th, I found myself at mile 1822.9 of my very own Northbound thru hike of the Appalachian Trail at the mouth of the Franconia Ridge. With a visibility of 6 feet. At best. Damn. The fog was so dense that we were going to have difficulty maintaining our sense of direction, let alone seeing the Presidentials or the Kinsmans. Control what you can and accept what you can’t, I repeated over and over with internal dialogue. Similar to what a bride must do when her garden wedding meets a tropical storm. I was wearing my disappointment, but fictional future plans to return to the Ridge next season began to dance in my head.

READ MORE ON SARAH'S BLOG

CRNAs Applaud HHS for Emergency Order Renewal

View Health Alert Online here.

Renewal of Determination That A Public Health Emergency Exists

As a result of the continued consequences of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, on this date and after consultation with public health officials as necessary, I, Xavier Becerra, Secretary of Health and Human Services, pursuant to the authority vested in me under section 319 of the Public Health Service Act, do hereby renew, effective April 21, 2021, the January 31, 2020, determination by former Secretary Alex M. Azar II, that he previously renewed on April 21, 2020, July 23, 2020, October 2, 2020, and January 7, 2021, that a public health emergency exists and has existed since January 27, 2020, nationwide. April 15, 2021 /s/

_____________________________ _____________________________

DATE Xavier Becerra

CRNAs Looking for Opportunities to Help Pa. with Vaccination Program

Pennsylvania’s certified registered nurse anesthetists (CRNAs) possess unique skillsets that have made our professionals critical to the state’s response to the health-care crisis caused by COVID-19. So many of you have worked long and hard to meet the growing demands of this pandemic.

Because of your commitment to patient health, many of you want to do even more.

CRNAs have been reaching out to the Pennsylvania Association of Nurse Anesthetists (PANA) to examine ways our profession may be able to help the state implement and potentially expand its vaccination program by offering to support clinics or providing volunteers. With our high level of education and training, CRNAs are perfectly suited for the task at hand.

PANA has had discussions with the commonwealth during this critical juncture to offer our services and make sure they know about our willingness to take on a bigger role.

Unfortunately, at this early stage of the vaccine rollout and based on available supplies, the first phases of the program are locked in place. We will continue to work with the state on future opportunities as vaccinations progress in the weeks and months ahead.

If you want to make sure the state knows you are available to help, the Department of Health is encouraging individuals to register on Pennsylvania’s online registry for medical and non-medical volunteers: https://www.serv.pa.gov/.

If you want to stay on top of the work PANA is doing to offer its assistant, and any future opportunities that may arise from our work with the state, please visit https://www.pana.org/page/vaccineprovidercommitment.

Please note that these are two separate databases, and by signing up via the PANA site you are not adding yourself to a pool of volunteers. More information will be shared at a later date when it becomes available.

All of us at PANA are so proud of the work being done by CRNAs and SRNAs around the state, and we are so grateful that so many of you reached out to the association about your ideas on ways to help with the vaccination program. We have the same shared goals and will do all we can to help you so you can fulfill your mission to help others.