President-Elect Candidate:
Matt Adams (click to read bio)
Secretary/Treasurer Candidates:
Michael Hartman
Kendra Williams
Board Member Candidates (2):
Cheryl Brown
Dan Bunker
Colby Jacobson
Stacy LeSueur
Eddy Steele
Shane Syme
UANA 2016-2018 Candidates
President-Elect Candidate:
Matt Adams
My name is Matt Adams. I grew up in Layton, Utah. I attended Weber State University where I received my RN and BSN degrees. I went to graduate school at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. I received a Master of Nurse Anesthesia degree in 2002. I worked for the Mayo Clinic, St. Mary’s Hospital for about 9 months after graduating until I moved to American Fork, Utah. I worked for Lone Peak Anesthesia at American Fork and Orem Community Hospitals for 11 years. I then became an independent contractor and worked for about a year at Central Utah Surgical Center in Provo. About a year ago, I had the opportunity to move to rural Utah and I currently work at Bear River Valley Hospital in Tremonton, UT as one of three Nurse Anesthetists that provide the anesthesia services for the hospital. I feel that my job experience gives me a unique qualification to hear and understand all of the needs of the CRNAs in our state. Whether you work in an anesthesia care team, in a CRNA only practice or as an independent contractor, if you work urban or rural, I understand the needs of these working environments and will listen to you and your concerns.
I have served as a Board member for the UANA for the past 2 years. I appreciate your vote and support that allowed me to do this. I have learned many valuable things working with our current leadership. I have seen a lot of positive accomplishments happening with our association that I would like to be able to continue working on. For these reasons, I would love to continue to serve you as President-Elect for the UANA. I believe that we can work in a positive manner to ensure the progression of our profession, and to maintain good relationships with all members of the medical community. I would like to play a role in advancing the growth of nurse anesthesia in Utah to ensure that there is ample opportunity to practice in this state. I will do all I can to help maintain the high standards we employ as Nurse Anesthetists, and ensure that we will have access to all essential resources needed to practice safely and effectively in our profession.
Secretary/Treasurer Candidates:
Michael Hartman
My name is Michael Hartman. I’ve been nominated as a candidate for the position of secretary/treasurer for the UANA. As a high school student I had many opportunities to shadow my neighbor who was a CRNA. I decided this was the career path I wanted to pursue and shortly after began nursing school with the end goal of becoming a CRNA. I received my ADN and BSN degrees from Weber State University. I then obtained a Master of Science degree in Nurse Anesthesiology from Mount Marty College and began practicing as a CRNA in 2001. For the past 15 years I have lived and worked in Vernal, Utah. I am currently partnered with 3 other CRNAs in a CRNA only group.
As a business /practice owner and chief anesthetist I’m very aware of the obligations necessary to manage a business. I have also been very active in working with the UANA regarding the many recent legislative issues concerning CRNAs in Utah. Unfortunately, I believe we will continue to see efforts to hinder our anesthesia practices. This will require a united effort as CRNAs. I would appreciate your support and will look forward to serving in this capacity in our state association.
Kendra Williams
I would like to introduce myself as a nominee for the Secretary/Treasurer position with the UANA. I was born and raised in Utah, I attended Weber State University for my undergraduate degree. I worked at McKay Dee Hospital in the ER and ICU before I was accepted into Westminster’s MSNA program. After graduation, I commuted to work in El Paso, TX at University Medical Center, while working in outpatient surgical centers in both Utah and Washington. I am currently working in Utah as an independent contractor around the Wasatch Front. I have a wonderful family that has supported me and helped me to become the CRNA I am today.
I love being back in Utah exclusively, which has given me the opportunity to be considered for this position. As a student, I was able to attend the Mid-Year Assembly and speak with Senator Hatch as well Representative Chaffetz regarding reimbursement and rural access. I want to continue to be involved in educating the public about our profession and keeping abreast of the current issues we are facing as CRNAs. If I am elected, I will perform all duties to the best of my ability and keep communication open in order to further the development of our organization and profession. Thank you for your consideration.
Board Member Candidates:
Cheryl Brown
I grew up in Provo Utah. I am the 7th of nine girls and both my parents are saints because of it! I attended Westminster College and received my BSN. I worked in several units after graduating including Primary Children’s Neurotrauma Unit, and Utah Valley Hospital’s cardiac ICU. I received my anesthesia training through Westminster College and am currently working for a variety of facilities including Lone Peak Anesthesia and Granite Peaks Endoscopy. I have been married for one year to my loving and kind husband and am currently living in the Sandy area.
Growing up in a household of a father who was a district court judge, a mother who is a mediator and three sisters that are attorneys I developed a love for politics and for involvement in the community. During Anesthesia school I had the opportunity to serve as the student UANA representative and loved every minute of it. I worked closely with the board members in lobbying for legislation and assisting in the efforts made toward improving our organization. I have been nominated anonymously, however would love the opportunity to serve our organization and our community. I feel we have a tremendous amount of quality to offer and am excited to see where the future takes us.
