Governor John Bel Edwards has reappointed Laura S. Bonanno, DNP, CRNA, Nurse Anesthesia Program Director and Associate Professor of Clinical Nursing at LSU Health New Orleans School of Nursing, to the Louisiana State Board of Nursing. Bonanno’s current term on the Board became effective on January 1, 2017, and runs through December 31, 2020. Her term as President of the Louisiana State Board of Nursing also began on January 1, 2017.
The Louisiana State Board of Nursing was created to safeguard the life and health of the citizens of Louisiana by assuring persons practicing as registered nurses and advanced practice registered nurses are competent and safe. The Board licenses, regulates, evaluates and helps to further develop nurses practicing in Louisiana, as well as identifies performance indicators for each major function, including educational programs, practice standards and compliance processes for nurses and student nurses.
Bonanno, also a practicing Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist at University Medical Center (LSU Health New Orleans’ major teaching hospital), has been awarded millions of dollars in grant support by the Health Resources & Services Administration for everything from scholarships for disadvantaged students to nurse anesthesia traineeships and advanced nursing education. She has conducted research on interprofessional teamwork; high fidelity, simulation-based operating room team training; effectiveness of teamwork and communication in simulated critical care code scenarios; improving the effectiveness and safety of general anesthesia and work culture including how fatigue may affect patient care. She is the author or co-author of papers in peer-reviewed journals such as the Journal of Nursing Education and Practice, International Journal of Evidence-Based Health Care, Nursing Education Perspectives, the Journal of the American College of Surgeons and The JBI Database of Systemic Reviews and Implementation Reports.