Since its organization in 1931, the AANA has placed its responsibilities to the public above or equal to its responsibilities to its membership. The association has produced education and practice standards, implemented a certification process for nurse anesthetists (1945) and developed an accreditation program for nurse anesthesia education (1952). It was a leader in forming multidisciplinary councils with public representation to fulfill the profession's autonomous credentialing functions.
Today, more than 42,000 CRNAs administer 32 million anesthetics in the United States each year. In addition, CRNAs administer anesthesia for all types of surgical cases, from the simplest to the most complex. CRNAs are the primary anesthesia professionals in rural America; in some states CRNAs are the sole providers in nearly 100 percent of the rural hospitals. CRNAs work in every setting in which anesthesia is delivered: traditional hospital surgical suites and obstetrical delivery rooms, ambulatory surgical centers, and the offices of dentists, podiatrists, and plastic surgeons.