Dan Bunker
My name is Dan Bunker and it has been a pleasure working with the UANA over the last 6 years. The time I have spent as secretary/treasurer, president-elect, and most recently, president of the UANA has been a very informative and educational experience. I feel as though I have worked very hard to represent the interests of our association and would like to continue to use the knowledge that I have gained to serve our members.
Over the last 6 years, we have successfully fought multiple times to keep AAs out of the state, we were instrumental in increasing our Medicaid reimbursement from one of the lowest in the West to one of the highest, and have continually defended our practice from multiple fronts.
I have been a CRNA for nearly 8 years and have practiced in multiple settings within the state. I am happily married and have four children. I love to spend time road and mountain biking. I would appreciate your vote and look forward to a strong relationship with our great members.
Colby Jacobson
My name is Colby Jacobson, I’m excited for the prospect of being a board member and continue to serve the CRNAs of Utah and nurse anesthesia as a profession. I live in Utah County with my wife and five children. I have been a resident of Utah my entire life and love what there is offered here. I enjoy the outdoors and spending time with my family. If I’m not at work…… I’m on a mountain, on a horse, playing baseball or at a wrestling tournament with my family.
I currently practice in Utah and Salt Lake counties and absolutely love my work. I worked as a masters prepared RN for nearly 17 years in the ICU setting prior to attending my MSNA program. I do all types of anesthesia and have practiced independently and with a group since graduating from anesthesia school.
I have recently served for 2 years as the state reimbursement specialist and have been able to serve and assist the CRNAs of Utah in many capacities including fundraising, legislative support, and national representation. I have a strong desire to continue to serve the CRNA’s of Utah by preserving and proliferating our practice and maintaining our standard of living and rights as the best trained and efficient anesthesia providers on earth!
Stacy LeSueur
My name is Stacy LeSueur, and have lived in Utah all my life. I am currently living in Cottonwood Heights with my husband and son, we are huge sports fans (basketball and football). I graduated from the University of Utah with my
Bachelors of Science in Nursing in 2005, worked at LDS Hospital on the Medical/Surgical Intensive Care Unit until 2008. I graduated in 2010 from Westminster College with a Masters of Science in Nurse Anesthesia. I work in many different settings, from office based anesthesia to surgical centers and hospitals. In addition to working in Utah, I also travel to West Texas.
In 2007-2008 I had the opportunity to be the Code Blue Committee Chair for LDS Hospital and a part of the CPR Committee for Intermountain Health Care. I enjoyed being on those committees and getting involved. I feel that I could be a voice for the CRNA’s of Utah, and would strive to better our practice.
Eddy Steele
I am originally from Salt Lake City and I am happy to be able to continue to work here as a CRNA. I graduated with my ADN from Salt Lake Community College and started working in the NICU at LDS Hospital. I worked in the NICU for 4 years and completed my BSN online through BYU-Idaho. I was accepted into the Nurse Anesthesia program at Westminster College and graduated with my MSNA as class president in 2010. After graduation I accepted a CRNA position at the VA Hospital in Salt Lake City and have enjoyed my time serving our Vets.
I have served on the health and wellness committee for the AANA and I thoroughly enjoyed being part of our national organization. I am interested in being on our state board because I would like to be more active in our local
organization. Living in Salt Lake City I have had the opportunity to meet with our lobbyists and many of our legislators about the future of CRNA’s and about the services we have been trained to provide. I would like to learn even more about how I can help politically advance the future of CRNA’s in Utah and be able to mentor other CRNA’s on how they can do the same. I think this is an exciting time for CRNA’s in Utah and that we have the opportunity for our profession to grow and expand in Utah. I would like to be part of helping bring that about that growth. Thank you for your consideration.
Shane Syme
My name is Shane Syme. I’m originally from the Ogden area. I attended Weber State University where I received my ADN and BSN degrees. I worked on the surgical floor at McKay Dee Hospital as well as the Coronary ICU at LDS Hospital before moving to Oakland, California to attend nurse anesthesia school at Samuel Merritt College. I received my MSN degree and graduated from Samuel Merritt in 2008. I then took a job in Henderson, Nevada where I worked for a little over a year before moving back home for a job with Rocky Mountain Anesthesia at Ogden Regional Medical Center where I’ve been working for the last 6.5 years. I’ve been married to a gorgeous gal for almost 12 years and we have 2 amazing boys.
I don’t know who nominated me for this position but I’m thankful for the gentle nudge to get more involved in our profession. I love being a CRNA and I believe our profession is important to the communities in which we work and live. I know that it is important that we continue to grow as a profession and that we protect what we’ve worked so hard to earn as CRNAs. I would be honored to serve in this capacity and to do what I can to further the progress of our practice here in Utah.