By Laura Gasque
University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Nursing Associate Professor and Nurse Anesthesia DNP Pathway Director Susan McMullan, PhD, CRNA, CNE, CHSE, FAANA, FAAN, is President of the National Board of Certification and Recertification of Nurse Anesthetists. The NBCRNA is the national credentialing and recredentialing organization for the more than 60,000 Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists in the U.S.
“It is an absolute honor to assume the role of NBCRNA Board President,” McMullan said. “The NBCRNA has significant and exciting initiatives on the horizon that reaffirm our commitment to support lifelong learning among CRNAs, and to continually improve patient safety. I am eager to work together with the Executive Committee, Board of Directors, the NBCRNA CEO and the rest of the NBCRNA staff to help achieve those goals.”
This past year, McMullan served as NBCRNA Vice President. She also served two terms on the NBCRNA board, where she has served on and chaired multiple committees, including the Leadership, Development and Nominations, Finance, Communications and has served as the board liaison to the Evaluation and Research Advisory Committee for more than three years.
McMullan has been a CRNA for over 30 years, with clinical experience in all forms of anesthesia. She has more than 10 years of experience as a nurse anesthesia didactic and simulation educator and program director. In addition to receiving nearly $1 million in HRSA traineeship grant funding, she has received an additional $50,000 in AANA Foundation Doctoral, Post-Doctoral Fellowship, General Grants and intramural funding for her work on nurse anesthesia and patient safety.
“At the UAB School of Nursing, we are preparing diverse leaders who excel in practice, scholarship and education in Alabama, nationally and internationally; this aligns well with the mission of the NBCRNA, to promote patient safety through credentialing programs that support lifelong learning,” McMullan said.
In 2023, she received the American Association of Nurse Anesthesiology Helen Lamb Outstanding Educator Award. In 2022, she was named a Fellow of AANA and a Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing. In 2021, the Alabama Association of Nurse Anesthetists presented McMullan with the Outstanding Advocacy and Service to the CRNA Profession Award.
