Jan Stewart Memorial Wellness Lecture Grief, Growth and Transformation: Tools for Navigating Loss

Janet R. Stewart, CRNA, ARNP was the 1999-2000 AANA President. Following Jan’s 2002 accidental overdose death, increased recognition of the occupational risk of substance use disorder for anesthesia professionals became the impetus for the AANA wellness initiative in 2004, which was the beginning for today’s Health & Wellness program. Since then, each Annual Congress features a Jan Stewart Wellness Memorial Lecture to support CRNA/SRNA well-being and raise awareness to prevent substance use disorder. This year, the 17th in the Jan Stewart series, is presented by Jan’s daughter Sarah Stewart Gomes and Jodi Cohen to look at the physical and emotional impact of grief and bring light to strategies to navigate through pain and grief. (For more info: www.AANA.com/JanStewart.)

Sarah Stewart Gomes, the daughter of Jan Stewart, AANA President 1999-2000, will share how she found opportunity for healing and growth after her mother’s unexpected accidental self-administered overdose of sufentanil in 2002. Sarah chose to share her mother’s story with the anesthesia community and take on the very serious epidemic of Substance Use Disorder within the profession. Her mother’s loss became the impetus of the AANA wellness initiative in 2004 and contributed to the expansion of the AANA Peer Assistance Program.

In the final portion of the presentation, Jodi Cohen, an award-winning journalist and health researcher, will share her personal journey through grief after her 12-year-old son, Max, and his two friends, were killed in a tragic car accident. Through the process of personal trial and error, Cohen discovered actionable, effective strategies for calming the nervous system, so that she could navigate through ongoing personal and legal challenges in a pro-active, clear-headed space, instead of a reactive fear-based state. Cohen will share her strategies and tactics that can be applied immediately. (1 Class A CE)