NYSANA Board of Directors & StaffThe NYSANA Board of Directors consists of nine active members (CRNAs) including 5 officers (president, immediate past-president, vice-president, secretary, and treasurer) and 4 directors. Term for president, president-elect and immediate past president is 1 year. Secretary, treasurer and directors serve 2-year terms. The Board of Directors also includes four resident registered nurse anesthetists (RRNAs). These associate members serve as non-voting representatives appointed by the Board on an annual basis to serve a one-year term. All board members are volunteers. A paid executive director, executive assistant, professional lobbyist, lawyer, and PR firm support the work of the board. The board is also supported through the work of NYSANA committees. The NYSANA nominating committee is responsible for seeking eligible active members of the association who are qualified to run for board positions. The candidates selected for inclusion on the ballot are presented at the NYSANA business meeting, held in the spring each year. To reach the nominating committee chair to discuss a position, please email [email protected]. Elections occur during the summer, usually via an electronic ballot. The newly elected board members assume duties after the Annual Meeting of the Membership, held each fall. To learn more about the election procedure, please visit our Bylaws. Consider the following benefits of running for a board positionPROFESSIONAL BENEFITS
SERVICE-ORIENTED BENEFITS
TRAVEL AND CEU BENEFITS
Next steps to becoming a board memberReady to get involved? Please reach out to [email protected] to discuss opportunities and connect with our current nominating committee chair, Giovanna Mahar. Additional members include Michael Greco and Mark Blazey.
2022-2023 NYSANA Board of Directors & Staff
David began his medical career as a U. S. Army medic. He completed his BSN in 1988and in physical rehabilitation settings as well as Neurological, Trauma and OB ICU. He attended CRNA school at Texas Wesleyan University in Fort Worth, graduating in 2002. He and his Texas-born wife moved to New York in 2015 and David is currently employed with New York-Presbyterian Lower Manhattan Hospital. The Secretary position at NYSANA has been David’s first foray into the political aspect of the CRNA profession. The critical need for CRNAs to promote their profession to an unaware public and to gain, maintain and protect their position in the marketplace has made a deep impression on him. He hopes to spend many years working for the benefit of the CRNAs of New York and the rest of the country.
MARK BLAZEY, MS, CRNA, DNP ![]() CHRISTINA CONGDON, CRNA
Rachel received her BSN from SUNY Plattsburgh in 1998. She spent the next 13 years working in the Cardiac ICU at St. Peter’s Hospital in Albany, NY as well as the Emergency Room at Saratoga Hospital. She pursued her degree in Nurse Anesthesia at Albany Medical College and graduated with her MSN in 2013 where she received the Geraldine MacDowell Award for outstanding academic and clinical achievement. After graduation, Rachel worked at St. Peter’s Hospital for the Anesthesia Group of Albany. In 2017, she returned to Albany Medical College’s Center for Nurse Anesthesiology as an Assistant Professor and Clinical Coordinator, sharing her knowledge and her love for teaching. In 2020, she completed her doctorate and earned her DNAP from Central Connecticut State. You can find Rachel in the classroom sharing her love for teaching, in the operating room, traveling to lacrosse games or spending time with her family. She joined the NYSANA board in 2022 and is passionate about advocating for the CRNA profession.
Jee-Hong Min graduated from SUNY Geneseo with a BA in Psychology and a minor in Piano Pedagogy. She shadowed best friend’s mother (CRNA) in senior year and decided to become a CRNA. After graduating from the University of Rochester’s accelerated nursing program in 2016, Jee-Hong spent 2 years as a new grad SICU RN at the University of Rochester Medical Center Strong Memorial Hospital and 3 years as a ICU float and Rapid Response RN at Columbia University Irving Medical Center. She is currently serving as the President of Class of 2023 at Columbia University’s Nurse Anesthesia Program as well as Treasurer of the NEASRNA for two consecutive years. In her rare free time, she enjoys playing the piano, painting, and spoiling her dog Loki.
With a background in music and photography, Lorenzo Sanguedolce transitioned into nursing in 2017, receiving a BS from SUNY Downstate. During his undergraduate course, he served as the Nursing Co-Director of the student-run Anne Kastor Brooklyn Free Clinic, which provides comprehensive free healthcare services to uninsured and underserved community members. Gaining certification in ambulatory care and post-anesthesia care at Mount Sinai’s New York Eye and Ear Infirmary, he has been working as a CCRN in the ICU at Rochester’s Highland Hospital since the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Lorenzo is currently a first-year student in the CRNA DNP program at SUNY at Buffalo. He is the father of two joyful and energetic children, and he enjoys rock climbing in his free time.
Tyler Grant graduated with his BSN from Le Moyne College in Syracuse NY in 2015. He then went on to complete a bachelor’s degree in biomedical science with a minor in chemistry from SUNY Plattsburgh while working as a nurse on a cardiac short stay unit for three years. He then went on to work in a cardiovascular intensive care unit at St. Joseph’s Hospital Health Center in Syracuse, NY for about two years. Tyler has been a Kiwanis member since 2016 and enjoys giving back to the community when he can. In his free time, Tyler prefers to spend time with his friends and family. Tyler currently studies at Albany Medical College in the Nurse Anesthesiology Program with anticipated graduation in November of 2023. Jack Pender, Hofstra University
MOLLY METZGER Accent on Management provides professional services to 5 CRNA state organizations in addition to more than 20 additional professional associations. Looking to connect with a member of the NYSANA Board of Directors? Contact the NYSANA Office for contact information. Affiliate OrganizationsOrganizational Affiliate of American Nurses Association New York Friend of Association of Veteran Affairs Nurse Anesthetists (AVANA) |